Montessori Counting Board
By Dana Anderson,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Good practice when parents tailor settings for kids.
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Montessori Counting Board
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What’s It About?
MONTESSORI COUNTING BOARD has five play modes: Learn to Count, Learn to Count Up, Learn to Count Down, Drag to Count Up, or Drag to Count Down. In the basic Learn to Count mode, kids tap any tile they see, and the number appears; as a result, sometimes numbers are placed out of order on the screen. For example, the board may show tiles in the order of 1, 2, 5, 4, 3 if a kid taps the tiles in that order. In the other modes, kids hear an error sound if they choose numbers out of numeric order. Settings include game sounds, success messages (such as "Good Job!"), number range, and more. Parents also can record their own voices for a personalized numbers-learning experience.
Is It Any Good?
For Montessori Counting Board to be effective, it's important that parents set the appropriate number range and mode for the player's age and current understanding of numbers and counting in numeric order. The mode in which numbers can appear out of order (depending upon where the player taps) may confuse very young users and kids new to counting. The colored tiles representing each numeral corresponding with the correct number of individual squares is clearly Montessori-inspired, but the constant and nonspecific praise seems especially out of step with typical Montessori style (although that can be removed in settings). Parents looking for a more Montessori method-based app can find other math apps much more aligned with the spirit of the method. Still, Montessori Counting Board can offer fine counting practice for very young kids.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Adjust the settings to maximize engagement (add your voice or your kid's voice), and limit the number range to your kid's current learning level.
Count everyday items, such as raisins, Cheerios, and peas, up to 20.
App Details
- Devices: iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad
- Subjects: Math: counting, numbers
- Skills: Thinking & Reasoning: memorization
- Pricing structure: Paid
- Release date: January 20, 2012
- Category: Education
- Publisher: Grasshopper Apps
- Version: 1.3
- Minimum software requirements: iOS 4.3 or later
- Last updated: February 16, 2020
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