Shapes
A few pictures and a few grey shadows. Each picture belongs to one of them.
Free
What it is
Shadow matching is one of the oldest ideas in early-years play, and it works because a child has to look at an outline rather than a colour. A lion is bright and friendly; its shadow is a flat grey shape, and the only way to pair them is to compare the silhouettes.
Each round puts a handful of pictures on screen with their shadows scattered around them. Nothing is timed and nothing can go wrong — a piece that doesn't fit simply stays where it is.
How to play
Press a picture and drag it across to the grey shape it matches. When it lands on the right one it settles into place with a soft sound.
If the shadow underneath is the wrong one, the picture drifts back and can be tried somewhere else. There is no penalty and no way to lose a round.
What it builds
Matching a picture to its silhouette is visual discrimination: ignoring colour and detail, and judging an object by its outline alone. It is the same skill that later helps a child tell a b from a d.
Dragging across the screen also works on the pincer-and-slide movement that tapping alone never asks for — a steady finger that holds contact the whole way.
Ages and pace
Good from around two, once dragging is comfortable. Younger children often need a round or two of watching before it clicks, and then it clicks all at once.
This game is free. A one-time purchase opens the ones that are not, and there is no subscription.
No ads. No data collected. Works offline.