Shape-O ABC's
100 gorgeous puzzles inspire kids to keep playing, learning
Subjects & Topics
Take a look inside 4 images
Shape-O ABC's
Pros: Simple puzzle and word play with lots of choices and three difficulty levels.
Cons: Kids can't selectively choose colors. No phonetic pronunciations.
Bottom Line: A fun, preschool puzzle app packed with more than 100 puzzles.
Use Shape-O ABC's to help kids practice shape and letter naming, orientation (describing where shapes are located in the puzzle in relation to one another -- for example, "the circle is above the triangle" or "the rectangle is beside the square"), as well as color and word identification. The many beautiful puzzles and the variety of objects, animals, and other images incorporated into the puzzles make this app a good exercise in naming and a good vocabulary builder.
Shape-O ABC's is an early educational puzzle game that includes more than 100 beautiful puzzles. Kids swipe shape pieces into a puzzle to create a picture and swipe letters into the word that names the picture. Three adjustable difficulty levels make the app appropriate for kids from 2 to 7. Kids simply press "Play" on the app's main screen, tap to scroll through pages with dozens of puzzle options, tap the desired puzzle, and begin dragging shapes and letters into the matching shaded portions of the puzzle picture box. They can change colors within the puzzle by tapping a rainbow icon, or tap the eye icon to get a clue about filling in the shapes. The app responds to incorrect letter and shape placement by simply moving them back to the pile for kids to try again. Adults can adapt settings to increase spelling difficulty and puzzle complexity. When a puzzle is complete, kids hear a rewarding sound, listen to a narrator spell and say the word, and see a cute animated picture.
Shape-O ABC's can be a fun and solidly educational classroom preschool and kindergarten tool, especially if teachers use it as a springboard for discussions about color, shape, and letter names, and orientation. Kids can learn letter and word recognition, as well as names of animals and other images when completing the puzzles. On the downside, kids cannot choose colors selectively, and reward graphics aren't related to puzzle images (bees appear when kids complete the tiger puzzle; a frog, when the hamburger puzzle is complete). Both additions would be excellent updates to the creativity and learning potential of this app.
Learning Rating
Shape-O ABC's- Colorful puzzles teach young children letters and shapes.
I liked having the ability to change the difficulty settings for both the puzzle and the letters as well as the option to move certain pieces into place if you get stuck. This app is fun, but the puzzle pieces are odd shapes and color combinations, which may confuse more literal minded students. Good variety of puzzles to choose from, but did not appear to be in any particular order.
Explore Our Favorite Tools
