If making good apps was easy, everyone would be doing it. And if parenting and educating kids were easy, then a lot of us would be out of a job.
Oceanhouse Media is producing quality interactive book apps for beginning readers using many classic book collections, including Dr. Seuss and Little Critter. The “growing up” themes within these stories combined with great narration and interactive reading features make these ideal apps for children ages 3-5 learning to read.
App Features
There are three ways to read the stories:
Read to Me: A professional narrator reads the story. Words are highlighted on the screen as they are read aloud by the narrator. When images are tapped, words zoom up in large type and are spoken aloud by the narrator. The “Read to Me” feature is extremely well done.
Read it Myself: You and your child read the story together. Words are highlighted on the screen when you tap them yourself. When images are tapped, words zoom up in large type.
Auto Play: The story unfolds like a feature film.
Little Critter app series by Oceanhouse Media
Oceanhouse Media – Interactive Features
The picture/ word association feature is terrific. When a child taps on an image, words zoom up in large type and are spoken aloud. The enhanced size of the words is really nice for kids learning how to read. It could also be helpful to kids with special needs who benefit from larger text.
“When I Grow Up” by Mercer Mayer (OM book app)
The picture / word association feature is particularly fun with with Dr. Seuss books because there is always word play operating within the text and illustration. This works especially well in the case of I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today! and Other Stories by Dr. Seuss. The picture / word association is particularly fun in this case. Kids may not get Dr. Seuss’s sense of hubris that is meant for adults, but they will get a kick out of tapping all the tigers and hearing their ferocious growls.
“I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today! and Other Stories” by Dr. Seuss (OM book app)
The combination of professional narration, picture / word association, and tap-to-highlight words features might seem relatively simple, but Oceanhouse Media has the formula down to a science. While other app companies may employ some or all of these features, their apps may not function as well or may not have themes that appeal to kids the same way.
Good Narrators make a BIG difference
A narrator’s voice and intonation makes a big difference in how a child responds to a story. (If our tone didn’t matter, then why would we coo so sweetly to babies?) Oceanhouse Media has done a great job in pairing ideal narrators with each of their apps. With Dr. Seuss apps, the voice sounds like an adult who is older and wiser but also slightly playful. In the case of Little Critter, the narrator is a child and therefore sounds completely relatable.
Relatable Story Themes
While the writing styles and tone of Dr. Seuss and Mercer Mayer books are completely different, the themes elicited by the authors in their story collections are similar. Here are some of the newest Dr. Seuss and Mercer Mayer apps from Oceanhouse Media where children can learn valuable life lessons through fun, humorous (and often ironic) storytelling.
In When I Grow Up, Little Critter’s sister imagines all the different things she can do and be when she grows up – a favorite topic among young readers.
In Just Lost, Little Critter gets lost at the mall while there with his mom; humorously, he tells readers that his mom is lost! He goes through the motions of looking for someone to help and being reunited in the end with his mother.
In I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today! – Dr. Seuss A cat learns a lesson in bragging when he declares he can lick 30 tigers to a crowd of 30 tigers, then whittles the number down as he gets scared.
Inspiring a Love of Reading
Oceanhouse Media has produced an impressive line of interactive book apps that instill good values in kids and inspire a love of reading. And if a tablet or smartphone increases motivation in kids today, then Oceanhouse Media has the right idea in licensing the best educational content. I may not be able to lick 30 tigers, but I sure know a good app when I see it.
I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today! and Other Stories – Dr. Seuss is available for iOS, Android, Kindle and Nook.
The app includes:
• I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today!
• King Looie Katz
• The Glunk that got Thunk
When I Grow Up, Just Lost, and other Little Critter apps are on the iTunes App Store.
Happy Tech Parenting!
Shoshana Stopek (aka Mommy Tech Bytes)
Connect with me on Google+ and Twitter
