Apple - Games - Getting Started - Kids & Learning Games

Remember your days in elementary school? “Print the alphabet five times in your composition book, please. Read four chapters for homework. Don’t forget to complete your long-division assignment!” Yes, learning can often be a chore for a child. This is why it is so important for educational software to spark a child’s imagination.

Most games are available for online ordering 24 hours a day, every day.

Many software publishers now combine entertainment with education in order to capture a child’s attention. Simple games and engaging characters help kids enjoy learning and maintain interest in educational activities.

Digital schoolhouse

Kids’ software can be divided into three broad categories: titles that entertain, titles that educate, and titles that both educate and entertain.

Entertainment software

Toontown Online transports children to Disney’s magical kingdom, where they create and personalize their own Toons and join forces with their friends to defeat the humorless robot Cogs. Luckily, they have over 40 gags in their arsenal, from the Opera Singer Sound Gag to the Ocean Liner Drop Gag, all of which they use to crack up the Cogs and stop them from turning Toontown into a drab metropolis of corporate monotony.

Disney/Pixar Cars: Radiator Springs Adventure

Each Toon gets its own Toon House, and six themed neighborhoods offer hundreds of quests in a safe environment that features SpeedChat and Secret Friends Parental Control technologies. Toontown Online is a massively multiplayer online game (MMOG), which means kids can interact with other players around the country and experience special events and holiday activities on a regular basis.

Movies and TV shows are always fertile sources of inspiration for kids’ games, and another Disney property, the Pixar movie “Cars,” formed the basis for Radiator Springs Adventure, which was published by THQ. Ten activities take children through the place where Lightning McQueen was stuck during the movie, as they learn the secrets they’ll need to help Lightning win races and unlock new paint jobs, along with four fun clips from the film.

John Deere: Busy Days in Deerfield Valley (MacSoft) brings together the characters from the children’s book series, including Barney Backhoe, Luke Loader, and Danny Dozer. Six scenarios challenge little ones to navigate mazes, explore the town and get construction sites ready for building. John Deere: Welcome to Merriweather Farm (MacSoft) brings the same concept to the country, where children help Johnny Tractor, Allie Gator, Corey Combine, and other characters with a wide variety of tasks.

Well-known characters also populate Blue’s Clues: Blue Takes You to School (MacSoft) and Dora the Explorer: Animal Adventures (MacSoft). In the former, TV show host Joe guides children through a wide variety of activities in Miss Marigold’s class. The game acclimates them to the basics of going to school, from setting up a cubby to creating art projects to playing music. They even get to help take care of the classroom’s pet rabbit.

The latter features the first computer game appearance of Dora’s cousin, Diego, whose family runs an animal rescue center. Kids get to engage in activities ranging from reuniting lost baby animals with their mothers to waterskiing down a river to rescue a trapped creature. An in-game field journal lets little ones enjoy clips from their favorite Dora shows or create and print their own wilderness scenes. Animal Adventures also exposes children to simple Spanish words, including numbers introduced during counting exercises.

Older kids require tougher challenges, which is where Legacy Games’s Pet Pals: Animal Doctor and Zoo Vet come into play. Both games feature three levels of gameplay and 40 examination and treatment tools that kids use to perform check-ups and even surgery on dogs, cats, birds, elephants, lions, crocodiles, and other animals, both domestic and wild. They’ll learn plenty of fun facts as they aspire to become the top neighborhood or zoo veterinarian.

It’s important to note that children’s entertainment software is not restricted to games. Many titles help unleash a child’s creativity through drawing, coloring, scene building, and other fun activities.

Educational software

Titles in this category are specially designed to help your child learn. The software may focus on a specific discipline, such as reading, addition and subtraction, or even basic science. In order to keep your child’s attention, publishers tend to incorporate colorful animation and wacky sounds. A lively character often offers enthusiastic praise when a child answers a question correctly, and supportive comments when the child makes a mistake.

Playhouse Disney Preschool Time Online stars the characters your kids know and love from the Playhouse Disney TV shows. Bear, of “Bear in the Big Blue House” fame, guides your child through the current learning adventure, which features a specific theme that drives the various games and activities. The learning adventures reinforce skills in eight key areas and grow with your children, becoming easier or more difficult depending on their ability to complete the previous set of games and activities.

Another glowing example of educational software is JumpStart Advanced 2nd Grade (Knowledge Adventure). Mysterious pranks are taking place in JumpStartville, and your child must crack the case. A cast of colorful characters provide encouragement and personalized help as your child progresses through assignments that develop reading comprehension, social sciences, math, and other important second-grade skills.

Yet another great educational title is Reader Rabbit Preschool — Sparkle Star Rescue! (Riverdeep/TLC). The Land of Sparkalot normally shines bright with sparkly stars, but something has gone wrong. Your child must help Reader Rabbit and his friends bring back the missing sparkles through learning activities such as Sparkle Rocket Math and Rush River Letters. These activities teach your child to count, recognize letters, and associate letters with sounds. They can also exercise their creative skills by painting, coloring, and composing simple music.

This class of software also includes reference titles, such as World Book Encyclopedia (The Software Mackiev Company), that are aimed at young students. In addition to informative articles, these titles often include photos, sounds, and short movies to help children gain a better understanding of the subject.

The 2008 edition of World Book Encyclopedia features editor-approved webcams, such as a train station in Germany and Venice’s Grand Canal, a 2008 World Book Media Showcase widget, and the ability to transfer your media library to an iPod or iPhone with one click. You’ll also find over 4,000 new and updated articles taken straight from World Book’s 22-volume print edition.

M is for Macintosh

There are countless children’s titles available for the Macintosh. Many of the titles come on hybrid CDs — that is, they contain both the Mac and PC versions of the game on the same disc. Inspect the box of any title that appeals to you. There’s a very good chance it is designed for the Macintosh!

Stepping up to the chalkboard

Kids’ software can help your child develop basic skills and learn about lost civilizations, all while having a blast. Although the software can’t replace traditional schooling, it may just be able to give your child the footing they need to succeed.