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Best apps for introducing toddlers to digital play

By Jinny Gudmundsen, Special to USA TODAY
By swiping away the gray color on the screen, kids discover animals hiding underneath in "Uncolor for iPad."
  • Uncolor for iPad teaches kids cause and effect
  • Baloonimals HD makes 10 animals including fish%2C kangaroo
  • Beck and Bo help expand children%27s vocabulary

If you are thinking about introducing your toddler to a smartphone or tablet, download these apps first. Designed for toddlers, these apps entice little fingers to reach out, touch and explore.

Uncolor for iPad (or iPhone)

From ChristyBrantCo, LLC, best for age 2-3, $.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad

Rating: 4 stars (out of 4)

This app comes in two versions: one for the iPad and another for the iPhone and iPod Touch. In both, toddlers see a bumpy dark gray screen. By showing them how to move their finger over the surface to find hidden animals, kids will discover that they can make things change on the screen by touching it. When they swipe enough times to "uncolor" the gray surface, their efforts are rewarded with a cute, simple animation. For the koala bear, they will watch as a baby koala peeks out from behind her mom. The one giraffe will be joined by another (accompanied by hearts floating overhead) and the owl scene changes to night so that the bird can hoot.

Best For: Teaching toddlers cause and effect: when they touch the screen, things happen.

The popular kids' song becomes an interactive app in "Wheels on the Bus" by Duck Duck Moose.

Wheels on the Bus

From Duck Duck Moose, best for age 2-5, $.99 for iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and $1.99 for HD version for iPad, Android

Rating: 4 stars

This app brings to life the beloved children's song by letting kids interact with almost everything on the screen. Kids make the doors "open and close" and move the windshield wipers so that they go "swish, swish, swish." Even the bus gets into the action by appearing to be alive with moveable eyes. The app adds zany new stanzas to the traditional song for refreshing fun.

Best for: Toddlers who like songs and music.

Kids create and play with virtual balloon animals in this fun app from IDEO called "Balloonimals HD."

Balloonimals HD

From IDEO, best for ages 2-5, $2.99, iPad (there is an iPhone version called Balloonimals for $1.99)

Rating: 4 stars

Toddlers love balloon animals, and now they can find them on your mobile device. With this simple app, kids choose a colored balloon, swipe sideways to blow it up, tickle the screen to form it into an animal, tap it to play with it, and then pop it by touching the button in the top right corner. Kids can make 10 animals, including a fish, a kangaroo and a dinosaur. There is even a way to take silly photos of the animals and have them saved to your iPad's camera roll.

Best for: Toddlers who enjoy being surprised. You never know what animal you will create until it is done.

Instead of hiding behind hands, this version of peek-a-boo features animals hiding behind the doors of a big red barn in Night & Day Studios, Inc's "Peekaboo Barn."

Peekaboo Barn

From Night & Day Studios, Inc., best for ages 2-4, $1.99 for iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and $2.99 for Android and Kindle Fire.

Rating: 4 stars

The toddler classic game of playing peek-a-boo gets a digital makeover in this app. Kids tap a shaking red barn to discover who is making the noise coming from within. The doors open to reveal a farm animal. The animal makes a sound, and then its name appears and is read out loud. The doors close and the game starts over until 12 different animals have appeared. The animals are adorable and the voiceover can be done by a child or an adult. There is even a way to record a favorite voice so even grandma can get in on the action. Kids can hear the words spoken in English or Spanish.

Best for: Teaching toddlers the animals on a farm. It also reinforces the concept of tapping on the screen causes something to happen.

Toddlers learn to drag-and-drop objects into a scene by playing with the kids "Beck and Bo" in this new app from developer react-in.

Beck and Bo

From react-in, best for ages 2-5, $1.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad

Rating: 4 stars

This interactive playset features a little girl named Beck and a little boy named Bo. The two go on 12 adventures with your toddler. The app teaches young children how to touch and drag objects to make scenes. Each themed adventure is filled with objects that float down into the scene. Kids touch them and move them to appropriate places in the picture. For example, in the adventure filled with rescue vehicles, a stoplight appears. Kids must move it on top of a pole so that it can start functioning. When they touch the green light, all of the vehicles start moving. The app cleverly announces each object as it appears in the scene, and allows kids to revisit all of the objects after the scene is filled. Kids can swim in the ocean, go on safari, or simply play in a backyard.

Best for: Teaching toddlers how to drag-and-drop objects. It is also a nifty way to increase children's vocabulary.

The Turkey steals the show by constantly coming up with funny ways to wear clothing in "Blue Hat, Green Hat - Boynton."

Blue Hat, Green Hat - Boynton

From Loud Crow Interactive Inc., best for ages 2-4, $3.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad,Android, Kindle Fire

Rating: 4 stars

This hilarious interactive book app tells the story of four animal friends trying to get dressed. The elephant, moose, and bear do a great job of donning the colorful clothing described by author Sandra Boynton. However the turkey is a little slow to learn, and his misguided attempts to dress himself is what makes the book funny. Instead of putting his shoes on his feet, he turns upside down and places his head into them. This raucous rhyming tale is sure to make your toddler giggle while also teaching him or her about colors and clothing.

Best for: Toddlers who enjoy a silly story.

Jinny Gudmundsen is the author of the new book: iPad Apps for Kids, part of the For Dummies series. Contact her at techcomments@usatoday.com. Follow her on Twitter: @jinnygudmundsen.

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