SingaporeMotherhood | Enrichment

October 2024

Our Favourite Learning and Creative Apps for Kids on the iPad

Back when I was a work-at-home-mum with no help, one of the hardest parts of my day was trying to find things for the kids to do so I could get work done. Not that you have to, mind you. Children are wonderfully inventive, and will find myriad ways to entertain themselves when given the time and space to do so. On days when I felt like an exhausted pigeon and couldn’t do anything but exist, I took solace in the fact that research has shown that boredom is good for kids. At the same time though, there was that niggling sensation at the back of my mind that the kids should be engaged in some sort of creative pursuit. I blame the kiasu mother in me.

We eventually got an iPad, I downloaded some creative apps, and the kids made good use of it. They drew their own comics, learnt to code, and built worlds in games. One of their favourite apps let them learn algebra through a game. As it turned out, this was a great investment. It cost less than SGD10 then, and they love maths and algebra to this day.

It’s a Tech World, Baby

Image: RDNE Stock project on Pexels

Devices cannot replace the actual creating and learning with pencil and paper, sweeping off eraser bits, or the smell of new crayons. But with learning and creative apps, they can “offer children a new way to create, complete with… an ‘undo’ option that encourages experimentation,” Warren Buckleitner, founder of Children’s Technology Review, has noted.

What’s more, research has shown that using devices for creative activities such as drawing or playing with digital games supporting creative thinking can boost children’s creativity.

Paired with thoughtfully created apps and used as tools for creative expression and learning — together with parental accompaniment — devices like iPads can be a parent’s greatest ally in keeping kids gainfully occupied in the best way. Do remember to maintain screen-time limits and get your children to take visual breaks every half an hour too.

(See also: 5 Free Apps that can Teach your Kids to Code like a Pro at Home)

Everyone Can Create activities on the iPad

In celebration of World Teachers’ Day last Saturday, Apple released a whole new suite of Everyone Can Create resources for the iPad. Each activity strengthens essential skills and gets kids creating quickly with templates and shareable links. Some of the new creative activities include:

  • Drawing: Reveal a Constellation
  • Photo: Create a Sticker Collage
  • Video: See More in Slo-Mo
  • Music: Lay Down a Beat

These are for educators to use with their students in class. But since we parents are the first teachers for our little ones, I’d co-opt them for our use too.

The collection of fun activities is great to have at hand and whip out for kids to do, and not just at home. I can see them being particularly useful when you’re out at a restaurant or a cafe, waiting for food to arrive, for an enrichment class to start, for a sibling’s class to end…

Here’s how you can access these learning resources for your child.

  • Go to the Apple Learning Centre website here
  • Sign in to the Apple Learning Centre (I’m not sure if this is strictly necessary since I managed to access the activities without signing)
  • Click to the age group that your child is in: 4 to 8 years old, or 8 years and above
  • Scroll through the activities with your child and let them pick one to do
  • Download the template and follow instructions to get creative!

The bite-sized creative activities at Apple Learning Centre are perfect for filling small gaps in time. If you are looking for iPad activities that will engage your kids for a longer time, here are a few other learning and creative apps that we, and other parents and kids love.

(See also: Kenryk Phuan, 11, who created his app, iSight, with Apple’s Swift Explorers Singapore 2023)

Chess for Kids — Play & Learn

Totally ad-free, and easy for kids as young as 4+ years to start learning how to play Chess. Play online or offline with the app’s Chessbots, then pit your skills against kids from all over the world. Download here

Kahoot! Algebra by DragonBox

Image: Source


The one that got my kids started on their love for maths and algebra. Because this multiple award-winning app teaches algebraic concepts so well, kids don’t even realise they are learning. They think it’s all part of the game. Worth every cent. Download here.

Simple Physics

Teaches how structures work by getting kids to build their own, like tree houses and ferris wheels. It doesn’t end here though. Kids get to test their creations, and go back to the drawing board if the structures break under pressure. This teaches persistence too! Download here.

Skyview Lite

A super fun, and free, stargazing app that does not require Wi-Fi, GPS, or data, so you can use it anytime, anywhere. We’ve used it while lying on the deck of a fishing boat in the Andaman sea, and it worked perfectly. Download here.

Thinkrolls Space

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Kids love puzzles, kids love space. Thinkrolls marries both with success in this award-winning app that beams kids from fun planet to fun planet as they solve puzzles. Along the way they meet a cast of adorable, oddball characters like goo monsters, bleeping robots, and cheese monsters(!). There are no third-party ads, no location tracking, and no Wi-Fi is needed to enjoy this game. Download here.

WWF Together

Image: Source

As kids learn about 16 endangered species like elephants, whales, and rhinos they’ll also get to race a jaguar, try to out jump a snow leopard, and more. It’s not just an info dump though; there are hands-on activities where kids can follow instructions to fold an origami of each animal. Download here.

Featured image: tirachardz on Freepik

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Our Favourite Learning and Creative Apps for Kids on the iPad