App Friday: Talk Time

Welcome to App Friday, our weekly link exchange of family-friendly apps. This week the American Academy of Pediatrics updated their policy on media for children under two years old. For me, it was refreshing to read their emphasis on the importance of parent-child conversation, or, “talk time”. Regardless of whether they covered apps in the report (which they did not), the message about the thoughtful use of technology is so important as screens become more available to family members of all ages. Specifically, they mention how important it is to talk to our kids. This App Friday, let’s think about how apps can provide more topics of conversation. How many sushi did you squish? How many strikes in baseball does it take to strike out? What animal sound is your favorite? Whatever we do – keep talking!

You’re Invited to our Download Party on Facebook

To connect with the community and discover great deals, check out our Facebook Event at 10am PST / 1pm EST on Friday Oct. 21st. The event is open to the public. To participate, log into Facebook with your personal profile, go to the event page and click “attend event”, and interact by posting app news or by entering comments along the way. Click “F5″ to refresh the page every few minutes so you can see the new posts.

Participating Apps: TapTeach Baseball, Evil Sushi Squish, Jellybean Tunes, SoundBook, Scratch-a-Sketch, Halloween Coloring Book

1. Click the images to view the app descriptions in iTunes.

2. Promotional pricing lasts until 8pm US PST Friday unless extended by the developer.

3. For opinions and reviews on these apps, consider visiting the Review Sites listed on our Appreciation Page.

TapTeach Baseball, FREE this #appfriday

Evil Sushi Squish, FREE this #appfriday (also available on Android)

Jellybean Tunes for iPad, $.99 this #appfriday

 Soundbook, $.99 this #appfriday

Scratch A Sketch, $.99 this #appfriday

 Halloween Coloring Book, $.99 this #appfriday

Message Board

• Tune into the iMum’s Halloween Week for lots of ghostly giveaways, Oct. 24-31st!
• Join Siva from Technology in Education for the Appy Halloween Party on Oct. 24th – prizes await!
• Vikido, the video sharing app, experienced a glitch with their Facebook integration last week. If you downloaded last #appfriday and experienced problems, they invite you to try again this week. Price is always free.
• The Mobile Evolution blog, by Justine Pratt of Creative Algorithms, is an excellent resource for app developers who seek to understand strategies for marketing their app. Recommended reading for those in the app industry.
• Did you know Lil Sub for iPad, an app to explore sea creatures from an underwater submarine, is also free this #appfriday?
• We are loving the Jellybean Tunes App Report – and hope you are too!

Link Exchange

The Link Exchange is a way for anyone to share their own news!  Do you have an app that is New, Free, or Specially priced? List it here! Include the app name in the “link title”, your email, and a URL to the app.