The iPhone Mom

My Silly Sounds Farm app has given me the best case of giggles that I’ve had in a long, long time. Let me explain why. When I receive promo codes I usually put the apps on my iPhone or iPad right away, even though I might not get a chance to use the app for a week or so. My kids know to check for new apps and they usually get to the children’s apps before I do. This was the case with My Silly Sounds Farm. It’s been on my iPad for a couple of weeks but I had no idea my son had been using it. He usually tells me when he’s found one that he really likes and I know for a fact he really enjoyed this app. Here’s my proof. I went to test the app today and first of all, it’s adorable. I love the graphics and the animals are completely appealing. The idea is to tap on an animal to hear it’s sound. By default the animal sound is one that matches the animal but the fun comes when you record your own silly sounds and then play them back. Each animal screen has a big red button that you tap when you want to record a new sound. The recording is then integrated into the app and when you tap on that animal you’re going to hear your recording. So unknown to me my son had gone through the entire app and recorded his own animal sounds. But they weren’t really sounds, it was more animals doing monologues and sometimes dialogues. And it was hilarious! His imagination has taken off over the past few months and this was a much needed laugh as I went through animal after animal listening to his random creativity.

When you’ve gone through and played with all the animal recordings you can move them around on the screen to create a farm scene. You can tap on each animal and get them talking all at the same time – it’s quite the ruckus! Reminded me of dinnertime at our house. This is a wonderful app for young children and it’s obviously been a hit at my house!

Just for kicks, I’ve taped a few of my favorite animals as voiced by my son. Keep in mind he’s five and the thoughts are at times random. This is probably a mother’s bias but his recordings made the app a big winner for me. I highly recommend this app if you have a preschooler in your house. The video quality isn’t the best, I put the whole thing together with iMovie on my iPhone and I’m quite certain my settings weren’t the best. I’m also a YouTube novice. So don’t judge the app’s graphics by my shoddy workmanship. One last thing, when he’s talking about the pig nose looking like a “pause” – he does mean pause and not paws. And he’s spot on.

I tested out the iPad version of My Silly Sounds Farm but there is also a separate iPhone version available. I have a promo code to give away for the iPhone version. Leave a comment and I’ll pick a winner tonight.

Price when Reviewed: $1.99

See the app in iTunes

Seller: Sequel Creative, LLC

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review

I am absolutely delighted to let you all know about the app Shakespeare in Bits: Romeo & Juliet. Delighted! This app review is for anyone out there with a Junior High or High Schooler who will be tackling Shakespeare this coming school year. I can’t remember when I first had to read Shakespeare in school but I’ve always enjoyed and marveled at his works. His creativity and ability to shape sentences amazes me. But….I know not everyone feels that way and the thought of dealing with one of Shakespeare’s plays gives many students nightmares. This is why I’m very excited to review Shakespeare in Bits. If you’ve got a student who is going to take on Romeo & Juliet this year this app could be a sanity saver. For parent and child!

I’m not even quite sure where to begin because there are so many wonderful things about Shakespeare in Bits. I think I’ll try breaking it down by the differentbuttons that show up at the bottom of the screen and we’ll go from there.

Play - The Play button takes you to the beginning of the Play, in this case Romeo & Juliet. On the left side of the screen is a movie. On the right side is the play’s text. When you play the movie you’ll be viewing an animated reenactment of the text on the right side of the screen. This text will be highlighted as it is narrated in the movie. The animation includes narration featuring Michael Sheen and Kate Beckinsale. It’s taken from —— You can always read the text without watching the movie.

As you read through the text you will notice that some phrases are highlighted by boxes. If you tap on these phrases the words will change into more modern language. For example, in the prologue the words read “Two households, both alike in nobility.” Tapping on the word nobility will change it to “dignity” so the line now reads “Two households both alike in dignity.” It makes a little more sense that way. In the margin next to the text are tiny circles with the letters “L” and “H” in them. Tap on “L” and you’ll see an explanation about the language being used in that section. Tap on “H” to read about the history that relates to the lines. I think these features are absolutely fantastic.

In the Play section you can read the play’s text or see notes on the section. These notes are an explanation of what is going on it that particular scene. You can also view a synopsis of the scene. All of this puts a modern explanation on Shakespeare and makes the play easier to understand.

Scenes - The Scenes button pulls up a scene index. Here you are allowed to choose an image that will launch a scene in the play. This will allow you to start the play from any point that you wish.

Cast – This is probably my favorite part of the app and I think the developers made a brilliant move here. Tapping the Cast button brings up a list of the characters in Romeo & Juliet. Tap on a characters name and you will see their name, age, main characteristics and associates. Tap on an associates name and you’ll be shown their character information. You will be able to read a summary of that character’s actions in the play. There is also an illustration from the animated movie so you can identify the character visually. In addition to the cast information there is a relationship map. This visually maps out how all of the characters are connected to each other. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful!

Analysis - The analysis section is broken down into several sections. There is the plot summary, themes from the play, key imagery and notable quotes. Information about William Shakespeare is also included here.

Shakespeare in Bits: Romeo & Juliet is available in an iPhone or iPad version. I tested out the iPad version and it is slightly different from the iPhone due to the screen size. In the Play section I mention the movie appears next to the text on the screen. This is how it will be on the iPad, it won’t show up that way in the iPhone version. The content is the same but it’s presented in a different way. The team behind Shakespeare in Bits is currently working on Macbeth and they’re planning to launch the app around November. I think they’ve created a tremendous tool for students and I hope the app’s do very well so they can continue to develop more plays.

The iPhone and iPad versions both have a free version. They only contain the beginning of Romeo & Juliet but they will give you a look at what you’ll get with the full version. I highly encourage anyone who’s going to work with this play to give the apps a trial.

Price when Reviewed: $4.99 (iPhone) – $11.99 (iPad) – sale prices through September 2nd.

See the iPhone app in iTunes

See the iPad app in iTunes

Seller: Mindconnex Learning, Ltd.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review

There are several things that I very much enjoyed about ABC Wildlife! You begin using the app by choosing a letter from the alphabet. Once you’ve chosen your letter the app will display a photograph of an animal that begins with that letter. The

letter and the name of the animal also appear on the screen. Tap on the letter and you’ll hear it’s name. You’ll also notice a play button. Tap on this button to watch video footage of the animal. I enjoyed seeing photographs of real animals and the video footage. I’d never seen an armadillo in action before I tried out ABC Wildlife.

The next thing that I liked about this app was the way you navigate through it. You can return to the alphabet screen and tap on letters to see other animals. Or, you can tap on the letters that appear in the animal names. For example, if I chose “G” I would find a gorilla on my screen. Now I could tap on any of the letters in the word “gorilla”. If I chose “L” then I would get a picutre of a leopard. If I tapped on the “O” in leopard I’d be taken to an octopus. And so on. There are multiple animals for the different letters (except for Z) so you won’t continue seeing a lion every time you tap the “L”.

The realistic photographs, videos of animals in action and unique app navigation make ABC Wildlife! a great educational app for preschoolers.

Price when Reviewed: $.99

See the app in iTunes

Seller: Peapod Labs LLC

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review purposes.

I love Math Bingo! And even more importantly my kids are enjoying it too. To find a math app that my kids enjoy is terrific!

Here’s how Math Bingo works. First you’ll enter in your player name and choose an avatar to represent yourself. The game supports up to six different players. Then you’ll choose whether you want to play with addition, subtraction, multiplication or division. Finally you’ll choose a level of difficulty – easy, medium or hard. Now you’re ready to play! Math Bingo gives you a bingo board with a twist. At the top is a math problem, it will be an addition problem if you chose to play with addition, or subtraction, etc.. In the board’s squares are 25 different numbers. At least one of them is the answer to your problem. To play you’ve got to solve the math problem and tap on the square with the answer. Then you’ll be given another problem to solve. When you’ve lined up five squares in a row you get Bingo and you win the game. Strategy comes into play when you have the same numbers in different squares around the board. You’ll want to choose the one that will be most likely to earn you a bingo.

Math Bingo uses “bugs” as markers. They’re cute and animated and they add charm to the game. Each time you win a round of Math Bingo you also collect a different bug. You can view them from your player profile and tilt and tap your iPad to move them around. They bounce off each other and make noises, my son really gets a kick out of this part.

I found Math Bingo to be completely charming and I think it’s a must have app if you’ve got a child who needs a little extra help with their math skills. I’d say the best age range for the app is from late first grade to fifth grade. Love, love, love this one!

**Update 8/13 – Math Bingo now has a bonus game – Bingo Bug Bungee! After you play a round of Math Bingo you can play this bonus game. In Bingo Bug Bungee! you launch bugs onto the screen and they bounce around collecting coins. The bugs are adorable and it’s a fun little break from math. The bonus game is a fantastic addition to this terrific app.

*Math Bingo works on either the iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch. I tried it out on my iPad.

Price when Reviewed: $.99

Seller: ABCya.com

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review purposes.

Paperless makes it very easy to create “To Do” lists on your iPhone. The first time you use the app you’ll find simple, easy to follow instructions that walk you through the app’s features. I found the tutorial to be extremely helpful and I loved the fact that it didn’t force me to read through how-to instructions. It was a practical, hands on tutorial. Paperless lets you create as many lists as you’d like and you can sort them alphabetically, create duplicate lists or email them out. When you create each list you can choose an icon to represent it on the main screen. The app also provides a search function where you can enter in a word and Paperless will pull up the lists that contain the word. Finally, the app’s icon (on your home screen) will display a red number which will tell you how many uncompleted items are on your lists. I’ve tried several different list apps and so far Paperless is my favorite. I liked it’s clean design and how easy it is to create and maintain different lists. For me simplicity is key and Paperless is effective and simple at the same time. Wonderful!

If you want to try Paperless for free you can try Paperless Lite. It limits you to 15 items on your lists but will give you an idea of what you can do with the app.

Price when Reviewed: $1.99

See the app in iTunes

Seller: Crush Apps

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review purposes.

EZ Percent is a very handy app for your iPhone. It allows you to enter in a number and then set a percentage. The app then tells you several things about your numbers. It will tell you the result of your original number minus the percentage. You’ll also see the result of your original number plus the percentage. Finally, you can see what number that percentage equals. I’m not sure I’ve explained that as well as I could. This may be the gazillionth time I’ve said this but math isn’t my strongpoint. Which is exactly why I need EZ Percent on my phone. If I’m shopping and something is 30% off but the sales price isn’t marked I can enter in the original price and the 30% and EZ Percent will tell me what my sales price will be. The app is also great for figuring out sales tax or tipping amounts. It’s a simple, straightforward app that does exactly what it says it will and it does it very well.

Price when Reviewed: $.99

See the app in iTunes

Seller: Reem Almugbel

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review purposes.

Green Eggs & Ham is one of my favorite books to read aloud to my kids. There’s something wonderful about that book and the way it combines simple words to make magic. Oceanhouse Media just released an interactive app version of the story -Hooray! The app opens up with a screen that looks just like the orange cover found on the book. It’s a good sign that this classic story is going to be kept true to form. On the main screen you are given three choices for enjoying the book. You can listen to a read aloud version, complete with sound effects. You can read it to yourself, also with the sound effects but no narration. Or you can choose “auto play” and the story will play through from beginning to end with narration, sound effects and automatic page turning. As the story is narrated the words on the page are highlighted in red. You can tap on individual words to hear them read and highlighted again. As you tap around the screen you’ll be rewarded with sound effects. If you tap on objects or characters their name will appear on the screen in big red letters. If the word also appears in the story’s text then it will also turn red.

Green Eggs & Ham has been wonderfully translated into an app, keeping the story perfect but updating it with just enough interactivity. Can’t wait for the next story!

Green Eggs & Ham is a universal app and will work on both the iPad and iPhone. I tested it out on my iPad.

Price when Reviewed: $3.99

See the app in iTunes

Seller: Oceanhouse Media

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review purposes.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star Preschool Storybook Piano is an adorable app that’s perfectly suited for the preschool crowd. The app combines the song Twinkle Twinkle Little Star with a piano that can be played. There are four different modes to explore in the app. In “Learn the Song” you can learn the notes to play Twinkle Twinkle. The music notes appear at the top of the screen and the keyboard keys light up as the notes are played. You can tap the keys as they light up and play along. In “Play & Sing Along” mode you can also play the song on the piano. This time there are no notes at the top of the screen, instead you’ll see illustrations of the song. The keyboard keys still light up so you can play along. “Karaoke Mode” also lets you play the notes on the keyboard but it also displays the words to Twinkle Twinkle Little Star at the top of the screen so you can sing along. Finally, in “Free Style Mode” there are no keys to follow, you get to make up your own music.

In each mode you can change the instrument that you hear when you play the keyboard. Choices include xylophone, piano, guitar, banjo, bells, flute, harp and (my favorite) farm animals. Each mode will let you record your playing and then listen to it back. Twinkle Twinkle Little Star Preschool Piano is extremely well done and it’s a steal at $.99. I really enjoyed this app!

Price when Reviewed: $.99

Seller: Kiboomo

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review purposes.

LRNthelingo is a fantastic resource for parents of children who are texting or instant messaging their friends. This app explains common texting terms, emoticons and slang terms. As I was browsing through the app I was overwhelmed by all the terms I don’t know and I wondered how in the world they all evolved. LRNthelingo has translations and explanations of what it all means and you can either browse through the app or perform a search. I found this app to be fascinating and I think it’s a must have for parents of older children who want to know what their children are really saying to their friends when they send those silly looking messages.

Price when Reviewed: $.99

Seller: Crabtree+Company, Inc.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review purposes.

e -Nag Reminders gives me the ability to take the reminding part of my mother/wife job to a whole new level. It allows you to send reminders out via text message. The app comes with “Quick e-Nags” that are already typed up and can be chosen with a tap. There are things like “Call me if you need a ride home”, “Don’t forget your mother’s birthday” and “I love you”. You can also add in your own Quick e-Nags and save them for later use. Once you’ve chosen a nag, or typed in your own message, you can schedule when the text message will be sent. Messages can be sent to individuals or groups and can be scheduled to repeat if you like.

There are several things that I really like about e-Nag reminders. The first is the Quick e-Nag library. I never sent text messages before I got my iPhone but it’s so easy to do now I send them frequently. I like the fact that e-Nag gives me text messages that have already been typed in, a nice time saver. I also like having the ability to schedule texts. Sometimes I remember things I need to tell people but at the wrong time, like when I’m lying in bed trying to sleep. Now I can type it up and schedule a text that would be sent at a decent hour when normal people are awake. Lastly, I like being able to send text messages to groups of people. I think this app is a fantastic tool for parents on the go because the need to remind (okay, nag) never really waits does it?

Price when Reviewed: $2.99

Seller: SubaTuba

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review purposes.