Today, there the sources of knowledge and learning are endless. One of the fastest-growing markets is that of learning and educational apps, across all age groups. There has been a considerable rise in the download and usage of educational apps during the period of pandemic in 2020.
According to the latest reported quarter in 2020, the Apple App Store had 470 million educational app downloads, whereas users downloaded466 million educational apps via Google Play. Both platforms had their respective highest reported educational app downloads in this quarter.
With the easy access to smartphones and the Internet, access to such online resources have become easy. Hence, parents and educationists have been using learning apps for their kids and students. One can imagine the magnanimity of the usage by the fact that among 89% of smartphone users who download apps, 50% are used for learning.
Leaning apps can be used for various purposes like introduction of sound or letters to infants and toddlers, information gathering, teaching concepts and facts, reading and even writing.
Technavio, a market research firm that recently released its latest 2020-2024 research on the education apps market, predicts that it will expand by $46.9 billion with a CAGR of about 26%.
How e-learning apps are beneficial for you?
Convenience- Apps can be conveniently accesses anytime, anywhere.
Learning approaches- Online apps are full of various learning approaches like gamification, etc.
Cost Effectiveness- Many of the good learning apps are free and some are paid as well. But, since one app encompasses many things under one roof, it becomes cost effective.
Engagement- Almost all the content in these online apps is made engaging to grab the attention of the age-specific users.
Interactivity- Most of these apps are interactive to facilitate better learning and are made interactive so that the child can learn in a fun way.
Customization- One of the important features is that the content can be customized and accessed according to your need and requirement of the child.
Tracking- Also, the improvement or progress can be tracked online through these apps through different levels and parameters.
Here are some of the top learning and educational apps that can be a good resource for kids.
· Starfall- This is a digital learning app for kids that teaches letters, words, and sounds to children in an animated language. The free version of this app is quite remarkable with access to a number of useful resources. However, the paid version involves premium access to arts curriculum that helps children in mastering math and social science skills. From allowing your kids great memorization to having fun while learning, this app knows how to make the most of their screen time.
· Teach your monster to read- Teach Your Monster to Read is an award-winning series of games that's helped millions of children learn to read. It covers the first two years of reading, from matching letters and sounds to enjoying books.
· Lingo Kids- This is the perfect app for kids 2-8 years old for reading and fun learning. They have Basic and Paid plans.
· Duolingo-PC Magazine awarded this app the Editors' Choice for Language Learning. It's full of bite-sized lessons geared toward visual learners. Kids (and adults) win badges for words learned and other achievements. This app is best for ages 6 and up and allows kids to learn Spanish (or French, German, Portuguese, Italian, and much more) in no time.
· Khan Academy- This is one of the most popular math apps providing a free, fun educational program for children ages 2 to 8 years. It was developed in collaboration with learning experts at Stanford and aligned with the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework and Common Core Standards. It also focuses on the whole child and incorporates social emotional learning skills.
· Busy Shapes- Busy Shapes is an app aligned with the Montessori method of self-directed, hands-on learning. It is good for the young kids who are just starting to interact with technology. The app is designed to develop young children’s logic and reasoning skills by learning about how objects relate to each other and how they can manipulate them.
· Epic- This amazing learning app contains over 40,000 books, audiobooks, and videos for children that can be accessed from several devices like computers, laptops, mobile phones, and others. It is a great platform for educators and home-schooling parents to encourage kids for interactive reading.
· DragonBox- This is an amazing app to both learn and teach Maths. It teaches kids with the help of games and exciting activities. There are no quizzes and assessments so they don’t even realize that they are being taught.
· PBS Kids- PBS has created hundreds of games based on their popular children's shows. The games for each show fit in with their learning theme. Learn math with Peg + Cat. Explore creature powers with the Kratt Brothers. Or go on a space adventure with the kids from Ready, Jet Go and many others
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· ABCmouse.com- It is one of the best kids learning apps for young kids. It was created for educating younger children from ages 2 to 8, helping them learn and master everything from letter recognition to reading to math and more. The curriculum involves story videos, puzzles, engaging activities, songs, and a lot more in the field of math, science, art, and reading. Parents can always change the level of learning to ensure that the kid is not playing around with the same skills.
Though, these online learning apps are helpful, but long screen time and unsupervised access should be avoided at any cost. One must always start with books for kids, and these can be extra add-ons, especially only when someone is there to supervise. Moreover, parents need to check the right type of content that is suitable for their child and provide accordingly.