Noodle Words

$2.99, iPad

Teaches: reading, language

CTR Rating: 94%

CTR Review

How can 18 words like run, sparkle and pump turn a non-reader into a reader? They do it by jumping, stretching and dancing if they are touched. Introducing Noodle Words: Active Words Set 1, a set of 18 words that wait quietly until you touch them. The trick is that every action is directly related to the word. In addition, the child's touch is the driving force behind each routine. Tap quickly three times on the word "pump" for example, and you'll hear "pump, pump, pump" with the word getting fatter, as if it is being inflated like an inner tube. Keep on pumping (what child wouldn't) and the word eventually starts hissing, and quickly deflates, zipping around the screen like a balloon that has been released, startling two little bugs who rest on every screen, waiting to see what you'll do next. As $3 apps go there's rather limited content; with just 18 words and 100 animations; just a small bite of possible Dolch Words. But what you will find is 18 words that are presented very well, in a child-controlled early language experience that can help a child understand that words have meaning. Because the setting is so silly and playful, this notion comes quick and easy, an impressive feat for any early language experience. Note that this is the first set of a planned series. The app was designed by Mark Schlichting (creator of the Living Books) and programmed by KwiqApps using Cocos2d.