Ansel & Clair: Jurassic Dinosaurs by Cognitive Kid, Inc. (iPad2 and later only, $1.99 at time of review)
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Clair and Ansel are "Virtoosians" who need to learn about the world by flying around on their spacecraft, affectionately named Marley. Ansel & Clair: Jurassic Dinosaurs is the fourth app in this series from Cognitive Kid, Inc, which include Ansel and Clair: Paul Revere's Ride, Ansel and Clair: Cretaceous Dinosaurs, and Ansel and Clair's Adventures in Africa (iPhone/ iPod touch also avail.). My 9 year old and 5 year old kids love all of the Ansel and Clair apps- they keep playing them over and over- they have completed each app but they continue to play anyway- the developers have managed to make learning really fun!
Ansel & Clair: Jurassic Dinosaurs is actually a prequel to Ansel and Clair: Cretaceous Dinosaurs, and is equally informative and appealing. My kids have learned facts such as the difference between the Tyrannosaurus (from the Cretaceous period) and the Allosaurus (Jurassic period), the Plesiosaurus "Loch Ness Monster" theory, how Brachiosaurus got its name (it means "Arm lizard" and facts about the process of pollination. We were all surprised to find out about the Hybodus, a shark that lived not only during the Jurassic period, but amazingly persisted for 100 million years. Like we have come to expect, all these facts are presented in an engaging way- from the attractive graphics and animations, to the embedded games and journal with sticker scenes. There are even fun hidden spots to discover like the mollusks you can feed to the Hybodus.
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| These screenshots were taken while my sons played Ansel & Clair: Jurassic Dinosaurs |
Really "cool" features:
Rich Media / Narrated Scenes
The graphics and animations really hold the kids' attention. During play close-up images pop out to support a fact; by tapping on different elements of a scene, facts about the Jurassic Period are presented as a dialogue between Ansel and Clair. The user gets to use the "camera" to take pictures of featured animals and things to place in his/her scrapbook.
Learn and Retain Fun Facts
From a former history-phobe, believe that you will learn facts by playing with this app, and amazingly, you will have fun. This is an app I enjoy playing with my kids.
Visual and Auditory Cues
I appreciate the use of visual and auditory cues. Throughout the app there are arrows, icons and narration to guide the user. *See Wish List
Scrapbook/Journal with Writing Feature
Take snapshots during game play to place in a journal. There is a writing feature as well- use the keyboard to enter notes about what you have learned about each animal or item- this is such a useful feature for an educational setting. The journal can be accessed by tapping on the backpack symbol in the lower right hand side of the screen.
Jurassic Sticker Scene
This is a feature embedded in the back of the Scrapbook/Journal. Stickers for the sticker scene are collected by listening to facts about the Jurassic period. I love how when you drag a sticker on to the Jurassic scene, you can place it on top of another sticker- this comes in handy for going outside the scope of the app and practicing concepts like 'in front of' and 'behind'. You can send a copy of your completed scene to someone via email *See Wish List.
Embedded Puzzle Game with two difficulty levels
Find this hidden feature when learning about the Allosaurus. You can choose from two settings, "easy" (9 pieces) or "hard" (24 pieces) to complete a puzzle scene of an Allosaurus.
Make a Dino
Definitely my kids' favorite "game" feature of the app. Click through the choices of dinos and modify it to to make your very own dino. There are icons to represent the different body parts and features you can choose from. You can even give your dino a name. When you are done making your dinosaur masterpiece, you can send it to a friend via email, or save it to your iPad Photo Album.
Travel underground to unearth two different sets of dinosaur bones from the Jurassic period. This was my favorite feature in Ansel and Clair: Cretaceous Dinosaurs. The settings now allow more freedom to use any kind of tap to uncover the bones. The kids still find this fun, but I loved when it was more challenging and required specific taps to finish the task. After uncovering the bones, the user assembles the pieces to complete a dinosaur bone puzzle *See Wish List
Turn off the Volume, or not!
There are separate controls to adjust volume and sound effects, which means if the background music is too much for a child, they can still enjoy the sound effects. It even goes a step further by allowing us to adjust music volume to our liking.
Built-in Guide Not sure about how to navigate through the app? There is a built in guide with screenshots of each area, along with descriptions (under the book icon)
Parent Friendly Access to Social Media & Apps
I LOVE the new parent friendly feature for the "About" page, and also for the "More Apps" button on the main screen. To click out of the app, say to Facebook, you must answer a mathematical question. You can also join their mailing list to get updates and information, share with a friend, contact support if you are having an issue, send feedback for improvements etc. all via the About page.
Wish List ( I always have one!)
First of all, I just wanted to say a big thanks to the developers who have listened to user feedback and addressed past wishes for other Ansel and Clair apps in the series. - I especially LOVE the parental control feature now in place to view links to Cognitive Kids' apps, or to access their social media sites. This is much appreciated! (users now have to answer a multiplication problem (eg 4x12) before being able to leave the app.)
Option to hide the Mail feature- Can I "shut off" the mail button available in the Make a Dino and Sticker Scene sections of the app? Kids might accidentally send their (gorgeous) creations to random people in my contacts by choosing whatever name pops up when a letter is entered. Developer Comment: We are considering this possibility.Written explanations- When clicking to take a picture an audio fact is given- would like it to be written out as well, or perhaps at least display some key words, for those that have auditory comprehension difficulties- having a script to read would help the child understand what he/she is hearing better. Developer Comment: We are considering implementing this feature in the future- it is also a current feature available in Ansel and Clair: Paul Revere's Ride.
Sticker Scene- I would love to be able to jump to the Sticker Scene and be able to adjust the size of the stickers in the scene with a pinching motion for more creative play.
Difficulty setting for Dino Dig- In Ansel and Clair: Cretaceous Dinosaurs, I loved how you were required to use the proper motion (either two fingers, a single finger or a swipe) to uncover the Dino bones. Now it allows any tap to uncover the Dino bones, despite instructions to use one or two fingers. This is no longer as attractive for fine motor practice- I would love to see a "difficult" setting where child must use correct touch to complete the task. Developer Comment: we made it easier to tap as a lot of users were getting confused with the 2 tap vs. 1 tap.
Size- We had some issues with certain features not working until other apps were deleted to clear up space- it turns out this app takes more than twice the stated amount of space in iTunes (455 MB versus 220 MB),which really needs to be stated in the iTunes description. I should also mention that I always have our 16gb iPad packed to the max with special needs apps, so this is likely a problem unique to me, but something to be aware of if you are in a similar situation. Developer Comment: The app size indicated (... ) is automatically indicated by Apple. There is nothing we can do (about size) unless we cut out the features, unfortunately.
Youtube Video Preview of Ansel & Clair: Jurassic Dinosaurs: http://www.
Youtube Video Preview of Ansel & Clair: Jurassic Dinosaurs: http://www.
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