Mind Leap makes sure that parents and educators know which apps are educational and which aren't, which keep kids engaged and which bore them to tears. And, we encourage developers to build great stuff that turns kids on to learning.
I checked out this site, especially to explore the book on tape they recommended, but "pamplemousse" wasa a bit too far out for my liking. I wasn't convinced it was good literature.
APPitic is a directory of apps for education by Apple Distinguished Educators (ADEs) to help you transform teaching and learning. These apps have been tested in a variety of different grade levels, instructional strategies and classroom settings.
Andrew shared this interesting article. It doesn't need to be about play vs. learning. It's learning through play-like activities. When children work in groups to explore math concepts, they're also developing social interaction and communication skills. It's a win-win situation. I have certainly seen this in our Kindergarten classrooms.
You are right on Lisa. There really should be no debate concerning academic skills vs. Social/emotional learning in the early childhood classroom setting. They both affect each other and should go hand in hand. I feel we do this well at STAB. I found it interesting that Duncan's research discovered math stood out as serving students the best in promoting later achievement with reading a close second.
This article ties in nicely to John's presentation at our Tac meeting. If you embrace these ideas, it also has huge implications for how and what we teach... Creative thinking needs time. Creative teaching and learning need even more time....