Favorite Free iPad Educational Apps

It's been much longer than I had realized--about a year--since I posted my first review of free educational apps. Since then, I've sorted through dozens of others, mostly word games, that are entertaining enough to keep even my attention. I'm not even close to being what my students call a "gamer"; the only video game I could ever master was Nintendo 64 Mario Kart, which I still play on occasion. I think this is why I'm picky about which educational games I download. Some are inane or require such little brain activity it can't keep my attention for more than a minute. Also, I don't know if I'm not very savvy at searching online for educational apps, but I have yet to find a blog by a teacher with entertaining educational apps that are really free--I know about Evernote, Lino, etc. by now, thank you very much--can you tell me something new?
Each of these apps requires spelling, reading, or listening, and each has proven to hold my students' attention for at least half an hour. Here they are, from least to most popular with my students (according to their preferences, not mine).

#7: My personal favorite is Word Jewels! and all its variations (Word Jewels 2, Word Jewels Spin, Word Jewels Rally). Time is unlimited, so while it exercises your spelling power, it doesn't leave you stressed. Players may spell words of three or more letters by connecting adjacent letters. I classify this game as fairly addictive.

#6: Word Gems is similar, but as a timed game, it's not as enjoyable, in my opinion. Rows of letters scroll toward you while the timer counts down from three minutes.

#5: Jumbled Sentences, available in six versions, has the appearance and sound (tinkly music and a child-like narration) of a kindergartener's game, but it's actually more challenging than you might expect. For students whose sight word recognition is a little slower than average, this game will definitely keep them occupied. Words rotate in a circle while the timer pushes the player to choose the correct words and place them in a sensible order below. A narrator reads each word as the player places it in the boxes, and when the sentence is complete, she reads the entire sentence. Try this game out, and you'll be surprised at the level of concentration it requires. One note of caution: This is British English, so you'll find the games use vocabulary that necessitates some explanation, such as the British word for "eraser" in Jumbled Sentences 6.

#4: Bussuu language apps are so engaging and effective, I still can't understand why they're free. ELL students could use the English bussuu app, but when I allowed my Spanish-speaking students to try the Italian app, they loved it! They understood the connections between these two Latin-based languages, a lesson that lends itself to developing English vocabulary with Latin roots. Illustrations and audio prompt quick learning, while quizzes and exercises strengthen long-term memory.

#3: The Cambridge Phrasal Verb Machine is the strangest, most British app I've seen to date. Its short, highly stylized animations illustrate the meanings of phrases that are difficult for learners of English. These artistic animations and the sophisticated soundtrack make it entertaining for anyone, though. It's unlike any other app.

#2: I wish more apps were as interactive as Futaba. My students quickly tire of any app, no matter how engaging it is at first, because many apps don't capitalize on that quality essential for any educational activity targeting teens: competition. Futaba pits two (or three or four, with upgrade) players against each other in a race against the clock to be the first to identify the spinning image and select the corresponding word. It's challenging not only for readers with slow sight word recognition, but even for the fastest readers.

#1: My students' favorite word apps are those with four images or an image-reveal. Find at least half a dozen of these apps by typing "word picture" in the iStore. These include 4 Pic 1 Word, What the Word? and What's the Pic?

 Leave your comments about your favorite free educational apps!