Finding the best iPhone and iPad apps for kids

I know, I know….the kids should simply “look out the window at the scenery” on trips….like we did, right?

(Did you cringe the first time that phrase came out of your mouth as a parent?  Did you think, OMG what Old Geezer thing will I say next – “We walked five miles to school through the snow, barefoot, going uphill.”)

As usual, I digress….

Many parents of young children are finding that games and apps (applications) on their iPhone or new iPad are ideal for keeping certain squirmy family members quiet and amused, especially during long trips.

I’ve found a marvelous resource for you:  while participating in the This Week in Travel podcast (go here for our episode – Spirit Air and Ryanair compete to suck the most) I chatted with co-host Jen Leo about her experiences traveling with her first child, daughter Cora.

Jen told me about a site that she runs with Jamie Pearson, called Best Kids Apps – “we play all the iPhone games so you don’t have to.”  Yay!

App games are broken out by age group and by type (Educational, Creative, Just for Fun, etc.)  There’s just a ton of helpful info there for you app-collectors.

More good news: they have a post up on the best iPad apps for kids, AND they’re giving away an iPad for Mother’s Day (details to follow.)

Want to see a how a kid who has grown up in a touchscreen world reacts to the iPad?  Pretty interesting stuff in the video below from Todd Lapin on Laughing Squid; here’s his blog post about this “UI (User Interface) experiment” – A 2.5 Year-Old Uses an iPad for the First Time