Happy App Friday,
Explore three-dimensional, augmented reality models of everything from jet engines to coral reefs with JigSpace. Learn all about fractions from basic visualization to calculating greatest common denominator and more with Illustrated Math Fractions. Plus, win a custom 3D printed figure from Appy Monkeys, discover podcasts from Common Sense Media, and review a video-phone from Facebook.
Garry Froehlich
Jellybean Tunes
JigSpace
by JigSpace Inc.
Billed as a 3D presentation app, JigSpace lets you view models in augmented reality in a kind of guided tour. For example, you can view a model of a jet engine, which then opens up to show you how it works inside. Each step of the presentation is accompanied by text to give you a better sense of what is going on. It’s quite impressive and varied in content, including a depiction of a coral reef, how a piano works, and inside of the human ear. Better still, it includes the ability to rotate the model or zoom in without having to walk around it. You can make your own Jigs with the companion creator app.
Illustrated Math – Fractions
by Kids 17 Fun
Illustrated Math includes many different exercises covering fractions all the way from the concept of a fraction through addition and subtraction to multiplication and division, plus mixed fractions, decimals, least common multiples and greatest common denominators as well. It’s comprehensive with explanations of concepts, worksheets, and multiple models and levels of each concept. The design is clean and colourful, although it may be best used as an aid to learning fractions in school rather than by itself.
Diwali Contest!
The Appy Monkeys are hosting a contest to get a free 3D printed figure using their Blox 3D Junior app, and a sale on the app. Details at their site.
10 Podcasts for Tweens and Teens
If you’re like me and worry a bit about what your child is finding on YouTube, Common Sense Media recommends ten podcasts they might be interested in.
https://www.commonsensemedia.org/blog/10-must-listen-podcasts-for-tweens-and-teens
Facebook Portal (2019) Review: Mixed Feelings
Facebook makes an impressive in-home video phone and naturally want parents to use it to let their kids talk to and see their grandparents. Of course, it’s hard to recommend since Facebook routinely has privacy issues. Here’s a review from Wired.
