Plenty of parents of pre-tweens are finding that their personal Apple iPhones are serving a purpose they never expected: entertaining the kids. But with more than 25,000 applications on the Apple App Store and so many of them directed at very young users, it’s a challenge to zero in on the best titles to keep preschoolers and elementary-age children iPhone-occupied. So we decided to pick ten of our favorite kid-friendly apps to help parents keep kids occupied in healthy and constructive ways.

Games

• Memory Match Kids by Jirbo
  Price: $.99 | Age range: 4+
  Summary: Similar to the card game memory, kids turn over cards with animated animal faces and try to remember where the card’s match is.
• Wheels on the Bus by Duck Duck Moose
  Price: $.99 | Age range: 4+
  Summary: The trusty nursery rhyme comes to life with fun animated characters and sing-along interactivity.
• Balloonimals by Ideo Soft Lab
  Price: $1.99 | Age range: 4+
  Summary: The ‘+’ goes a long way on this one, as adults could have fun with this app as well, entertaining kids or each other. Blow into the microphone on your iPhone to blow up your balloon, then give it a shake to form your balloon animal. Once created, your “balloonimal” comes to life and does tricks for you.

Education

• Kid’s Math Fun by NSC Partners
  Price: $1.99 | Age range: different ages
  Summary: NSC partners has created math games for kids from Kindergarten up through fourth grade, and they have titles in Spanish.
• Kindle for iPhone by Reinke
  Price: free | Age range: all ages
  Summary: Kindle is a book reading app connected to Amazon.com, and allows users to browse through books that they buy via the app. Parents abuzz with new technology shouldn’t forget the most tried and true entertainment: a good book.

Creative

• Comic Touch by Plasq
  Price: $2.99 | Age range: all ages
  Summary: Easily manipulate photos with standard cartoon effects like thought and word bubbles as well as pinch, stretch, and enlarge effects using the touch sensor.
• Karma Art by Stylem Media
  Price: $.99 | Age range: 4-12
  Summary: Cut and paste cartoon elements, easily creating neat-looking cartoon images on your iPhone. A pulpy beige background gives your creations an authentic feel.
• Kids Finger Painter by Third Frame Mobile
  Price: $.99 | Age range: 4+
  Summary: Remember when painting was at its most simple? Now kids of any age can easily paint whatever they please on your iPhone, giving parents all of the quiet with none of the clean-up.
• Ocarina by Smule
  Price: $.99 | Age range: all ages
  Summary: Turn your iPhone into a musical instrument! The Ocarina was featured in the original Zelda game for Nintendo and finds new life on the iPhone. Not only can you play your own tunes by blowing into the microphone, you can listen to other Ocarina players from around the world.

Of course we encourage parents to install our Safe Eyes Mobile filter if they are buying an iPhone for their kids, or if they let their kids use their iPhone unsupervised. Let’s keep it safe while making it fun.

Filed under: Internet Safety Tips