For the past year or so, I've been a part of a big conversation over at
Little eLit about children's apps and what our role as librarians is in regards to apps. I've come to the conclusion that apps are a resource (just like books and music and everything else we have at libraries) and that there is a vast ocean of (mostly mediocre to downright awful) apps designed for kids in today's market and that we, as librarians, are in a prime position to help parents navigate those deep waters in search of the very best apps to offer our children.
I wish there were a better way for me to share them with patrons for free (like we can with books and music), but other than a few iPads at our Central Library that are loaded with our favorites, we don't have a way to do that at this point. To make up for that, I like to share apps in my programs whenever it's appropriate to do so.
I've shared before about using apps in WonderWorks, but I've also used apps in my storytimes (e-books are essentially just REALLY BIG "Big Books" with occasional moving parts, after all). After getting questions from several parents (and other staff members) about what apps I recommend, I
started a list which is now posted on my library's website. I will continue to update this list as new apps are developed and/or discovered. If you have recommendations of great apps for kids (especially for the Android market!), I'd love to hear from you in the comment section below. Also, would you appreciate longer app reviews on this blog when I discover new ones that are rave-worthy? Chime in and let me know!
