Animal Jam app for kids to learn about animals and nature on the go

The other week Baby Boy woke up at the Ecology Centre in Holland Park after a nap. He was there with Big Girl and me to see a collection of bats, and I’m sure he’ll be glad to know that he can count a bat as an animal he saw up close in his first six months of life.

We were there not only to meet bats though. We were also celebrating the launch of a mobile version of Animal Jam, the web-based animal-themed game with more than 35 million users in 228 countries. Animal Jam was completely new to me, but having realised how big the Animal Jam phenomenon is, I’m sure it’s something I’ll become very familiar with as soon as Big Girl and Baby Boy are slightly older.

Animal Jam is both a game and social network, allowing children to create an animal avatar, play games, chat and more. The online playground, which offers tools for parents to manage online play, includes educational content developed in association with National Geographic, such as videos, photography and facts about animals. The mobile version with the new free app is no different, and in addition to being fun for children, it is ideal for teaching school-aged children about animals and nature.

Animal Jam – Play Wild! is free to download and explore, and it seems easy to use for children. There’s no need to purchase anything to use the app, but parents can choose to purchase premium animal avatars made available every four to six weeks, which unlocks an educational e-book about a real-world animal.

A quality app to download to keep animal-loving children entertained when a Christmas event or trip drags out!

Tags: Animal Jam, App, Educational, Internet, Internet games, iPad, iPhone app, National Geographic, Online