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By Stefan Dubowski
Quick: where’s Zagreb? How about Bari or Lodz? If y ou answered Croatia, Italy and Poland (respectively), you’re not only correct but you’re going to enjoy flexing your cartographic muscles with Geomaster Plus. The app, for ages nine and up, points the way to games that reinforce geographic awareness at all levels. Try your hand at navigating the maps, then situate states and countries, capital cities, cultural hubs and even provinces! Work fast to score as many points as possible. Aim for accuracy, because you’ll lose marks for being too far afield. This app is ideal for children and adults who want to keep their mental compasses in fine way-finding form.
DEVICE: Apple; Android
SOURCE: iTunes ($2.29); Google Play ($1.59)
RATING: 4+; Unrated
EDULULU RATING: 5/5
Start your engines! Drive zippy go-carts across a loopy landscape in Toca Cars, an app designed for three- to nine-year-olds to explore creativity in a safe — if dizzying — space. Roll through ice cream puddles, jump off ramps and into lakes. Build houses, traffic lights and mailboxes. Then, players can run them over and press the Restore button to start fresh. Everything in the game is made to look like cardboard — a virtual reminder for everyone to recycle project materials. No road rules, no stress and no in-app purchases mean no limits, making this app a perfect virtual sandbox for the young and creative.
DEVICE: Apple; Android
SOURCE: iTunes; Google Play ($3.49)
RATING: 4+; Everyone
EDULULU RATING: 4.5/5
Fast-paced number games are perfect for boosting your five- to 10-year-olds’ math skills. Players can choose from a range of activities. With Bubbles, children get to pop number bubbles in order of lowest to highest. For an extra challenge, try it with multiplication problems thrown into the mix or switch things up with Roman numerals. Users can race the clock or turn it off to play at their own pace. Download the full version, AB Math ($2.29 on iTunes, $2.02 on Google Play), to access the complete suite of operations (not only addition and multiplication but also subtraction and division) and skill levels.
DEVICE: Apple; Android
SOURCE: iTunes; Google Play (free)
RATING: 4+; Everyone
EDULULU RATING: 4/5
* EduLulu is part of Groupe Média TFO, a world leader in education. The online guide’s evaluations are the work of teams of independent experts (including OCTs), who review up to 100 English, French and bilingual educational apps (iOS and Android) each month for ages two to 17. To access the complete list and search by filter, visit edululu.org/en. Interested in becoming an EduLulu evaluator? Go to oct-oeeo.ca/1NzwdJd to learn how to get involved.