Common Sense Media Review
By Jonathan H. Liu
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Nearly flawless chalkboard app with some clever surprises.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 4+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Download
Videos and Photos
Bord
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's It About?
Kids choose color, thickness, and board color (black or green) and go at it. The sponge allows for spot erasing, and shaking the device allows them to start over. Kids can save and send (within the app) via standard methods including an audio postcard or Facebook. Once they've saved an image, they can choose the Load button to load and redraw any of their saved images. They can tap on the speed button (say, x2) to speed up the redraw.
Is It Any Good?
BORD is, at first glance, a very simple chalkboard app. You pick from six colors of chalk or a sponge eraser, three different sizes for drawing or erasing, and a green or black background. Much like a real chalkboard, the lines are faint until you color over them again, and the sponge doesn't entirely erase the chalk on the first pass. But where this really stands out is in saving and loading images. Images can be saved to the Photo Gallery, but when saved pictures are loaded, the entire drawing process is played back. You can select real time playback or up to 8x speed.
Since the app also allows sharing pictures via email or Facebook, younger children may need to be monitored. The only flaw in the design is that if "Post to Facebook" is selected but you decide not to log in, there is no way to close the login screen without rebooting the app. Other than that, the only thing missing from this chalkboard is the squeak.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Keep chalk on hand for kids to use when they're feeling creative.
Allow kids to experiment with chalk on different surfaces, such as a chalkboard, construction paper, and a sidewalk. How does the surface affect their drawing?
App Details
- Devices : iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad , Android
- Subjects : Arts : drawing , Language & Reading : writing , Math : shapes
- Skills : Communication : conveying messages effectively , Creativity : imagination , making new creations , Self-Direction : initiative , self-reflection
- Pricing structure :
- Release date : March 13, 2011
- Genre : Entertainment
- Publisher : Pixle
- Version : 1.1
- Minimum software requirements : iOS 3.0 or later; Android 2.1 and up
- Last updated : November 11, 2020
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