JigsawGeo USA Review

JigsawGeo USA is an interesting educational universal application which teaches a great deal about the U.S.A. map, including the finding of the 50 states, as well as learning state capitals and flags.

I really like this app for learning the 50 states and their places on the U.S. map. Geography has never been my strong suit, I always thought it was more important to be able to read a map easily and quickly as a reference tool instead of committing this kind of information to memory. Because of this, I find myself sometimes challenged when I play app games that focus on knowledge of state geography.

What I like about this game is that the map as a whole can be seen, with the ability to zoom in and out to see detail. There are three different sections in this app. In “Surveyor,” you are being taught the name of each state and where it belongs in the map. In “Navigator,” you learn the capitals, and “Discover” focuses on state flags. I appreciate that for each mode of this game, you are looking at each state as a piece of a puzzle and you need to match it up with the corresponding state outline. Even if you are stuck and don’t know where a piece goes in the map, focusing long enough will always allow you succeed, much like connecting pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. I really enjoyed learning about U.S. geography as I played, and I think that this is an excellent resource for students.

Although time is kept and some kids may enjoy beating their personal best, I like that you can take as long as you want to finish this map. An option to remove the timer altogether would be a nice addition.

The basic look of this app is attractive. There may be more visually interesting apps that touch upon this same information, but I find this one especially good for teaching straight-up geography. Parents or teachers may enjoy the fact that although interactive, this app keeps the focus on the map without any distractions. The scale here is excellent, and “Resume Game a nice option to have in case one is called away and wants to continue the game later.

It is especially nice that although I did not print it myself, the iTunes description says that this app's web site contains a printable PDF of the U.S. map, both labeled with the states, as well as without, which could be used as coloring pages.

I highly recommend this app to anyone who wants to learn more about U.S. geography, as well as state capitals and flags. I found this a great learning experience. This would have helped me learn this information had it been available when I was in school.