There was a time when it was rare for kids to have Gameboys, but these days it seems like even the youngest children are getting on the iPad and playing Plants Vs. Zombies or Angry Birds.
By the time kids hit the 7 – 10 range they are typically more interested in the full-fledged games than the educational apps you might prefer they play, but there’s another option to consider: games that both teach new concepts and have challenging levels of fun.
Here we’re rounding up some of the absolute best educational games covering everything from writing to physics and math. If you’ve got younger kids, be sure to also check out our list of best educational apps for 3 – 6 year olds here.
Inventioneers
Platform: iOS / Android
Price: Free to try, $1.99 for full version
Like a kids version of Scribblenauts meets World Of Goo, this excellent title is equal parts entertaining and educational. Inventioneers tasks your child with figuring out how to build and modify inventions to solve specific puzzles, using rubber belts, fans, pipes, balloons, domino pieces, and more to move objects to different areas of the screen.
Some of these puzzle levels are serious brain teasers, and even adults will potentially get a lot of enjoyment playing this title that has a seriously high level of polish for such a small price tag.
Inventioneers challenges you to overcome problems creatively
Wordventure!
Platform: iOS
Price: $1.99
Rewarding both creativity and following the rule, the deceptively simple Wordventure! teaches the basics of sentence structure and the differences between nouns, adverbs, past tense verbs, etc. Each template has your kid type in their own answers for various kinds of words and then constructs a story around them.
While entirely educational at heart, there’s a ton of fun to be had by coming up with more interesting or outrageous sentences that still fit the proper word types and then reading them aloud with the family. On the downside, the base game only comes with a handful of stories, so you’ll probably end up spending a few extra dollars to buy more.
Make up fun stories with your kids!
Stack The States / Stack The Countries
Platform: iOS / Android / Windows
Price: $1.99
The U.S. focused Stack The States and its more global companion Stack The Countries utilize a series of mini-games to teach geographical facts in a way that’s actually fun. From a sort of anti-Tetris where states / countries are stacked ever higher, to the brain-teasing jigsaw puzzle, to the more fast-paced Capital Drop mode, there’s plenty for kids to do here while memorizing facts.
Each puzzle includes questions about specific states, so over time your kids will become pros at learning where states/countries are located and recognizing their capitols, languages, and major landmarks. Unlike many other apps, this one has no third-party ads or micro-transactions, so you don’t have to worry about extras being bought or ads for violent games showing up.
Can your kids name all 50 states and their capitols?
Duolingo
Platform: iOS / Android / Windows
Price: FREE
Being bi-lingual opens up all sorts of opportunities for young adults seeking a job, but even if your kids never end up using their second languages for employment, simply learning another way of speaking can have huge benefits in their development.
Blurring the lines between game and teaching tool, Duolingo only has minimal gameplay elements but still makes learning new languages an engaging experience. To keep kids hooked, there are game aspects like XP and a health bar included. If you answer questions incorrectly, you will lose health, but getting several right in a row grants bonus XP and health.
There are various difficulty levels as well, so even young kids can jump in and start learning everything from Spanish to Norwegian to Polish and a whole lot more.
It’s never too early to start learning a new language!
It’s never too early to start learning a new language!
Ansel and Clair: Little Green Island
Platform: iOS / Android
Price: $2.99
Combining both real-time gameplay and question-and-answer segments while teaching elementary school science concepts, A&C: Little Green Island tasks your youngster with creating an island utopia. They’ll have to clear away trash, remove pollutants, and deal with forest fires before planting new foliage. With a strong environmentalist message, the game has a big emphasis on problem solving while teaching concepts like methane, the ozone layer, the effects of oil spills, and so on.
Learn about science and nature while completing fun puzzles
Marble Math
Platform: iOS / Android
Price: $2.99
Making math fun is a tall order, as its typically the subject kids are going to like least (unless you’re lucky to enough to have the rare child with a serious aptitude). Marble Math makes a valiant effort, with wacky level design and fun sound effects as your child moves a marble through a maze to solve various equations. To keep the little ones hooked and playing longer, they can unlock various rewards like new marbles.
If your kids struggle with solving these problems, there’s also a Marble Math: Junior Edition that covers math problems more appropriate for 5 – 8 year olds.
Math usually isn’t nearly this much fun!
Terraria / Minecraft
Platform: iOS / Android
Price: $4.99 / $6.99
Get Terraria here and Minecraft here
These games with similar mechanics but different visual styles definitely aren’t focused on the education aspects and are instead full video games, but they absolutely still have educational value and are better options for kids if you are trying to avoid the more mature games.
While they are more in-depth than many of the other apps listed here, by the time your kids hit the 7 – 10 range, they should be more than capable of understanding and utilizing the basic gameplay mechanics.
Both of these require logical thinking and have a clear progression of ideas. While having fun playing a game, your kids will have to think concepts through from beginning to end in order to acquire the right types of materials and then build objects and environments. If you are kids are clamoring for new games but you aren’t crazy about shooters or MMOs, these are excellent options that strike a balance between learning and having fun.
3d and 2d versions of similar world building ideas
