What is Osmo?

IPad’s are a fantastic tool for all children but have you ever asked yourself “I wish they could be more hands on”. Let me introduce you to Osmo. Osmo is a hand-on set of iPad games played with real-life accessories and tools. Osmo encourages social interaction and creative thinking by expanding gameplay beyond the screen.

How it works:

Osmo is made of a vertical base and a reflective mirror that sits in front of the camera. These two accessories work side by side to change the physical space in front of the iPad, turning an ordinary iPad into a space that children can interact with.

There are 7 companion apps that Osmo have released:

Masterpiece: Unleash your inner artist! Pick an image from the camera, web or curated gallery and Masterpiece will transform it into easy-to-follow lines, helping you create beautiful drawings.
Newton: Newton works with any object or drawing – Mom’s keys, hand-drawn basket, even toys you already own. Simply place the object/drawing in front of the screen and manipulate it to guide the falling balls into the target zones.
Words: Guess and spell the on-screen image. Team up or compete in-person with friends or family to see who will get their letter in first! Download free content like trivia, geography or upload your own like family names. The possibilities are endless!
Tangram: Arrange wooden puzzle pieces to match on-screen shapes. Animals, objects, humans and more. Play with a friend or challenge yourself to increasingly more difficult levels as your handiwork lights up with each victory.
Coding: Osmo Coding uses hands-on physical blocks to control Awbie, a playful character who loves delicious strawberries. Each block is a coding command that directs Awbie on a wondrous tree-shaking, strawberry-munching adventure.
Monster: Bring your drawings to life! Each item you draw for Mo will be magically pulled into his world. Together create animated activities to share with family and friends.
Numbers: Add, count and multiply the tiles to match the numbers on the bubbles. Popping enough bubbles will free the fish and unleash a storm of lightning and thunder! Big or small, even or odd, will you become the Numbers Master?

The best part about Osmo is that it offers children hours of hands-on interactive play and is simple enough that they will be able to navigate through it on their own.

Osmo can work hand-in-hand with the curriculum:

Mathematics:

Create symmetrical patterns, pictures and shapes with and without digital technologies (ACMMG091)

English:

Use knowledge of letter patterns and morphemes to read and write high-frequency words and words whose spelling is not predictable from their sounds (ACELA1823)

Technologies: