Osmo releases iPad learning kit for preschoolers

Here's an interesting alternative to playing your toddler more Sesame Street reruns: Edtech company Osmo has launched an iPad-enabled learning tool for the preschool set. Aimed at children between the ages of 3 to 5 years old, the Little Genius Starter Kit comes with four interactive games aimed at teaching youngsters the alphabet, the essentials of drawing and creative problem-solving. The company known for its iPad hookups that teach kids how to code or let them build their own racecars is diving deeper into traditional core skills like building vocabulary or learning math. Osmo already sells a Genius Starter Kit aimed at teaching older children spelling and arithmetic; this new kit is similar, just aimed at younger kids..

Unlike purely app-based games, Osmo's Little Genius Starter Kit comes with an iPad base and board attachments that basically converts your tablet into a hands-on game. For example, one game has kids build shapes on the board and then replicates their drawings on the iPad's screen. Osmo says its system combines the "hands-on play" approach favored by educational theorists Friedrich Froebel and Maria Montessori with advanced computer vision.

The four games included with the kit help kids learn vocabulary, build more artistic confidence, sort similar objects and solve problems. Osmo expects to release Little Genius Starter Kit in the coming weeks, but you can pre-order it starting today for $79 on Amazon. If you want a closer look at how the games work, watch the preview below.