The Best Apps for Teaching Toddlers at Home

Hi Socialites! ?? I’m sure many of you have read about my 3 year old daughter, Bella, and the many highs and lows I have experienced as a first time parent. Early on, hubby and I made the decision for Bella to be home during the day instead of going to daycare. While this decision has been great for my peace of mind (and my bottom line ?) I wanted to make sure that Bella will still get the same educational advantages as those in her peer group that attend childcare facilities. In our efforts to ensure that Bella gets in plenty of learning during the day, Raymond and I found several of the best apps for teaching toddlers at home…and I’m going to share them with you!

Below I’ve rounded up a list of apps that your toddler will love. They all have my educational stamp of approval, and have been “Bella tested and approved!” Most are free, but may have in-app purchases. Just make sure your settings are tweaked so your toddler can’t accidentally subscribe to a plan or spend your money. ? If you are worried about your toddler using your phone or tablet, and cracking your screen , I highly recommend the Fire HD 8 Kids Edition tablet! It comes with a cushion-y kid-proof case, and has a sweet warranty which covers replacement for 2 years!

best apps for teaching toddlers

Ok, so let’s get started with the list!

ABC Mouse

So y’all knew I was going to do it. Even if you don’t have kids, I’m sure you’ve heard all about ABCmouse.com and it’s’ effectiveness! As part of an online learning package, ABC Mouse is used in preschools and kindergarten classes worldwide, and perfect for children ages 2 and up. One of the things I love best about ABC Mouse is the accessibility: You can use it on a PC, tablet, or a cell phone. ABC Mouse is a paid program, but they do offer special rates and discounts. You can get your 30 Day Free Trial here!

best apps for teaching toddlers
Bella, shown here at age 2, getting her learn on!

ABC’s Alphabet Learning Game

This is one of best apps for teaching toddlers, and it is designed to introduce your toddler to letters and words under the guidance of VocabuLarry, a delightful little red parrot. (You’ll know who he is if you’ve ever watched the BabyFirst TV Channel!) Bella really loves this app, and it quickly taught her to recognize letters, the sounds the letters make, and vocabulary words for each letter. At first I was worried the vocab was pretty basic (the first is A for Apple…nothing groundbreaking there!) But as you go through the alphabet, the words become much more varied, and I was thrilled to hear Bella yelling “clock” and “flower” with that sort of glee that only toddlers have!?

best apps for teaching toddlers

Smart Baby ABC

This is another one of best apps for teaching toddlers at home, similar to the one above, but this app also teaches numbers and first words. Smart Baby ABC is suitable for children 2 and up, and for children with autism, and uses static and moving objects to help promote coordination and continued development of fine motor skills. This app isn’t free (it’s available for a one time fee of $2.99) but Bella loves it, so we consider it money well spent!

best toddler apps for learning

Kids Academy: Talented & Gifted

I’d say that Kids Academy is probably neck and neck with ABC Mouse as far as educational value goes. This app is also used in classrooms and really drills down into math, writing, phonics, and reading games. Bella loves paper flash cards, so we knew she would love the flash card aspects of the app, although many of the best learning tools are slightly above her age range, so this is an app that I’m sure we will use a lot around age 4 and up! Kids Academy is free to download, but does have in-app purchases.

best apps for teaching toddlers

YouTube Kids

Ok, ok, this is more for entertainment unless you are monitoring and actively choosing educational videos, but I couldn’t not include this one! I love YouTube Kids for car rides, because Bella can browse through, and watch videos and sing songs, and I don’t have to worry about her stumbling across non kid friendly content. If you’re looking for learning programs, I highly recommend the channel ABCKidsTV!  This channel makes YoutTube Kids one of the best apps for teaching toddlers colors, numbers, and phonics. Bella watches this channel frequently, and enjoys the various songs and jingles designed to enhance the learning process!

best toddler apps for learning

I know that most sources do not advocate letting your toddler spend time on electronics and apps, but as a parent, I have seen a marked improvement in Bella’s vocabulary and knowledge of basic preschool fundamentals. Hope you enjoyed my thoughts on what best apps for teaching toddlers are,  and try them out with your toddler!

Don’t forget to take advantage of the special ABC Mouse offer above, or click the banner ad below this post for another offer!

See you next time!

 

 

 

 

ABCmouse.com



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Fashion, Lifestyle, and Travel blogger, based in NC.

22 comments

  1. It is a great way for kids to learn.

  2. These are some fabulous apps for kids! I know ABC Mouse works well–my daughter used to play on that app often.

  3. I love that there are apps available to help kids learn! Things are so different now from when I was a kid, I’ll be setting my son up with these once he’s old enough!

  4. This is great! I have four grand kids under the age of 5 and they love ABC Mouse. They are always asking to play “learning games” and they are pretty smart, I think!

  5. This is awesome! My nice would gonna love this, thank u! 🙂

    Laura
    http://www.wanderwithola.com

  6. My son loves abcmouse. He is using a squarepanda now. Its so amazing!

  7. No kids yet but its good to know of educational apps that kids to use to continue learning at home

  8. I think you made a better decision by allowing Bella to be at home; and get to learn using these apps from home. I think YouTube kids sounds too fun.

  9. These are great!! I have a 3 year old and can’t wait to add a few of these!

  10. I’ve got to check some of these out. I have heard of some of them but not all. I got all of the kids a Kindle and love finding fun apps for them, especially teaching apps.

  11. I have an active toddler. Will check out these apps for her. I’m sure she will enjoy them.

  12. I have a 22mo but we don’t allow any screen time till she’s older. My husband uses a nice app to teach her Italian but she doesn’t look at the screen.

  13. I didn’t realize youtube programming had stuff for kids. I think it’s pretty awesome that they have that. I need to check out more YouTube items off.

  14. My son has that tablet, I love all these apps. I know they are so important to have children play games that actually help them learn while they feel like they are still playing.

  15. I don’t have any kids of my own, but I could use these would be good in my classroom when I am teaching.

  16. Great list. I did not know that youtube has a version for kids as well.

  17. Gwen Singleton

    These are great. I use ABC Mouse but the other ones I am downloading for Lennon.

  18. When looking for child care. A parent must be well equipped with the knowledge in checking every detail in any child care services establishment business.

  19. LavandaMichelle

    I wish there was apps when my daughters were toddlers. It would have been much more easy. I used CD’s and played them on the TV and it did the job! Thanks for sharing. 🙂

  20. Oh wow! I didn’t realize there are a lot of educational apps. I only knew about Smart Baby ABC and of course Youtube. Thanks for sharing this info!

  21. Do you have recommendation for a toddler who not quite 2 years old yet (15 months)?

  22. This is great! I have four grand kids under the age of 5 and they love ABC Mouse. They are always asking to play “learning custom pc builder Canada games” and they are pretty smart, I think!

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