Two Fun Math Apps That Teach and Engage

Image from Hungry Fish

As I've mentioned, I'm not the best reviewer for apps, but Tammy Astor, elementary school teacher and lifelong learner has agreed to take on the role for me, sharing kid-tested reviews of educational apps. This month, Teacher Tammy is talking math apps with an insider's peek at Baseball Multiplication and Hungry Fish.

As parents and teachers we are always looking for ways to make learning fun. Math apps absorb kids while, oops, they're learning. I am all for screen time if it balances entertainment with educational value, and here are two apps that fit the bill.

Baseball Multiplication with Facts 1-6 or Facts 1-12 This app from from Everyday Mathematics holds kids' attention while they practice their facts. It's a straightforward two player game, but one child could play both teams. The instructions are easy to understand and kids are not racing against the clock to calculate their answers which helps level the playing field for different aged siblings or classmates who recall math facts at different speeds. Each three-inning game lasts between ten and fifteen minutes. Each version, the easier 1-6 and the harder 1-12, is $1.99 at the App Store. Baseball Multiplication is almost always a hit with my elementary school students.

The eighteen levels of Hungry Fish by Motion Math, go from preschool easy to math whiz challenging! A little fish the player gets to name is hungry for numbers. The cute little fish has a number on its side. Two belching sea tubers blurp out numbered bubbles that the player matches, adds or subtracts to equal the number on the little fish’s body. Then the cute tiny fish eats the appropriately numbered bubbles and grows larger. As it grows, players earn the right to color parts of their fish and change its style as the app decides whether the player is ready for the next level.  (Players can set and reset their own level, too.)

Reef level one is basically untimed number matching while Cave level eighteen is timed and includes a competitor that causes your little fish to starve and shrink if you answer incorrectly or are slow to answer. Oy! My heart breaks every time I starve my beloved, multi-colored, fancy-finned fishy named Tamela. Each round is one to three minutes long depending on the player. This app takes fact practice to the next level as you can combine any number of bubbles to get the number on your fish.  You can purchase the addition, subtraction or negative numbers versions for $1.99 each, or $6.99 for all three.

Got math? This month's Twitter STEMchat will focus on ideas and resources that help kids love math. Join in September 20 at 8 PM Central.

Tammy Astor is a lifelong learner, Starlab Portable Planetarium presenter, tutor and classroom teacher with many years of experience in both public and private schools. She is currently looking for a classroom to call home. She lives in the Chicago area with her husband, son and dog.

If you have an educational app you'd like reviewed on The Maker Mom, drop us a note at TheMakerMom {at} hotmail {dot} com.







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