Question 1

What is Zizzle Inventions?

Accepted Answer

Zizzle Inventions is an ad-free STEAM app for children ages 3‚Äì7 that lets them take apart real machines, see how every piece works, and rebuild them through play. A child can pull apart a cement mixer, an escalator, a rollercoaster or a rocket ship, watch what each gear and lever actually does, then put it back together. It is made by Zizzlelab, a small studio in Toronto founded by designers Alexandra Pokras and Noam Lamdan, and it carries Google Play's Teacher Approved badge.

Question 2

What age is Zizzle Inventions for?

Accepted Answer

Zizzle Inventions is built for children ages 3 to 7. It is rated 4+ on the App Store and Everyone on Google Play. Three- and four-year-olds tend to explore freely ‚Äî tapping parts, watching them move, and reassembling machines at the easiest difficulty. Five- to seven-year-olds can take on harder rebuilds with more pieces and less prompting. Difficulty is adjustable, so the same app keeps working as a child grows.

Question 3

Does Zizzle Inventions have ads?

Accepted Answer

No. Zizzle Inventions has no ads, and it never will. There are no banner ads, no video ads between levels, and no cross-promotion of other apps. This was the first decision we made about the app. A three-year-old cannot tell the difference between a game and an advertisement dressed up as one, so we decided not to put them in a position where they have to.

Question 4

Does the app collect data about my child?

Accepted Answer

No. Zizzle Inventions collects no data from users at all. Both app stores publish this independently. Apple's privacy label for the app states: 'The developer does not collect any data from this app.' Google Play's Data Safety section reports no data collected and no data shared with third parties, under the Play Families policy.

Question 5

What does my child actually learn?

Accepted Answer

The core skill is mechanical reasoning ‚Äî understanding that a machine is a set of parts that act on each other in an order, and that changing one part changes what the whole thing does. Along the way children practise cause and effect (this gear turns, so that belt moves), sequencing (rebuilding requires doing things in a workable order), spatial reasoning (rotating and fitting parts where they belong), technical vocabulary (naming the parts of things they see in the real world), and persistence (a rebuild that doesn't work can simply be tried again). The bigger aim is a disposition rather than a skill: that a child who has taken twenty machines apart on a screen becomes a child who asks how the real ones work.

Question 6

Which machines and inventions are in the app?

Accepted Answer

Zizzle Inventions covers everyday machines a young child has probably already seen and wondered about ‚Äî including a cement mixer, an escalator, a rollercoaster and a rocket ship. The library grows as new inventions are added.

Question 7

Can my child use it on their own if they can‚Äôt read yet?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Zizzle Inventions is designed for pre-readers: nothing in the app requires reading. Instructions and encouragement are delivered by audio, and the interface uses pictures and animation rather than text menus. That said, it is at its best played next to an adult, because the 'why does it do that?' conversation is where most of the learning happens.

Question 8

What devices does Zizzle Inventions work on?

Accepted Answer

Zizzle Inventions is available on iPhone and iPad via the App Store, on Android phones and tablets via Google Play, and on Mac computers with an Apple M1 chip or later. It requires iOS 13.0 or later on Apple devices.

Question 9

What languages does the app support?

Accepted Answer

Zizzle Inventions is currently available in English, with more languages planned.

Question 10

How much does Zizzle Inventions cost?

Accepted Answer

Zizzle Inventions is free to download. There are no in-app purchases and no subscription. The principle behind the price is fixed: we don't use pressure tactics on children. No countdown timers, no currency that runs out mid-play, no locked content dangled in front of a four-year-old. Purchases are made by adults, in adult-gated screens.

Question 11

Does Zizzle Inventions work offline?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Once it is downloaded, Zizzle Inventions works with no internet connection at all ‚Äî which makes it useful on planes, in cars and in waiting rooms.

Question 12

Can teachers use Zizzle Inventions in a classroom?

Accepted Answer

Yes ‚Äî the app was designed for preschool and early-primary classrooms as well as homes, and it is Teacher Approved on Google Play. Audio guidance means pre-readers can work independently, adjustable difficulty lets one activity serve a mixed-age group, and because the app collects no data there is no student privacy paperwork attached to it. Teachers building a unit around it can reach us at zizzlelab@gmail.com.

At Zizzlelab, inventors aged 3 to 7 learn how things work, build STEM foundations, and an innovation mindset.

Inventors at play

Why we are different

Curiosity led

Parent made

Teacher approved

No ads, ever

Team

Alexandra Pokras

Noam Lamdan

Let's invent stuff

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