Daily App: Stack the States is a must-have educational game that quizzes you on US Geography
Stack the States by Freecloud Design is a geography game that makes learning about the 50 states fun for children and adults. The app quizzes you on a variety of information about the states including capitals, borders, flags and notable landmarks.
The main part of the game challenges you to enter a fact-based question about one of the 50 states without any time constraints or pressure. In fact, I allowed my children to use a US geography book to help them look up answers to the questions they did not know.
If you answer correctly, you win that state and are allowed to add it to a stacking pile that is situated on a platform at the bottom of the screen. You need to place each state carefully as you can lose it if it tumbles off the edge. The placement is a challenge as some states are oddly shaped and don't fit easily into a pile, or are large, such as Alaska, and tend to knock your pile to pieces if you are sloppy in your placement.
As you answer additional questions, your pile of states grows until it crosses the finish line. Once you cross this line, you are awarded a permanent state that you can add to your US map. Your goal is to eventually fill the map with states that you have earned. As you earn permanent states, you also unlock mini-games such as Map It!, Pile Up!, Puzzler and Capital Drop. Each one these mini-games reinforces the facts that you learn in the main part of the app.
Stack the States is a wonderful tool that makes learning US geography an enjoyable experience. The graphics are cute, the music is catchy and the gameplay is exceptionally fun. It also supports multiple users, allowing my children to learn at different rates. I've used it as a prelude to a comprehensive geography class as well as refresher for those who are studying geography and need a break from the traditional pen and paper coursework.
Stack the States is available for US$0.99 in the iOS App Store. It is compatible with both the iPhone and the iPad.
