My First Tangrams is another great puzzle app by developer Alexandre Minard . This iPad app is a multi-faceted Tangrams app that builds puzzle and geometry skills. The app has multiple activities and difficulty levels and is one of the top tangrams app available today. - TOP PICK -
For those of us who haven't been in a math class in a while, tangrams are the shaped pieces used to construct puzzles and patterns in elementary classrooms across the world. These pieces are used to practice and replicate designs and patterns. My First Tangrams is a great app with many different activities and levels available for students to explore. There is a lite version, so you can try it out before you purchase, however its breadth of activity is worth the upgrade.
Upon opening the app, the player is given four categories of activities to choose from. The first is simple shape puzzles with the underlying pieces being outlined for easy matching. The second section gives you a thumbnail image at the top of the finished puzzle, and the outline of one starter piece. You place the rest of the pieces on your own, with no outlines. Both of these levels currently have 32 levels each to play. The puzzles are in no order and do not need to be unlocked to play. The third categories is a free play where you can use all of the different shapes and sizes to create your own puzzle. It's completely without limits. Like your creation? Then you can share it to the apps database easily (with no name attached) and open it up again in the fourth category. The fourth section loads pages and pages of other players' creations to solve as puzzles. They all have the outlines to fit the shapes in. The sky is the limit here, creations take all forms and sizes.
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The scope and depth of this app is impressive. With both of the first two categories having 32 puzzles apiece, and the ability to replay them, those sections alone would offer hours of entertainment and learning. The free play section allows for the artistic side to create designs unique to the learner. The fourth, shared section is massive and provides newly updated puzzles if you've mastered all of the others. This app will continue to grow and change, making it never truly 'beaten'. A child can come back to it and never have to repeat a puzzle.
Overall, this app is great for many ages. Children aged 2-5 can easily do the outline puzzles and practice shape recognition in a fun way. Older students aged 5-10 can use this app to practice geometry skills from shape recognition to parts of a whole as they combine shapes to create new ones. This app could also be used for patterning practice or even color sorting. I can see this as an easy to set up center in a math lesson or as a quick review of shapes for kids as they get home from school. This app has many facets and should be a top pick for parents and teachers looking to support geometry activities.
My First Tangrams is availale for download via the iTunes App Store:
iPhone version: My First Tangrams (full version) -- Free Lite verison
iPad: My First Tangrams HD (full version) -- Free Lite version
This app was reviewed by Sarah Emerling, a mom, a special education teacher, and a technology coach. She is a self proclaimed nerd with a passion for incorporating technology into education.
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