PBS KIDS Photo Factory

Picture yourself … on Sesame Street, playing with Clifford or in the lab with Sid the Science Kid! This app lets children create a customized photo with their favorite PBS characters and objects from the popular television shows.

Simply take—or choose—a photo, add animated friends, and finish it off with a festive frame. Budding artists can build out virtual albums of their work, or print the mixed media image to hang with pride. PBS Photo Factory is aimed at the preschool set and works best for kids who are familiar with the line-up and have a favorite show or character. The interface is pretty easy to use, but very young children will probably need a parent to guide them through the process.

While great for creating collage-like images, this app’s creativity is limited to popular TV shows, which discourages open-ended engagement. Also, some shows have limited decorations—and for some reason, you can’t mix characters or items from multiple shows into one image. Still, for little PBS fans, this app offers a fun and engaging way to interact with familiar faces. Plus, learning to manipulate objects onscreen is a great life skill for the tech-savvy younger generation. Free, simple and engaging—who could ask for more?