Check Out This Great Maths App Built Alongside the Australian Curriculum

This post is sponsored by Westpac

We frequently get asked on Facebook for Maths app suggestions that are fun and engaging for kids.  I recently had the chance to try out the latest free Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Schools Program App and I have to say it’s pretty cool.  Firstly, it is completely free with no annoying advertising popups so that gets a big tick from me and you get to create your own personal character which I quite enjoyed haha.

There are 2 aspects to this app – play and learn.  There are 2 play based games called ‘Westpac Rescue Rangers’ and ‘Westpac Little Ripper’ which are fun games that give your kids an idea of what it would be like to be a rescue crew member for a day.  It’s pretty fun and opens up opportunities to talk to your kids about the amazing work that community service organisations do for our country.

The second aspect of this app is a fun digital maths lesson from the curriculum aligned Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Schools Program.

I personally am not a teacher so I could not tell you whether I thought the digital lesson on the app would be useful for your kid’s maths, but my husband is a Year 5 teacher so I gave him the app and asked him to have a play and tell me if he would recommend it to his students and their parents.

The lesson uses money as the means to teach kids about Maths which I think is really great as it is one of the most practical applications of Maths we need in life.

What did your husband think I can hear you all asking?? 

Hubby was really impressed with the concept of the app.  He actually said there are some kids in his class who would benefit from playing the lesson element and that he might even use it with them in class.  To give you a brief overview of the lesson it takes you into a shop where you have to purchase different things for your rescue missions.

You have Australian currency and have to use the coins to purchase items.   What my husband loved most about this app is that it did not do the work for you counting the coins as you were using them to buy items.  You had to use your own memory to do this part which he felt was great as a teacher because kids become really lazy at times relying on calculators etc.  It was a fun way to understand money and how it works but also challenged the mind to add the coins together.

The app is targeted at all primary aged students, because the digital lessons on the app will range from Years 1-7, however the games are predominately targeted at children aged between 7-11 years.  Your child does need to be able to read to use the app or you will need to help walk them through the lessons.

I was also lucky enough to get the chance to visit the Gold Coast Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter base and find out a bit more about their amazing work.  I was shown around by a lovely man called Andrew who worked as one of the rescue helicopter crew.

What an amazing free service the Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service provides for our community.  They are essentially an extension of Surf Life Saving (who are another group of my favourite people) and their main job is to work alongside the Surf Life Savers on weekends, public holidays and busy times of the year to help prevent bad things happening.  They are sometimes called upon to help in search and rescue operations and wherever else needed.

70% of the people who work with the QLD Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service do so in a volunteer capacity and I think this is an amazing contribution to our community and one worth telling our kids about. The great thing about the app is it allows you to talk to your kids about the amazing work these people do and they get to see for themselves what it is like being a Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter crew member for a day.

As lovely as Andrew was I have to admit that my last departing words to him were thanks so much for the tour and saving people’s lives but in all honesty I hope me or my kids never see you again 🙂 He agreed and wished for the same.

You can download the app here … for iOS or google play.

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