Empower Learning Interactive Learning Apps for All
by
PSN Team 
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Transitioning Back to School
The long, lazy (or at least less “scheduled”) days of summer will soon be ending, and it will be time for all of us to turn our attention back to academics. Maybe your child or teen will be transitioning to a new school, a new grade or maybe attending the same school, but a new teacher or new paraprofessionals will be part of their day?
Getting back into routines can be challenging for some of us and welcome relief for others – or a combination of the two! Read on for some great apps to help with things like reinforcing and practicing not only academic skills learned at school, but also communication and language skills, setting up a visual schedule for new routines, and more!
Reinforcing Academic and Communication Skills
There are apps like Vroom, which offer creative activity tips to help your child have fun while also building their brain during life’s everyday events such as grocery shopping, cleaning the house, sitting in a waiting room at a doctor’s appointment, and much more.
If you have more than one child, you can add both to the app, and the suggestions will be personalized for each based on their ages. So, if you are looking at the tips under “At an appointment”, you can easily see tips for both children by clicking on their tab at the top.
Although Vroom’s description says that it is for children birth to age 5, the activities could certainly be used with children older than 5 years old or with those whose developmental age is different from their chronological age.
Encouraging a Love of Reading
Maybe you want to instill a love of reading in your child (ren), but just aren’t sure how? We love apps like Sesame Street Alphabet Kitchen that help children learn anywhere and storybook apps such as Storyline Online and Storytime Sam that allow children to have stories read aloud to them, something that has been proven to improve vocabulary as well as overall reading, writing, communication skills, and more!
Or maybe your family loves music? Wild Symphony is a music focused app for the whole family to enjoy together that combines illustrations of animals along with classical music. Users can choose the animal they want to watch while listening to music.
It also has a companion book that works interactively with the app by the same name, but it is not necessary to have the book to enjoy the app. If you are interested, retailers that carry the book can be found here: Wild Symphony Book.
Homework and Learning Support
For homework help or if your child is learning at home, either via virtual school or homeschooling, Khan Academy is a great helper for children ages Kindergarten through high school.
Khan Academy is a completely free app that offers a huge library of videos and articles, as well as interactive activities for subjects such as math to help students learn almost anything! Lastly, an app list about going back to school would not be complete without something to help with scheduling and setting up new routines.
One app that many of our users find helpful for this is Visual Daily Schedule. This app is an easy way to provide your child with a visual representation of how their day will look. We hope that you find at least one or two of these apps helpful to your family as the new school year begins, happy learning!
Sesame Street Alphabet Kitchen
By Sesame Workshop
This playful and educational app features Cookie Monster and Elmo as they guide kids through word-building activities. Designed for preschoolers, it introduces letter recognition, phonics, and vocabulary development by encouraging kids to “bake” words in a virtual kitchen. With fun animations and interactive challenges, the app makes early literacy a hands-on, sensory-rich experience.
Price: $3.49
Vroom – Early Learning
By Vroom
Vroom provides parents and caregivers with science-based tips and activities to boost brain development in children from birth to age five. The app turns everyday routines—like mealtime, bath time, or grocery shopping—into valuable learning moments. With personalized prompts and progress tracking, Vroom empowers families to nurture early cognitive and social-emotional skills using what they already do every day.
Price: Free
Visual Daily Schedule
By Natalia Jakubczyk-Gajewska
Perfect for children who thrive on structure, especially those with autism, ADHD, or developmental delays, this app allows caregivers to create customized visual routines. Children can see what’s coming next in their day using simple images and clear text. The app helps reduce anxiety, improve independence, and make daily transitions smoother through visual and auditory support.
Price: Free | Offers In-App Purchases
Storytime Sam
By Akshay Panchavati
Storytime Sam is a digital storybook app designed to make reading engaging and interactive. It features animated stories, narration, and touch-based elements that keep kids involved from page to page. The app helps build early literacy skills, vocabulary, and comprehension in a fun and creative format that’s great for home or classroom use.
Price: Free | Offers In-App Purchases
Storyline Online
By SAG-AFTRA Foundation
Produced by the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, Storyline Online brings popular children’s books to life through expressive read-aloud videos performed by well-known actors like Viola Davis and Chris Pine. Each story includes captions and activity guides, supporting literacy, listening comprehension, and a love for reading in kids from preschool through elementary school.
Price: Free
Wild Symphony
By Stellata, LLC
Created by author Dan Brown, Wild Symphony is an innovative blend of storytelling, music, and animal-themed learning. The app pairs with the physical picture book, allowing children to hear original orchestral music for each animal character by scanning QR codes. It introduces kids to classical music and mindfulness in a multisensory way that’s both calming and enriching.
Price: Free
Khan Academy
By Khan Academy
Khan Academy offers a comprehensive, free learning platform for children and students of all ages. The app includes thousands of interactive exercises, instructional videos, and personalized learning dashboards covering subjects such as math, science, reading, history, and more. It’s an excellent resource for at-home learning, homework help, and skill-building at any level.
Price: Free
Check out BridgingApps App Search Tool to search for apps, create lists and even share them.
BridgingApps, a program of Easter Seals Greater Houston, is a community of parents, therapists, doctors, and teachers who share information about using mobile devices with people with special needs.
Amy Fuchs is the Program Manager at BridgingApps and a former special education teacher. Amy Barry is the Digital Marketing Lead at BridgingApps and is the mother of five children.
Cristen Reat is co-founder of BridgingApps and a mother who found success when using a mobile device with her younger son who has multiple disabilities. We share a passion for using mobile technology to enhance the lives of people of all ages with disabilities.
