What do you do with the Bluebee Pal after giving it to your child? What apps are best for them when they are just getting their feet wet in the digital world as well as being early learners? For starters, there are many reviews right here on the Bluebee Pals’ website. From the home page, tap on “Blogs”. From there, locate the little orange bar under the page’s Header. You’ll find a section called App Reviews with all the currently tested apps to use with your Bluebee Pal. All apps are hand tested to ensure that your child will get the most from their playtime with their Bluebee Pal. When searching:
- Consider your child’s interests and developmental level or age. Apps that are appropriate to your child’s age or developmental level will help them learn all the needed sequences to activities without the frustration.
- Apps that provide the “just right challenge” are the ones that kids will play with again and again because they are meaningful AND relevant to your child. They are not too hard – You can then gradually mix what they know with something new.
- Try to give them choices from a few apps and gradually add as they gain competency and confidence. Too many apps right off the bat are overwhelming and make the material hard to retain.
- You may also want to consider starting with some beloved books. Bluebee doesn’t just have to be used with just a tablet. Amazon Audible or other reading services have many books for listening, and leafing through a favorite book with Bluebee reading it to you is simply an unstoppable combination!
Here are a few suggestions to get you started.
Books:
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown by Loud Crow Interactive is a childhood classic tale about a bunny who struggles to fall asleep and stalls by saying goodnight to everything in his room and beyond. I never tire of reading this book, and kids often recite the book with you OR take their turn at “Reading” to you! Available for both iOS and Android platforms.
Billy’s Coin Visits the Zoo by Spinlight is an interactive story about a boy who loses a coin when at the zoo. Readers follow the whereabouts of the coin as it lands from one animal pen to another. The amazing soft sculpture artwork and the inventive interplay between the child and story, make this book a keeper! Available for iOS and Android platforms.
Speakaboos Reading app: Stories and Songs for Kids is a subscription service filled to the brim with stories, songs, and learning activities. New items are added frequently so the content stays fresh. Created for kids 2-6, there are enough interest areas for even the most definitive reader. Available for both iOS and Android platforms.
Early Learning:
Cubic Frog’s EduKittys series of early learning tasks for the very young introduce children to a variety of topics from daily life skills and events such having a birthday or mealtime routines to early learning tasks of early literacy and numeracy skills. All apps are customizable to a child’s capabilities – so be sure to check out the parent’s section. Available for iOS and Android platforms.
A favorite of many 
children are the books, Ten Giggly Gorillas and One Giggly Gorilla series by Wasabi. These interactive early numeracy apps teach valuable listening skills, visual discrimination skills, and the ability to learn using a hands-on 1:1 correspondence needed for sequencing events in daily life as well as math skills. Nothing compares to playing in the trees with monkeys! These apps will be returned to again and again. Available on iOS
devices.
Yellow Dot’s Domi Domi series is a bit more challenging and meant for children a little older. They pack a powerful punch when acquiring good listening, problem-solving skills, or other skills needed to generalize the information learned. Playing learning games with Bluebee keeps kids calm so that what they are learning sticks. Most apps available on iOS and Android platforms.
Avokiddo ABC Ride is a classic early literacy game. Gameplay centers on riding a bike through the alphabet. There are 26 letters and words to explore. Filled with fun, puns, and plenty of creative alliterations, kids create words by matching letters. It not only teaches letter recognition and basic phonics but also opportunities to think creatively and expand language. Available on iOS and Android platforms.
Other:
Many services that stream music – such as Apple, Google, Amazon, or Spotify pair perfectly with Bluebee. Here kids can have their own duets with their Pal, or get the whole family together in a sing-a-long. It is great to create playlists and have that playlist change or grow over time. Listening to music helps children develop not only language skills but timing and rhythm needed for movement.
Traditional songs with movements can come in apps, playlists, or from any recording device that has Bluetooth playback capabilities. Using music and movement teaches kids to listen, follow direction and motor plan a sequence of movements. Building on movement patterns in activities is a sure-fire way of keeping little ones active and improving memory skills. It also gives kids alternatives to habitual movement patterns so when faced with novel challenges, they have a bigger repertoire to pull from.
Recording apps and using Bluebee as a phone receptor are great ways to always have your little ones feel secure with the gentle sound of YOUR voice. Whether you sing lullabies to help your child settle in for the night or read favorite stories, it is comforting to know wherever you are that your child knows how much you love them through the sound of your voice.
****** Author: Jo Booth OTR/L has been an Occupational Therapist for over 35 years and highly respected “App Reviewer” for Teachers With Apps. Jo joined the Bluebee Pal App Team to write app reviews and suggest recommendations on storybook, music, game and educational apps for parents, therapists, and educators.