by Laura Jiencke | Jun 29, 2018 | Bluebee News |
Children have endless excitement and creativity to learn when they are young and it’s up to us, as parents, to foster that creativity in unique and fun ways. Parents’ Picks Award chose the Best Educational Products for Preschool-Aged Kids because making sure kids are having fun and sparking their creativity will help mold a child’s brain for years to come.
In order to be a Parents’ Picks Award Winner, these products go through a rigorous approval process with over 50 criteria, including thinking skills, character building, engagement, ease of use, innovativeness, quality, durability, and creative thinking. These products come highly recommended and we hope you will love these award-winning elementary school products as much as we do. With over three hundred applications, we took extensive time with each product to whittle it down to our top picks. Here are the Best Educational Products for Preschool-Aged Kids.
The 4.0 Bluebee Pal Pro is an interactive plush learning tool with FREE companion educational app that connects to all IOS and Android Devices. Our patented technology allows Bluebee’s “mouth and head” to move while reading stories, teaching through educational games, learning a language and singing songs. Bluebee Pals are a great assistive technology tool for educators, therapists and parents. Bluebee Pals are an effective smart device that motivates children to learn and communicate while having fun. https://www.bluebeepals.com
The Bluebee Pals Learning App is a robust life skill and cognitive development tool for children ages 3 to 7. When connected to a Bluebee Pal, children can immerse themselves in activities in five life skills’ rooms and play 9 educational mini-games. In addition to our app, Bluebee Pals pair with “ all apps” with a narrative providing endless entertainment and education for all mainstream and special needs children. https://www.bluebeepals.com/store/
by Punam Desormes | Jun 18, 2018 | Bluebee News, Punam |
Bluebee Pals made an impromptu visit to Princeton House Charter School in Orlando, Florida. Princeton House Charter School is a Pre-K through 5th grade charter school serving students with Autism Spectrum Disorders and a member of the Bluebee Pals Project. As a Bluebee Pals project site, Princeton House has been a recipient of these interactive plush educational tools with exceptional positive outcomes. During this visit, the students were thrilled to meet Bluebee 4.0, whose upgrades include moving head, increased upright sitting ability, and the Bluebee Pals App. With little demonstration, the students began exploring the Bluebee Pals app including its multiple rooms in which their favorite Pal could do things just like them! Students manipulated items in Bluebee’s living room, bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen while learning vocabulary and following directions.
Making Bluebee talk with text to speech apps (Text to Speech!, Robot Talk) continued to be a hit with Bluebee 4.0 saying anything and everything they could imagine! Bluebee was also caught in action during small group reading tasks with Early Literacy Skills Builder (ELSB https://www.attainmentcompany.com/elsb) curriculum in which they were paired with the ELSB app. The teacher shared how her students with significant cognitive disabilities increased their attention to the activity when Bluebee was paired with the curriculum. The speech therapy department at Princeton House received a personal tutorial of the Bluebee Pals app and immediately began brainstorming what speech-language goals could be worked. A therapist or educator’s first question to that would be, well what did they come up with? See below “sharing is caring”:
Speech-Language Therapy Goals with Bluebee Pals App
- Requesting With Words/Phrases
- Identifying and Labeling Functional Vocabulary
- Following 1-2 Step Directions
- Understanding Verbs in Context
- Functional Play Skills
- Retelling Events
- Sequencing Skills/Steps
Thank you Princeton House Charter School for being a Bluebee Pals Project site!
Trying out the new app and Bluebee 4.0? Let us know what you skills you or your student are working on by commenting or messaging us on Facebook @BluebeePalsInc:
by Jo Booth | May 28, 2018 | Bluebee News, Jo's App Reviews |
Transitions are difficult for all of us. Kids especially become more tense and apprehensive when needing to shift gears. Why? Because transitions disrupt the status quo and are an unknown factor of what to expect and what to do. Many children become rigid with a need to have a say or control events surrounding every transition throughout the day. These behaviors can be exhausting for both a parent and child. Using Bluebee for teaching and establishing bedtime routines is a win-win situation as it takes you out of the mix and may help the child initiate the ability to shift along with Bluebee. There is no need for a screen because of Bluebee’s mixed capabilities and functions. In Part one we went over things to consider when designing a bedtime regime for your family. Now let’s take a look at Bluebee, and how he/she can be used with your child.
Here are six ideas for Bedtime routines:
- Practice Bedtime routines with Bluebee. Tuck him in, read a story, and give him a kiss good-night. Through play, kids begin to learn and anticipate what is going to come next. Young children have a blurred line between reality and fantasy, so watching Bluebee’s reaction may help them begin to imitate what to do. Be sure and go over how to fall asleep as well as any exceptions to the rules, i.e., Let Bluebee know that he/she can have three books read before lights out, but if he/she feels unwell to please call Mommy.
- Using the phone feature may bring about realistic responses to tough situations – by having your partner call and talk to Bluebee, you can discuss any ongoing fear or anxieties a child may have. Having that common thread with Bluebee may help a child not feel so isolated or alone.
- Children need to feel safe, and who better than Bluebee can give that reassurance all night long? Deep pressure squeezes and hugs help to release important neurotransmitters that can reset or organize our systems. This, in turn, can help us return to sleep if awakened during the night.
- Try syncing a playlist of soothing songs or lullabies to Bluebee. There are many soundtracks for sleep sounds such as a babbling brook, rain or meditative sounds. Pairing Bluebee with an Amazon Echo Plus or Echo Dot is easy. Amazon has many apps for Alexa to aid in relaxing and preparing for sleep. Search Sleep Sounds under Amazon Skills for possible selections.
- Sleep Stories are stories (really guided imagery) to help kids or adults to fall asleep. The app “Calm” has sleep stories and music for both kids and adults. It uses highly suggestive words such as slow, relaxed and lowers the volume and pacing of the stories gradually to help fall asleep.
- Podcasts also are great to use with Bluebee. Some podcasts can read books where a child can follow along, and some tell stories. Both improve listening skills and increase vocabulary by expanding the context of how both familiar and unfamiliar words are used.
https://www.bluebeepals.com
Storynory Podcast
Nosy Crow
Stories Aloud
Stories Podcast
by Jo Booth | Apr 23, 2018 | Bluebee News, Jo's App Reviews |
The new Bluebee Pal has had a make-over from top to bottom with impressive features that make you want to stand-up and cheer! These features not only improve how the Bluebee Pal functions, but also thought has been given to how a child relates and benefits from engagement with educational material when presented via Bluebee. In addition, a new member of the crew has been added, Parker the Monkey, so that every child will have a special friend to share adventures. Let’s take a closer look at the all-new Bluebee Pal 4
Bluebee Pal Body
The showstopper to the new design is that Bluebee’s head now moves in sync with his mouth as he/she talks, giving her/him a more realistic look and feel. There are no worries to a child “breaking” their pal, as the creator (Laura Jiencke) made sure this feature could stand up to the often “gentle” touch of a youngster just learning how to grade their force. She took into account the fact that many children like to feel inside Bluebee’s mouth just to test his mettle.
The body has been completely redesigned with extra weight tucked into his/her bottom. The Pals feel more lifelike when held. The extra weight translates to increased input for a child to calm and alert when handling their Bluebee and readies them for what is to come – whether it is singing a song, listening to a story, or playing a game. It also enables Bluebee to sit without propping and hold a device or object if necessary. I see many babies and young toddlers in my practice, and it amazes me to see that kids pay more attention to the Pal because they can make eye contact as Bluebee talks.
Bluebee’s gaze is on their level naturally and he doesn’t fall this way or that making it easier to remain focused. (Eye contact is something that should not be forced but is developed through play and practice. Bluebee provides that practice and helps to set the stage for future learning through watching and then imitating others.
Battery life has been improved and Bluebee can now go longer without needing a boost. Placement of the battery charger has been improved for easier access and is not felt when giving Bluebee hugs and kisses.
Bluebee Pal Function
All the features that we have come to love in Bluebee are intact. Bluebee can be paired with any device using Bluetooth® Technology or used as a special friend and stuffie. Here are just a few of the things you can do with Bluebee:
- Use Bluebee to teach the use of AAC devices
- Educational games with Bluebee on a tablet or phone are a snap – Bluebee works best with apps that have a narrative so that Bluebee can talk
- Get up and dance to music from a playlist
- Record the voice of a loved one reading or telling a story to build listening skills
- Teach the sequence of activities of daily living with Bluebee, i.e. potty training
- Snuggle with your Pal in a quiet center to calm and reorganize from a busy day
- Invite others to tea parties or other celebrations
- Play dress up with Bluebee to practice social skills
In Summary
The new Bluebee Pal is now out with many new upgrades that increase enjoyment with play. Each feature was meticulously evaluated and tested by the maker (Laura Jiencke). The life-like head movement and extra cushioning make the pals more huggable and realistic. Bluebee will grow with your child and will help teach them many new skills. Whether you have an older version or are thinking about the new version, just enjoy your friend. They are perfect Pals and friends that will be treasured over a lifetime. So set your course for adventure, and let the fun times begin!https://www.bluebeepals.com
Disclosure: My endorsement in Bluebee Pals goes beyond compensation for writing articles and reviews. I believe in the use of Bluebee Pals to enhance not only play skills, but also the development of skills across domains. I have personally witnessed the joy and companionship that a Bluebee Pal offers kids and how play can be adapted for kids of all abilities. This review reflects my own personal opinion and is not influenced by others.
by Becca Eisenberg | Feb 18, 2018 | Becca's App Reviews, Bluebee News, Cause and Effect Apps |
Help build your child’s cause-effect and knowledge of different colors with Baby’s Musical Hands App!
This is a simple and fun app for young children under 2. This app helps teach babies cause and effect and also helps learn the difference between different sounds. As the baby presses on each color, you hear a different tune. The app is not overstimulating and calming, which is ideal for a very young child. I would suggest putting this app in guided access to benefit most from the features of the app. As you press on each color, there are also stars that show up with the tune. When choosing apps for very young children, it’s important to choose a simple layout that can be used for both entertainment and learning.
How can this app be used for language and learning? As your child activates a square, say the color “you pressed blue”, “you pressed yellow”, “you press red”. This will help your child learn the different colors and build cause-effect skills. Model more language by saying “I like the song you are making”. Focus on turn-taking by saying “my turn” and “your turn” and creating your own song with the Musical Hands app. Each time you press a color, there are stars that appear on the screen. Who can find the rainbow stars? Try to find them together!
Let Bluebee Pal join in on the fun!
- Connect Bluebee Pal via Bluetooth to your device.
- Bluebee can provide the different tunes to the app. With each new tune, a young child can look back and forth from the app to Bluebee Pal. As noted earlier, model the language as the different squares are being touched.
- Bluebee can be a perfect companion for this app to help build cause-effect, join attention and engagement between a child and their parent. Record the song by taking a video of your child and Bluebee creating a song together. Work on sequencing by remembering a simple tune that you have created together! Work on following directions by saying, “press blue 3 times!” “press red 3 times” and model the language by saying, “I press yellow 2 times, 1,2”.
https://www.bluebeepals.com
by Becca Eisenberg | Feb 17, 2018 | Becca's App Reviews, Bluebee News, Cause and Effect Apps, Speech and Language Apps |
The Eli Explorer App was created by early childhood experts designed to encourage kids to explore while learning.
This app helps encourage language and learning in a fun educational and interactive way. When you open the app, press play and then see Eli sleeping! How do you wake her up? Press on Eli and she is ready for an adventure. Take your finger and help guide Eli through a fun and stimulating journey through different scenes.
It’s wonderful in the way that it incorporates different goals and ideas. What happens when you tap on the hot air balloon? Eli gets a telescope and then thinks about finding her “grandfather”. This helps children understand the process of thinking versus saying and prediction. There are also many opportunities for vocabulary expansion! Eli passes the train and it immediately labels “black train”. Throughout the app, there isn’t just labeling of words, there are questions that Eli asks and different types of communicative functions that can help benefit a child’s language and learning.
Eli Explorer can be easily used both in the home, in a classroom or a therapy session. Other features include discovering various animations, getting exposed to over 100 words and phrases, and is recorded with professional mother tongue actions.
The app also comes in 10 different languages! Model language when you are flying with Eli! What do you see? I see balloon! Eli is going fast! Eli is slowing down, what is she going to do?
Apps Bluebee Pals
How can we use this learning app with Bluebee Pal?
- Connect your Bluebee Pal with your device via Bluetooth.
- Let the fun begin with Bluebee providing the voice of Eli and all of her friends that she meets on her adventure. Bluebee Pal can provide all of the labels as Eli is flying and also ask questions. For example, when you stop at the penguin, he asks “What’s the weather?” and then “It’s raining”.
- Bluebee Pal can provide endless fun for a child with this app that helps language and learning. When you are finished using the app, take Bluebee on an adventure like Eli and have her fly through the sky and label various items in the room. This carryover activity can help bring the app to life and carry over some language skills.
