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Number sense, representation, spatial sense, measurement, estimation, patterns, and problem solving are all key math skills young children need for school but how do you translate these into learning experiences for toddlers and preschoolers so they’re ready for kindergarten? Incorporating counting into every day tasks, using manipulatives to develop one to one correspondence, and pointing out shapes of objects are great things to do together but when your young kids clamor for your phone, hand over a device that’s filled with quality learning such as the Zap Zap Kindergarten Math app.
About the Zap Zap Kindergarten Math App
Designed for ages 3-6, Zap Zap Kindergarten Math app helps reinforce early math concepts in a developmentally appropriate and fun way. This app is intuitive and easy for non-readers to navigate. It features a nice balance of animations to keep young children engaged while they’re learning.
One thing you noticed when you start the Zap Zap Kindergarten Math app is the tagline: Gamified Math Ecosystem. Like many learning apps, Zap Zap Math functions as a learning game where kids progress through levels to earn puzzle pieces that can unlock scenes or credits towards different space ships. But don’t worry about your child wanting to buy puzzle pieces or the next cool space ships. Zap Zap Kindergarten Math is $2.99 for iOS and Android devices and there are no in app purchases. Hooray!
While earning puzzle pieces and new space ships might be motivating factors for some, Zap Zap Kindergarten Math has done a nice job downplaying this and focusing on the providing high quality learning experiences through their games.
About the Zap Zap Kindergarten Math App Games
After purchasing the app, the Zap Zap Kindergarten Math just takes a couple minutes to set up. Simply enter your child’s name, your email address, choose an avatar, and solve a multiplication problem on the screen to demonstrate you are a parent to get started.
Kids will immediately be drawn in by the introductory story where picnicking characters are taken away by a spaceship. The spaceship becomes a theme throughout the app since it serves as the way kids navigate to the three different planets where they will practice numbers, shapes and measurements, and adding and subtracting.
This video I made provides a look at the first levels of each of the math concepts that kids will learn through Zap Zap Kindergarten Math as they fly their spaceships to the three different planets.
Numbers
The overall goal for the levels is to acquaint kids with numbers through counting and comparing. The first game takes children to a laboratory where they start with basic counting skills and counting to ten. I love that this level also teaches one to one correspondence by having kids tap on each cell to count them.
Shapes and Measurements
Through the learning games on this planet, kids will get to know shapes and different attributes of measurement. Shape Picker is the first game in the Shapes and Measurements level and is designed to help children learn to distinguish between 2D and 3D shapes. Verbal directions provide game instructions that require kids to choose the right dimension object on a conveyer belt by tapping to select it. When correct objects are selected, they turn into presents and positive reinforcement is given whereas gentle learning is provided if the incorrect object is chosen.
Add and Subtract
Manipulatives serve as a hands-on way to learn how to add and subtract and this part of the app does a great job of teaching concepts by using the touch screen feature of mobile devices. The first game is called Apple Pie and involves dragging a certain number of apples to the container. Kids are given verbal instructions and then use their fingers to drag apples to the counter in front of the chef. Apples are counted down as they’re added and when all the apples are added, kids can tap on each one to count them to reinforce the concept of a total before the pie is made.
In addition to using your finger to navigate the spaceship on the screen and fly it to different parts of the game, kids can tap on the icons at the bottom to view progress on math activities within the app or bonus features. The bottom left corner of the screen features 3 icons: a book, spaceship, and puzzle.
The book icon lets you check on your child’s progress, the spaceship allows children to choose different spaceships as they progress through the levels of the game, and the puzzle features puzzle pieces that are unlocked during game play to reveal a scene.
Summary
Zap Zap Kindergarten Math is an app that features solid math skills that are age appropriate for 3-6 year olds and is an app your child will want to play. It is available to download from the iTunes and Google Play Store for $2.99. For more information, visit the Zap Zap Kindergarten Math website.
I was compensated for my time in reviewing this app, writing this post, and creating the accompanying video review however, all opinions are my own. Images courtesy of Zap Zap Kindergarten Math.
