Basher Presidents Review

Basher Presidents is a simple and fun app about American presidents that children will enjoy.

Basher Presidents consists of two main sections: a series of flash cards consisting of a hand-drawn image of each president as well as a fun facts about each man on the back of the card.

The illustrations included are colorful and stylized. The facts chosen are interesting from a historical sense but also include some fun trivia such as who was the shortest president (James Madison), who was the youngest president (John F. Kennedy), or how Washington’s horses had their teeth brushed every morning.

A few presidents - Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Ford and George W. Bush - are illustrated wearing two different outfits, one for each side of their bodies to give more details about each man, such as Ford in a football uniform or Bush wearing an aviator jacket. More information about these details is not always touched upon in the facts section of this app however, so an adult may need to explain these details. Another section of this app is a game where one needs to place a president on a time line between other presidents.

I enjoy the ease of this game, as one may need to place Jimmy Carter between Theodore Roosevelt and George W. Bush or Richard Nixon between John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, asking children to understand more the transition of presidents that America has had instead of memorizing specific dates or the order of these leaders.

It is also nice that if feeling stuck, children can access a page that allows them to tap moving stars each containing informative hints which will help them place these presidents on the time line correctly.

Do note that Basher Presidents is geared to older grade-school children as the information included within is without narration, so children will need to be proficient readers or have help from an adult.

Although I enjoy the illustrations of these presidents, I do wonder if they are cute and stylized to the point that children would not recognize a photo of these men, with the noted exceptions of presidents such as Washington or Lincoln.

It may be of interest for some that children can also vote for the president of their choice in the 2012 election coming up via a website connected to this app. The site allows children not only to vote and to see results broken down by state, but also to see the results as both popular votes and as electoral college votes - an element I personally found interesting.

Other data is included such as voting by age, sex and Democrat or Republican issues. Teachers can also poll their classes as well as other various ways children can partake in other activities depending on their interests, be it math and science, journalism or history, also allowing children to gather content for this application for future updates.

Basher Presidents has a lot to offer children new to learning about presidents and the upcoming election. Teachers especially may enjoy the lack of sounds coming from this quiet application, but I always think that included narration is beneficial to children who need help with their reading.

It is also worth noting that a related printed book, Basher History: US Presidents: Oval Office All-Stars will be released for purchase soon. I would love to see other Basher titles be adapted into apps as well.