SL rocks it for readers ;).

Do you have an iDevice? :) I can recommend LOTS of apps if you do.

You could always do pared down A Beka. Just get the Handbook for Reading and the readers. Do 1 page/day in the handbook followed by 1 story in the right reader, and just keep going :). That's what we ended up doing to teach reading to my now 8-yo (we went through to the end of the Handbook) followed by AAS for spelling.

If you want a pretty simple list type planner with repeating subjects only - I use Chore Pad :).

Heh, more options than you started with, hey? That's what you get when you ask the hive...:lol:!

Amen. I trialed Ooka Island and had such mixed feelings. Great phonological awareness activities but TOO many sight words, confusing, and (I felt) developmentally inappropriate for my 5 yo.

Oh, agreed, I bought this one and my daughter loved it :).

I used Starfall to get my 1st DD reading, but she needed a lot of practice after the first set of readers so we went to other things after that - never tried the paid version. Will be checking out Reading Eggs soon - another option is Time4Learning - both my 5yo and 8yo LOVED our trial but I thought it was a bit spendy :).

Oh, I forgot to say that The Old Schoolhouse Magazine app for Android just came out today - it has two free digital issues included :).

There is a Starfall app but it is just the short sounds of the alphabet which might be too simple for this age :). Cimo Spelling has a lot of levels, Simplex Spelling is great (but not really 'fun' or gamey), Montessori Crosswords and Word Wizard are both very good. There is a lot more for K level phonics than there is for later phonics, but those are some good ones to check out. Lite versions for Cimo and Simplex so you can try those out.

I bought an Acer Iconia to review more Android apps - well, I own an app review website, so it's justified :). I have some reviews here: http://appsforhomeschooling.com/category/4bydevice/android/ BUT you'll want to get Famigo Sandbox for child-proofing your device, Intellijoy has awesome apps, Oceanhouse Media has the best storybook apps, and some really great iOS developers are working on porting to Android too - so watch for good apps coming soon!

Math Evolve - very comprehensive, flexible, encourages mental math as well.

Does anyone know if Scholastic has a sort of comprehensive grade level LA digitally? It doesn't have to be on sale, just looking for a good ebook for doing o the iPad with a stylus in PDF Expert :).

These are military grade cases tested to a 6 foot drop onto concrete - I'm going to get one! Should help with finding the little beast too (pink and white pink and white!) http://store.griffintechnology.com/ipod/ipod-touch/survivor-ipod-touch

An iDevice. You CAN NOT beat the prices of apps compared to game cartridges, and you can get a lot of them for free too if you watch a price drop website. What would cost $12-30 on a gaming system normally goes for $1-3 on a mobile device. iPods are tougher than you think :). Ours gets a lot of use from all our girls and hasn't busted yet - 8,5,3,1. An iPad is even better, but it is a bit heavier and more expensive so you might be REALLY nervous about letting them use it :).

If you have an iPad there are a lot of LOGO apps, there's also one called Daisy the Dinosaur that just came out that introduces childen to object-oriented programming.

We use PDF Expert for pdfs like Math Mammoth (don't have MEP), it bookmarks, DD recently decided she likes PDF Pro better (it's cheaper too - $2.99).

Heh. They often do eloquacious, but I buy a lot of apps too. I don't like spending the time hunting down a contact, asking them for a code etc. etc. maybe never hearing back from them - it takes a lot of time. I end up reviewing a lot of the apps I buy if I like them! I haven't taken a look at it yet to determine value (I really hope they audio-enable it soon, I'm buying it with that hope), but here is some general rambling. Would I hesitate to buy a set of physical tiles for $15? Probably not. I think that the app marketplace tends to really devalue very valuable products due to consumer demand for cheap apps. Just because it is digital doesn't mean it's not worth spending money on - it takes just as long to develop programmed products and often includes other resources/money to make them (audio talent, graphics etc.). It just seems people aren't willing to pay a lot for apps because app=cheap to many. But if educational apps are to really stick around and succeed I think prices are going to keep going up over the next couple of years in order to make a long-term sustainable industry. Sorry rant over. I'm not implying that anyone here is thinking this way - those are just some general thoughts about the app industry in general. More than anyone wanted to hear likely!! ;P It is worth a lot to me just so I don't have to pull our huge whiteboard down and hope my three small children don't decimate it while I try to teach spelling to my oldest!!! (5, 3, 1 - they can be mischief makers!)

Oh, the price dropped again on the 15th! I missed that - thanks! Just bought a copy - woohoo!!

Thanks Pam, I'm glad you find the site helpful :). eloquacious - one word - syllables That's all I know!

Found a grid-type one, haven't tried it though. http://bit.ly/tJ6zb7 LogiGrid, it's universal (iPhone/iPod/iPad), only spotted it because it price dropped from $2.99 --->$1.99 :) Immediately thought of this thread!

I'm so sad I missed the sale! My bandwidth was messed up :(.

The developers are homeschoolers too BTW. And they do have plans for 2 :).

I'd love MUS block colors as an alternate option.

Pam, Simplex actually has a new spelling app out that is phonetically organized! I reviewed it and have a giveaway going on right now actually! Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 - it's even better than the first, but goes in a slightly different order than AAS (and it doesn't teach consonants, focuses on vowels). http://appsforhomeschooling.com/2011/simplex-phonics-1-giveaway/ It's normally $4.99 but it's on sale for $0.99!