10 Parent-Tested Educational Apps for Students

As a parent, you may sometimes struggle to keep learning lively and exciting outside of the virtual classroom—and most kids aren't thrilled about the idea of extra practice for school. Of course, there's also the parental goal of encouraging learning over the summer, when your children have more appealing options like playing video games or splashing in a pool. How can a parent compete with summer fun?

The good news is that there is a simple and fun way to supplement your student’s learning! By downloading educational yet enjoyable apps on an iPhone, an iPad, or an Android device, your student can engage with a wide range of school subjects—in the car, at the grocery store, or from the comfort of home.

To help you get started on your educational app search, here are a few recommendations from currently enrolled virtual school families*:

Elementary–Middle School

1. BrainPoP Jr. Movie of the Week
   If your child enjoys watching movies, BrainPop Jr. is the perfect app for him or her! Not only does the app provide interactive movies about science, social studies, reading, writing, math, health, arts, and technology, but also it comes with quizzes and bonus features. BrainPop Jr. is a fun way for students to practice their critical thinking skills!
2. Reading Eggs
   Reading Eggs is an engaging platform to keep young readers practicing and motivated. Developed by educational experts, the app includes tons of reading activities and games. You'll be surprised by how much fun your child can have while learning how to read!
3. Stack the States
   Help your student learn all about the fifty states with Stack the States! The app combines games with challenging questions that cover state identification, capitals, geographical features, and flags. Try it together. You may even end up learning something, too!
4. Vocabulary SpellingCity
   Learn how to spell with Vocabulary SpellingCity! Through exciting activities like HangMouse, Missing Letter, and Spelling TestMe, the app can help your student build his or her vocabulary and writing skills.

Middle–High School

5. Quizlet
   Does your student have an important exam coming up? Use Quizlet to prepare for the big day! The app makes studying easy by allowing users to create virtual flash cards, and providing helpful study reminders.
6. Duolingo
   Hola, bonjour, ciao, hallo. Looking to enhance your student’s education with a new language? Try Duolingo! With stimulating lessons, the app helps students learn how to read, write, listen to, and speak several different languages, including Spanish, German, Portuguese, and Italian.
7. PhotoMath
   Math isn’t always the easiest subject to grasp—that's why PhotoMath was created to walk students through a math problem, step by step. All you have to do is take a picture of the math problem on your phone and the app will do the rest!
8. Easy Bib
   Citing sources for a school paper no longer has to be a tedious and confusing process! With Easy Bib's advanced citation tools, students can quickly and easily create a citation. To ensure accuracy, all citations are reviewed by librarians and teachers.
9. Desmos Graphic Calculator
   Why buy a graphic calculator when you can use a high-quality virtual one for free? Using the Desmos Graphic Calculator, students are able to conveniently solve challenging math equations by creating tables, adding sliders, plotting functions, and more.

All Grades

10. Khan Academy
    Learning doesn't have to stop just because the school day or week is over! Through practice exercises and instructional videos, Khan Academy offers extra support in several different courses, including math, science, computer programming, and history.

Educational apps are a great and engaging way to continue reinforcing, sharpening, and developing learning skills after the school day or during the summer.

Which educational apps are helpful—and entertaining—for your student? Share your tips with us in the comments!

* A survey was conducted though our online panel, Chalk Talk, to learn which educational apps are benefitting Connections Academy, Pearson Online Academy , and FLVS Full Time families. Two hundred forty-three families were surveyed.