I am fortunate to live on the Central Coast of California. Every year we get to marvel at the amazing migration of the monarch butterfly. These amazing creatures flock to eucalyptus groves in Pacific Grove, Pismo Beach and Nipomo. Migration up and down North America is a part of their life cycle. Even more amazing is the process of metamorphosis. A satiated caterpillar forms a chrysalis, the organism’s cells complete disintegrate, and then reemerges as a beautiful monarch butterfly.
Interactive Life Cycles Explorer provides information about the life cycle of the monarch butterfly and five other representative animals. Students learn the characteristics of each stage. After studying the information about the insect’s life cycle, the student can demonstrate the knowledge of the content by taking a quiz or playing a word game.
Amphibians are amazing creatures. They are able to live on land but spend at least part of their life cycle living in water. Interactive Life Cycles Explorer provides detailed information about a typical frog’s life cycle. Click on the amphibian’s icon leads the student into more detailed information. Most of the content is illustrated with colorful graphics and the interface is designed to be like an information machine. Sound effects are also used to add to the excitement.
Fish are an major food source for human beings, so understanding their life cycle is important topic. This app explains a representative fish’s reproduction cycle. Students using the app learn that fish, like many other animals, require that eggs produced by the female need to be fertilized by the male in order to develop into fish. The will read about how in fish, usually the female produces a very large number of eggs, but most eggs do not survive to maturity. There are many threats to fish eggs. Changes in water temperature can stop development. Fluctuations in oxygen levels in the water can also harm developing eggs. Some eggs are eaten by predators or die because of a disease.
Like fish, the poultry industry is a major source of food for humans beings. Information about the typical life cycle of birds is explained use a typical chicken’s life cycle.
For mammals, the app uses a mouse. Mice are widely used in scientific research to study the effects of drugs, chemicals and environmental conditions, in order to better understand how these effects might affect humans.
Details about a mouse’s reproductive cycle is illustrated and labeled. As students tap buttons they move deeper into the information and when they have finished going through the information, they can assess their mastery of information by taking a quiz or playing a word game.
Interactive Life Cycles Explorer is available with a volume discount for educational institutions. The app is available for iOS and tvOS. Interactive Life Cycles Explorer can be purchased worldwide exclusively through the Apple App Store. It is available through Apple’s volume purchase program. Schools get a significant discount when purchasing multiple copies of Interactive Life Cycles Explorer. Contact Apple Education for more information about the volume purchase program. Please visit Ventura Educational Systems’website for more information about this and other iOS and tvOS apps for education.
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