Snow White - Another Gorgeous Nosy Crow Fairytale App

I have had the Nosy Crow Three Little Pigs and Cinderella apps on my iPad since they first came out and they were two of the first apps to appear on Ipads in Primary because of their high quality and, more importantly, my children's response to them. I added Snow White to my collection today - the newest of the Nosy Crow apps. which you can also see on the Nosy Crow website (there are some film clips and links that I haven't included here). 

I also realised that there is a Little Red Riding Hood and Jack and The Beanstalk app too, which I must have missed at some point during my career change. I have limited time for app reviews and the computing curriculum seems to keep me busy! I shall review these at some point though as these apps are so important for developing children's love of stories - and I am intrigued by the fact that these two are not linear narratives and children can create their own stories by following different paths. 

 Snow White is similar to the other apps in that there are lots of ways that you interact with the story, such as moving the characters, making them speak and making things happen (like tidying things up). In old ICT money you would be modelling effects on screen, in the new computing curriculum you are using technology purposefully to organise and manipulate digital content. 

So, the app. It is as delightful as I expected it to be! The story sticks to the traditional tale, but has been brought into the 21st century with some lovely features. For example, it made me say 'ooh' when I appeared in the mirror and then again in the pond, because it wasn't expected. I would love to see the reaction from a child (though I'm not sure their awe and wonder will differ that greatly from mine!) I will find out!

As with the other apps blue dot appears to point the way if you are not sure what to do next and it also helps to keep the dialogue in some kind of order (although that is not always essential to the story and the way the app works). 

Other nice touches are counting to 10 whilst picking flowers 

matching socks and lots of other interactivity whilst cleaning the dwarfs' cottage. 

There is a handy storyboard to retell the story in your own words - or to use in class, which is what I shall probably do with it. I have been playing for around 30 minutes and am just over half way through (that is a guesstimate, I wasn't timing). 

Snow White has all the features that you come to expect from Nosy Crow and I think the use of children's voices and sound effects add to the storytelling. You can read yourself or have the story read to you, with the words turning red as they are spoken. 

As with Cinderella, the way that the characters are portrayed adds to the story. Can you tell I love it?!

Bossy Ugly Sisters

A lovely Fairy Godmother

There really are some magical elements to the stories and the illustrations are just gorgeous. 

You really do feel like you are part of the story when you do things like swoosh the knitting needles to create the carriage and Cinderella's dress.

Magic knitting needles

There are elements of humour throughout and lots of things to share if you are looking at these with young children. I have shared them with my class and friends' children and they have absolutely loved exploring the pages.

As children become familiar they will no doubt be happy to explore the stories in their own.

I know some of you might be sceptical about digital books for children. As a reader, I jump from reading on my kindle, to iPad, to paperback and hardback books. I've yet to pursue the audio route, though have often regretted not having something to listen to when I'm driving distances. Nosy Crow have provided traditional stories, beautifully done, that will entertain children for a long while and I think these are a valuable addition to a child's storybook collection. I'd love to know what your child thinks about these apps if you have them.