TinyHands App - a closer look at Tiny Hands Raccoon Treehouse!

I've mentioned before that my little guy loves the iPad. From a very early age, he surprised us by intuitively maneuvering through apps and swiping his way from screen to screen. I do limit the amount of time he uses the our tablets, but on long car rides across the state to visit grandma and grandpa, the iPad has been a lifesaver for us, and that's why I try to find age-appropriate, educations apps for him to explore. When TinyHands contacted me about a sponsored giveaway for the latest addition to their app family, Tiny Hands Raccoon Treehouse, I was eager to check it out and see if it would be a good fit for my toddler. As soon as I read that there are NO ads, pop-ups, or network access in TinyHands apps I was relieved and really eager to learn more.

TinyHands specializes in creating unique and highly educational apps for toddlers, ages 1.5 to 4 years of age. This isn't a case of someone just randomly creating an app and "voilà" it shows up in the app store. TinyHands works closely with certified child psychologists to ensure that their apps are fine tuned to their target audience, are age appropriate and have clearly defined educational didactic values. They use meticulously designed original and playful characters, as well as intuitive environments that inspire curiosity, which is exactly what's reflected in their newest app for the iPad, TinyHands Raccoon Treehouse.

TinyHands Raccoon Treehouse is an interactive game for toddlers that focuses on sorting, classifying, hand-eye coordination, concentration, vocabulary and more. As soon as you open the app you'll see whimsical and fun characters and beautiful illustrations, and get a feel for why this app is so attractive to toddlers. The colors are bright and appealing, yet not overwhelming or overstimulating.

When you first open the app, you’ll see a landing screen with an obvious arrow to start the game. Your first instinct will be to just push the arrow, but there are some really cute features if you tap around on this landing page... definitely give it a try. Once you press the arrow, the screen will scroll down to reveal the different games that are available. There is a FREE option and a premium version for $3.99. You can see with the free version (pictured above on the right) that there are three games available for at no cost. To unlock the other nine, you'd simply pay the $3.99 charge in the app store. Of note, at this time the app is only available for the iPad.

Okay, I'd like to mention here that I like free apps - I mean, really who doesn't like things that are free? I don't mind spending a few bucks here and there, but usually I have pretty high expectations. I was excited to hand the iPad over to the Wubba to see what he thought of this new app.

The first game I navigated to was the "Sorting / Color" game. We've been working a lot of colors, so I wanted to see how he'd do. Here, the friendly Raccoon pulls his tractor onto the screen and there's a crate with a designated color on the front. You toddler will need to "grab" the fruit and drag it into the box. Once I showed him how to do it, he got the hang of it pretty easily.

Once you drag the correct fruit into the basket, a little cascading celebratory song plays so they'll know they got it right. My little guy was obviously thrilled when he got it right. In case you're wondering, you can toggle the volume down or mute it all together.

We went through a variety of the games and I was really surprised at how well my little guy did. He's currently 26 months and although some of the games are still a little too advanced for him, I can see him already working through them and thinking about what to do next. The characters are seriously adorable. I love that they're interactive and even blink!

Each game covers a different topic or activity, like pairing, sorting, and matching, but they're also focused on items specific items and concepts that are usually familiar to toddlers (like getting dressed, fruits, vegetables, toys, household items, and others). Once your little one has mastered a game, a little ladybug icon will appear next to it on the main page so they know which ones they still need to work on.

We've got a ways to go with this "Memory / Fruits and Vegetables" game, but we're working on it for sure!

The TinyHands Raccoon Treehouse app also has a “Parents Zone” where you can rate the app or contact the developer. The Parents Zone is protected by a two-second tap and hold, so kids won't enter accidentally. In the Parents Zone you can also find out about other TinyHands apps.

This app keeps my little guy thinking and busy for quite some time. I really like how there are 12 different games for him to access with the premium version and I think it's worth every penny. I can see us utilizing this app on long car rides, and for those times when I need a good 20 minutes to get something done. I'm very, very pleased with the Raccoon Treehouse app and I'll definitely be looking into purchasing more of the TinyHands apps for our collection.

Do you think your little one would love TinyHands Raccoon Treehouse?

Get it: The TinyHands Raccoon Treehouse available for download for FREE here and the premium version is here.

UPDATE: It's been over 3 years, but we still LOVE this app. My 2.5-year-old-daughter asks to play with the racoon pretty often and I feel good about letting her play with this app since it's educational.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post from TinyHands. All opinions are my own.