To celebrate World Animal Day, we're releasing free Wee Alphas wallpaper for your iPad, iPad mini or iPhone. Kids and grown-ups will love finding their special letters hidden in the animals. Download your very own background of beasties.
Looking for an easy, super-inexpensive Halloween costume? Our DIY Wee Alphas are perfect for stuffing into backpacks for the preschool parade or other neighborhood event. The best part is, you probably already have all the supplies you'll need.
Post a pic of your kiddo in a Wee Alphas costume to facebook.com/weesociety by Oct. 31, and you'll be entered to win a Wee Alphas art print.
As parents of young kids, and as iPad app developers, we're part of the discussion of whether – and how – kids should be using tablets.
We grew up watching (and loving) Mr. Rogers, who struggled with a similar quandary based on television – the new technology of his time. Fred Rogers felt strongly that TV should not be used as a substitute for human interaction, but as a tool for fostering communication between grown-ups and kids.
A joint statement this year by the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and the National Association for the Education of Young Children said, "effective uses of technology and media are active, hands-on, engaging, and empowering." The statement also suggests that, "interactions with technology and media should be playful and support creativity," and that, "when used appropriately, technology and media can enhance children's cognitive and social abilities."
We created the Wee Alphas app with this in mind. It was designed to encourage meaningful interactions between preschoolers and grown-ups. The app includes tips and questions to help parents encourage learning experiences, including practicing ABCs, discovering new words and concepts and inspiring creative thinking.
We're beyond thrilled that YogiPlay, a company dedicated to helping parents find the very best educational apps for kids, gave Wee Alphas a glowing review. Here's what they had to say about the app:
"Hipster parents rejoice! A fabulously designed app called Wee Alphas is here!! The beautifully stylized animal characters in Wee Alphas makes one think of Mid-Century Modern meeting Sesame Workshop." They call Wee Alphas a "visually stunning, fun-to-use app for kids."
We think YogiPlay is pretty neat too. Founded by Stanford-trained engineers (and parents), their YogiMeter app rating system was developed by educational experts and ranks apps in two main areas – engagement and educational quality.
You can read their full review of Wee Alphas here.
We're honored and excited that Common Sense Media, the nation's leading nonprofit organization for kids and media, gave Wee Alphas its top (5-star) rating for overall quality:
Reviewer (and media-savvy mom) Dana Villamagna says: "The coolest thing about WEE ALPHAS is that it takes the approach that just because kids need to learn the basics like ABCs, doesn't mean they have to be bored. In fact, this app is quirky enough to entertain the parents playing the app with the kids. From the beautiful illustrations and the interesting selections of animals and their activities ("Ingrid the Impala is deep sea diving") to the quirky animations (tap Violet the Vulture's hair and she changes from ponytail to braids to beehive and more), kids and parents are surprised and engaged. Wee Alphas is a standout example of a fun, quality preschool education app."
If you want, you can read more here.
Today Wee Society released art prints featuring the somewhat silly and surprising Wee Alphas.
As older kids head back to school, parents with younger ones at home are looking for new learning experiences to support their kids' development. And many are pulling out their iPads.
Thirty-nine percent of children age 2- to 4-years-old have used an iPad, iPhone or similar touch-screen device to play games, watch videos or use other apps, according to a survey last year by Common Sense Media, a San Francisco-based nonprofit group.
"We know from our own experience that an iPad can be a really meaningful teaching tool for kids, if used the right way," said Wee Society co-founder Jill Robertson. "We designed the book app Wee Alphas for parents and preschoolers to use together. It's about creating an experience that's fun for both kids and adults. Fun first, and learning follows."
With Wee Alphas, each letter of the alphabet is hidden in clever, colorful illustrations of animals that feature silly rhymes. A sketchpad encourages kids to practice drawing their own "special letter." Wee Society collaborated with indie rock band Rabbit! on the sound effects and music that kids love and adults won't mind listening to again and again. The app also includes a guide to help parents create teaching moments while using Wee Alphas with their kids.
Apple named Wee Alphas on its list of New & Notable apps in the education category; and KinderTown, the respected "educational app store for busy parents," selected Wee Alphas as "an outstanding app for home and school." In their review, KinderTown added that the app "combines incredible design with a solid understanding of how kids learn."
When developing the Wee Alphas app, it was important to us to incorporate kid-friendly music that we loved (and didn't mind hearing again and again).
So we jumped at the chance to collaborate with one of our favorite bands. Rabbit! provided the music and narration, and helped us with sound design. We talked about stuff like the tone of a Lion's meow.
Check out this video of Rabbit! performing the catchy song featured in Wee Alphas. It's called Pea (from their Connect the Dots album), and it's adorable. You can hear more of Rabbit!'s music on iTunes.
[Thanks, R!]