We live in a world where everything is electronic. The tills are becoming self-service, the ticket machines in train stations are more prevalent than the people in the booths and in schools, iPads are the new educational toy. Often, children come away from schools with letters about iPad use in the IT room and with places such as hospitals switching to tablet use rather than paper charts, you cannot get away from them.

And why would you want to? iPad and tablet apps are increasingly being created to include games, songs and even apps to help children learn to spell, do mental arithmetic and general knowledge.

There are map apps, puzzle apps, phonic apps – you name it, it’s likely been created. There are apps that give you news articles and film reviews, and even those like getshowboxapp.com that let you watch movies on the go. There are also impressive apps that have been created by app developers like Novoda to help discipline your child – how nifty is that!?

When you’re setting up a new iPad or tablet for your children, it can be a little bit of a minefield when sorting through all the apps that are out there. Outside of pens, pencils, paints and clay crafts, you need to know the best apps that will encourage thinking, problem-solving and in some cases, how to catch as many fish as you can! Some of these apps have been pipped as the most fun, the most colourful and simply the best of the bunch and I’ve listed some of these for you:

• Blackboard Madness: Math. If your child loves numbers, loves problem solving and loves bright colours, they’ll love this one! They’ll need to think logically and have quick reactions and you can change the levels from age 4 and up so as they progress, they can be challenged further.
• Dino Tim. Made for kids in infant school or up to age 6, this app is fantastic for learning colours, first words and shapes. With a quirky theme and witchy powers, your little ones won’t be able to tear themselves away from the screen.
• Elephant Art: Painting Room! Let your children’s imaginations run wild with this arty game. It’s far away from the usual Crayola crayons and colouring pens, it’s a game to celebrate imagination. Your kids can splash the colours together and watch them mix, while learning to create new colours.
• Miximal. This app is a fun crash of animals that are split in two. In the least freaky way possible, of course. Your little one can learn to slide the screen to match the tops to the bottoms of the animals and with the cartoony creatures lighting up the screen, they’re easy to recognise and place together.

There are apps that range for all ages up to secondary education to help older children with revision and has bitesize information on different subjects. Of course, iPads are never a real replacement for learning with mum and dad, but they do pack a darn good punch!