Lil’ Brainiac

by GetBonkers, Inc.

Come play and show off your brainiac skills with a new friend on the block who happens to look just like Leo from the Little Einstein’s Disney show. A flash card like educational application that develops ones vocabulary in both English and Spanish and encourages one to use their listening skills in a game like format. From developers GetBonkers Inc., Lil’ Brainiac is available to download for free for all Apple devices running iOS 4.0 or later. Amazingly, it is preinstalled with a large library of images and clipart for children ages 1-10, as they explore and learn, children will be able to make personal connections to a number of items and even learn a few new ones. Have you ever visited a home or classroom setting that has notecards taped all over the place that indicate what each item in the room is? If you answered yes, then Lil’ Brainiac is the mobile rendition of this effective learning technique.

Upon entering Lil’ Brainiac, users will be greeted with an adorable four eyed friend whom we unfortunately do not see again and a large START button above his head. Like any user, adult or child, one might think to immediately click the START button. However, before starting, users will want to visit the “information” button in the lower left hand corner of the screen. A note to the developers – might it be possible to click on our adorable friend in the middle and have him provide a brief explanation of where to begin and what to do? Most mobile device users might think the “informational” button will provide generic information about the developers and acknowledgements to those that worked on the project. However, your informational button provides a great deal more and should not be overlooked as it will truly make each child’s experience different.

To meet the learning needs of the individual using Lil’ Brainiac, an educator or parent will want to access the many option features available. It is here that the type of gaming experience that you want your child to have is established (easy, medium, hard or very hard). If at any time a games level is too easy or too challenging, simply reset this option. Regardless of which mode is chosen, the object the of game stays the same, listen for what the “announcer” is looking for and click on the square shaped card to match. If at anytime you are unsure of what the announcer says, simply click the megaphone in the upper right hand corner and the item name will be repeated. Game boards appear as an array. The easy mode is a 2 X 3, medium is a 3 X 4, hard is a 5 X 7 and the very hard is a 6 X 8 array. Once the game level has been set, select the close button and then hit START and exploration can begin.

To make the user wanting more, additional image packages can be downloaded for free or for an additional fee. Additional packages can be added to your device by simply visiting the options feature. Here parents will be pleased to see that packages are broken down by age level categories so as to meet the needs of their students or children. In addition, clipart packages are available in both English and Spanish, a great option for those sponge like minds that our children have. Another nice feature is the ability to add your own photos which can coordinate with a familiar voice recording. Those images that are stored on your device are very easily accessible and are then added to the Lil’ Brainiac library.

As children build their file folder of new and old vocabulary words, they will be required to listen and tap cards, correct answers are indicated with a green checkmark, while incorrect answers are indicated with a red checkmark. At no time are children timed or penalized for incorrect answers. Simply try again and the game continues. Once all items have been found, a firework show of stars and trumpets will flash and game play continues to the next board of items. Play does not end until the house icon in the upper left hand corner is pressed.

Overall, Lil’ Brainiac is a very simple concept that provides users an interesting way to learn new words as it is academically appropriate for a large age range. Come play with numbers, letters, US States and Capitals, food, animals, various forms of transportation, learn the meaning behind facial expressions or see the amazing sights of the world. Whether you are using this application individually or with an adult, it can spark new conversations of unknown things. If you would like to learn more about GetBonkers, Inc., be sure to visit their website. Or simply click here to expand your child’s growing mind with Lil’ Brainiac for free today!