[appimg 497846204]
This seriously “buggy” app is a sure-fire hit with preschoolers! Brought to you by Busy Bee Preschool (creators of Zoo Time), Bug Games features 4 games and activities that entertain and educate.
The music activity, Cricket Concert, features 3 harmonizing crickets that perform children song classics Hickory Dickory Dock, Hot Cross Buns, The Farmer in the Dell, and London Bridge. The crickets sing together with sound effects, or kids can tap the crickets, in any order, to make them sing on their own.
Ant Tunnel Construction is a logic puzzle where various pieces need to be rearranged to form a path for the ants to march through. Tapping the pieces causes them to rotate. My four year old keeps coming back to this game! The game is difficult enough to be a challenge, but not so difficult that it causes frustration. Once the path is cleared, the ants march down through the ground to a catchy drum beat.
The phonics game, Bee Word Builder, helps children recognize letters and letter sounds. There are three separate flowers that contain watermark images of the letters of a word. Bumble bees hold the three letters of the word in a mixed order. Children have to match the letters, and as they do so, the phonetic pronunciation of each letter is given. When the word is complete, the phonetic pronunciation of each letter is repeated and the word is spoken, helping children with both letter sight and letter sound recognition. After three different words are created, a butterfly emerges from its chrysalis.
Spider Connect the Dots is a fun and simple counting game that teaches number sequencing. Children tap on the numbers, in order, to create an easily recognizable image. The difficulty ranges from three numbers to eight numbers. Each numbers is spoken as it is connected. I find my two year old practicing her counting without even being near the iPad as her brother plays the game! Positive encouragement is given each time a picture is created. There is, however, a limited number of images, and once a child works through all the images, they repeat in the same order.
After three successful attempts in Spider Connect the Dots and the Bee Word Builder, sticker rewards are given. It never ceases to amaze me the impact iPad sticker rewards have on a child! A choice of 5 stickers is given and stickers are collected on a big, green leaf. The positive praise, through words and sticker rewards, is a great addition to this app.
The main screen of the app has a settings section that allows parents to change the letter setting to either uppercase or lowercase letters, providing more options in the Bee Word Builder game. The settings section contains a link to the Busy Bee website as well as a links to purchase both Zoo Time and Giggle Ghosts through the app store.
This app does not contain ads, in-app purchases, or social network integration, making it a great kid friendly app for a variety of ages.
Bottom-line
This is an educational and fun app that teaches basic counting, phonics, and logic skills to preschool children. A great addition to to your preschool app collection! Bug Games is a collection of 4 educational games, plus a sticker activity! The games teach phonics, numbers and counting, musical melodies, and puzzle logic — with reward stickers to keep kids motivated.
Our other app, Zoo Train, received 5 of 5 stars from your site last year, and we hope you’ll review this one as well!
We’re an active member of MWA and are committed to producing premium content for kids. 🙂