22. Dec 2012

Playground HD 3 – ABC Edition | learning app for kids

Best apps for kids - Playground HD 3 letters

Playground HD 3 by Jan Essig is an outstanding learning app for kids. Kids can learn their ABC’s and also how to write the different letters. Playground HD 3 is a unique and wonderful educational kids app, where kids can have fun whilst learning.
For those who are already familiar with the other Playground HD apps, know that this app offers far more than just a plain learning game, in fact, this app offers six different kind of learning games.
Parents should really take a closer look at this great app, even if you’re already possessing an ABC app or an app about letters.

Jan Essig is certainly doing a brilliant job at producing fantastic kids apps, also as he is a family guy, who produces apps for his own kids sake too. When his daughter showed some increasing interest in letters, he decided to produce Playground HD 3, which we would love to share with you today.

1. ABC’s “Flashcards”

Flashcards are a very popular learning aid to help kids get familiar with letters from an early age onwards.
A letter is shown and also a matching animal which starts with the letter that is shown (obviously).
Even at this stage of the game, kids can folow the arrows on the letters, to draw the letter with their fingers. This is also how the next game works.

2. Practice letters

This is where kids can learn how to write Capital and small letters, just like they’d do in school.
Basically, kids need to write one letter in the same line i.e. A’s and a’s.
They learn to write the letters in cursive handwriting.
The quality of the handwriting gets rewarded with stars, which should encourage kids to carry on.

3. Writing letters

In this section, kids can write letters without the stencils as they did before. Basically free-hand writing. They still need to write accurately inside the marked lines just without any guidelines.
Kids can however, have access to an expandable alphabetical toolbar at any time, in case they need help or hints. That way, kids can mix and join letters together themselves.

4. Assigning letters

This part is about matching and sorting the Capital letters with the small letters. All letters were set to be read out loud phonetically or set to be classically spoken.
The initial sounds are all up to date with the latest primary school curricula.

5. Pairs

This game works as a learning-memory game with three different game varieties. We love the game-mode, where you need to match animals with letters.
Once children have played the Flashcards game, they should be alright with this game, as it works in a familiar way. Kids will memorise the animals and their first letter well.

6. Words

What a mess! In this game, kids can learn and improve their spelling abilities.
All letters of the animal got mixed up and need to be put into the correct spelling order.
This has to be the most fun game out of all of them, as it has some fantastic and cute animal animations. It is great fun to play and also to learn.

All games have been designed to build up on one another didactically. All games are fun and will definitely help your child to explore the world of letters.
Here are some more fantastic features:

✔ This app is multilingual (english, german, italian, spanish, french and swedish).
✔ Switch between “Initial Sounds” and “Letter names”
✔ Switch Font from Print Type to Handwriting
✔ Switch from Lower to Upper Case
✔ Settings as well as links are protected.
✔ The “playing time” can be set.
✔ The sound can be switched on & off at any time.
✔ There are NO ADS & NO IN-APP-PURCHASES in this app.

Playground HD 3 doesn’t only fulfill our expectations it outshines them!