Guest Post: 7 Great educational apps to occupy your children this summer

Hi everyone! I'm excited to have Caroline from Culture Coverage guest post for me today! Caroline will be writing about 7 great educational apps to occupy your children this summer. Make sure to check out Caroline's bio at the end of the post.

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The Summer Slide is a well-documented phenomenon, researched by everyone from the University of Missouri to Johns Hopkins University, that puts students who continue their studies throughout the summer as a huge indicator on whether they will continue the college prep track.

So for parents eager to see their child graduate college, it’s time to get to work.

While summer booklets can be an excellent way to engage the kids in all their subjects outside of school, it is a little bit dated when everyone is digging their laptops and tablets, so why not adjust to fit the times and engage the kids with technology?

From geography to math, reading to science, these seven apps are the perfect picks for various age groups to keep the brain juices flowing while they’re out on holiday. So strap up and get to downloading!

1. The Magic School Bus: Oceans by Scholastic

The Magic School Bus was a favorite of mine growing up, and the Magic School Bus: Oceans will be a favorite app for your kiddo. Winner of multiple awards, The Magic School Bus: Oceans is an interactive story app that allows your kids to experience the wonderful underwater ecosystems in a comic-book style format that includes games, science, videos and more. For the reluctant summer reader, this app will provide hours of fun and learning.

Available on iTunes. $3.99.

2. Stack the States

Stack the States is for those geography-friendly young gurus who can't get enough of American maps. Whether you're going on a cross-country road trip or just want to help your kid brush up on the states, regions, and capitals, Stack the States helps children become more informed about where everything is in the U.S., which ultimately results in a more well-rounded kid. And who wouldn't be interested in that? Stack the States to reach new benchmarks and complete levels—it's fun for any age!

Available on iTunes. $2.99

3. ClueFinders

With grade-specific curriculum, kids can explore the fun and games of the ClueFinders while brushing up on their logical thinking, mathematics, science, geography, social science and language arts skills. While these apps aren't free, they're worth the expense as your kids will be able to explore a storyline that feels like a video game but is chock full of activities that will engage their cognitive skills and keep them learning throughout the long summer break.

Available on iTunes. $14.99.

4. Winky Think Logic Puzzles

Perfect for ages six to eight, Winky Think Logic Puzzles will thrill your kids for hours by engaging their memory skills as well as their problem-solving abilities. With 180 logic problems to choose from, obstacles, mazes and interactive gaming potential, these games will improve your child's reasoning and quantitative reasoning abilities, all great things observed by Common Core Learning standards.

Available on iTunes. $2.99.

5. Pixie

Pixie is a new and improved way to help your kids explore and share what they know. Perfect for creating book reports or even their own documentaries, Pixie utilizes literary, artistic and recording options to provide a multi-dimensional platform for your kids to express their creativity and knowledge. Utilized in many tech savvy classrooms, paired with a competitive reading schedule this app can boost your child's analyzing and interpreting skills—two things that will definitely pay off!

Available on iTunes. $9.99.

6. Epic!

This unlimited library app comes with over 15,000 titles for kids aged 12 and under for $4.99 a month and is worth every penny for helping your kids keep up with reading goals. From Charlie Brown to Goosebumps, Epic! includes tracking and achievement benchmarks, as well as read-to-me options and up to four individual users per account. Great for the whole family and perfect for keeping track of the 20 minutes a day standard.

Available on iTunes. Free to download, $4.99 for the monthly subscription.

7. Thinking Blocks Multiplication

This app excels at helping kids get over any hesitation they have about mathematical word problems. Through number blocks, kids can break down the different parts of mathematical equations, which Common Core standards say is the perfect approach for getting the visualization of word problems down pat. For kids that struggle with the train questions, this app is ideal for putting them ahead of the game.

Available on iTunes. Free.


Learning during a time when kids are supposed to be running around, exploring playtime and getting plenty of outdoorsy ailments, such as a sunburn and bug bites, can be something of a difficult task. But employing apps such as these a few hours every day can significantly increase your child’s ability to pick up their school work once September comes back around. And with apps, they can even do it on the ride to Disney World. What else can you do in a car ride for that long?

For those of you going abroad this summer, try downloading before takeoff to allow your kids to enjoy on the plane ride sans hours of movies, but be sure to install a VPN like ExpressVPN as well to make sure geo-locators don’t halt any learning progress while abroad.

Until next time...happy learning and bon voyage!

About the Author: Caroline is an entertainment and technology blogger with a passion for lifelong learning. She hopes these apps will help you teach your children how to maintain a passion for learning even during the summer months.