Best Educational Apps for Preschoolers & Kids of All Ages

Curious World

Did you know curious children not only do better in school, but go on to become lifelong learners? The Curious World early learning app is a sister company of FamilyEducation and gives your kids access to explore an ever-expanding world of curiosity-building fun. A subscription to this app gives you unlimited access to hundreds of educational games, books, videos and activities updated weekly so your little ones will never be bored.

Ages: 2-7

Price: $7.99 a month after a 7 day trial.

Get it on iTunes

PJ Masks all shout hooray! It's time to be a hero and save the city from the villains, Romeo, Luna Girl, Night Ninja and the Ninjalinos. Your children will learn valuable social lessons like sharing and taking turns as they suit up as Gecko, Owlette or Cat Boy. The app is free, but additional levels cost $7.99.

Plants by Tinybop

Your preschooler will love exploring the environments of the grasslands, desert, and forest in this STEM-aligned app. New species and surprises await in every interactive diorama, and the app is available in over 50 languages.

Ages 4 and up
$1.99 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

Kindergarten Readiness

Getting ready for kindergarten? This app includes an interactive kindergarten readiness checklist for parents, 30 related activities to try with your preschooler (covering early reading, math, social, and self-care skills), and five in-app games that help kids learn some key concepts.

Ages 4 & up
$1.99 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch
This app was produced by FamilyEducation.
Download here

Toca Dance

Choose your team of three dancers, customize their costumes, and get grooving to the beat! This app puts your child in charge of his own dance production, from music selection to choreography to special effects. The open gameplay allows your child's imagination to reign supreme in this funky app full of customizations.

Ages 6 and up
$2.99 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

Star Walk

With your mobile device's GPS, Star Walk acts as your own personal telescope, showing you what's located in the night sky right above your head. Your child will be able to spot stars, planets, and constellations invisible to the naked eye. This Apple Design Award winner is great for older kids learning about astronomy, but younger ones will also enjoy a stargazing walk with your help!

Ages 12 and up
$4.99 for Android, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch

Shape Gurus

Shape Gurus introduces your preschooler the world of shapes and colors through a fun, interactive story made up of a series of puzzle games. She'll learn to match shapes and colors, classify different shapes, sort shapes, and other important skills in this brightly colored app that's easy for preschoolers to play on their own.

Ages 2 and up
$1.99 for Android, iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

Motion Math: Pizza!

Ever heard "when am I ever going to use this in real life?" while your kid does his math homework? Motion Math: Pizza! Is one of the best apps for kids out there to teach practical, real-world math and economics skills. In this Children's Technology Review Editor's Choice app that puts your child in charge of a pizzeria, your child will have to buy ingredients, design his pizzas, and set his prices, all of which involve both math and strategy skills. Who's offering the best deal on cheese? What toppings do customers want most? The math skills become more challenging as your child progresses, so the game never gets boring.

Ages 8 and up
$11.99 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

Edoki Academy's Sight Words

If you have a young child just starting school, you're likely very familiar with sight words — those words she's supposed to know just by sight, without sounding them out. Designed with the English Common Core State Standards in mind, this app helps expose your child to these key words and makes studying and committing them to memory fun. The app received a Parent's Choice Silver Award and includes sight words for children in pre-K to grade 3.

Ages 4 and up
$2.99 for Android, iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

Monkey Word School Adventure

Monkey and his jungle pals introduce your child to the core concepts behind reading, phonics, and spelling in this fun-filled adventure. The game automatically adjusts the difficulty level as your child learns, so the app will grow with him. And he'll love getting to add frogs, butterflies, and chameleons to his reward terrarium when he wins.

Ages 3 and up
$1.99 for Android, iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

Hoopa City 2

Let your child's imagination run wild in Hoopa City 2, where she can build her own city from the ground up. Will she build a spiraling metropolis filled with skyscrapers or a relaxing beach resort? With different materials to combine to create new buildings, the possibilities are endless. And once she's built her city, she can explore each building with a variety of fun characters.

Ages 6 and up
$3.99 for Android, iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

DragonBox Algebra 5+

DragonBox Algebra 5+ introduces basic algebraic concepts to children as young as five. As players try to isolate the DragonBox on one side of the game board, they learn addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division skills required to isolate a variable on one side of an equation and "solve for x." DragonBox also offers an Algebra 12+ app for older children.

Ages 5 and up
$4.99 for Android, iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

Stack the States 2

Stack the States 2, like its predecessor, helps your school-aged child brush up on U.S. geography. He'll have to build a stack of U.S. states by correctly answering questions about capitals, cities, flags, state shapes, landmarks, and more. Stack your states up to the checkered line to win!

Ages 9 and up
$2.99 for Android, iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

Melody Jams

Melody Jams puts your preschooler in charge of her own rock band! She can choose from a variety of musicians on different instruments and help them create different songs in this fun, outer-space concert with a rocking beat.

Ages 4 & up
$3.99 for iPhone and iPad

educational app for kids, Ansel and Clair

Ansel & Clair's Adventures in Africa

Join Ansel, an inquisitive alien, and Clair, a brilliant robot, in their adventures through the Nile Valley, Sahara Desert, and Serengeti Plains. Kids learn about geography, science, history, reading, and vocabulary and are rewarded with virtual photos to arrange in a Travel Log. The app was one of Dr. Toy's Top 10 Tech Products of 2011 and earned five stars from TeachersWithApps.com.

Ages 8 & up
$4.99 for iPad

Peekaboo Barn

This adorable game helps toddlers learn farm animals and the sounds they make. There's someone mooing in the barn — tap the barn to see who it is! It's available in multiple languages, and on the iOS version, you can even record your own voice reciting the names of the animals as an extra surprise for your little one.

Ages 2 & up
$1.99 for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android

Sago Mini Puppy Preschool

Your little one can join Harvey and his puppy pals in a series of interactive activities that introduce the concepts of numbers, shape recognition, matching, and music. Toddlers and preschoolers will love playing fetch with Stella the pug, playing the barking puppy piano, and winning yummy treats to feed their puppy friends!

Ages 2 & up
$2.99 for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android

Flashcards Deluxe

This top-rated flashcard app can help your child master just about any subject he's studying. Kids can add anything from foreign language vocabulary to famous paintings to the customizable flashcards. It's a must-have for visual learners and anyone with a tricky test coming up.

Ages 12 & up
$3.99 for Android, iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch

Best Educational Apps for Kids of All Ages

by: Colleen Hughes

Curious World

Plants by Tinybop

Kindergarten Readiness

Toca Dance

Star Walk

Shape Gurus

Motion Math: Pizza!

Edoki Academy's Sight Words

Monkey Word School Adventure

Hoopa City 2

DragonBox Algebra 5+

Stack the States 2

Melody Jams

Ansel & Clair's Adventures in Africa

Peekaboo Barn

Sago Mini Puppy Preschool

Flashcards Deluxe

FE Most Popular Slideshow

An Age-by-Age Guide to Teaching Kids About "The Birds & The Bees"

12 Simple Developmental Activities to Play with Your Baby

Top 10 Graduation Gifts

8 Printable Thank-You Cards for Teacher Appreciation Week

by: Colleen Hughes

Curious World

Plants by Tinybop

Kindergarten Readiness

Toca Dance

Star Walk

Shape Gurus

Motion Math: Pizza!

Edoki Academy's Sight Words

Monkey Word School Adventure

Hoopa City 2

DragonBox Algebra 5+

Stack the States 2

Melody Jams

Ansel & Clair's Adventures in Africa

Peekaboo Barn

Sago Mini Puppy Preschool

Flashcards Deluxe

FE Most Popular Slideshow

An Age-by-Age Guide to Teaching Kids About "The Birds & The Bees"

12 Simple Developmental Activities to Play with Your Baby

Top 10 Graduation Gifts

8 Printable Thank-You Cards for Teacher Appreciation Week

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