15 Early Education Apps That Are COPPA-Compliant

In the past, app developers (quietly) collected data that had nothing to do with the function of the the app itself.

A Collection Of Early Education Apps That Are COPPA-Compliant

7 Essential Digital Mindsets For The Modern Teacher

COPPA-Compliance isn’t usually the first thing a teacher–or parent–consider when looking for an app.

The ‘big data’ movement started off sinister enough, with app developers quietly requiring extraordinary permissions and access to user files, settings, and other data that had nothing to do with the operation of their app.

The idea was data collection, whether that data was going to be used to simply make that app better, or for more nefarious gains, including selling that data to other companies.

None of this is to even mention the vulnerability with financial documents, credit card numbers, passwords, and other issues–challenges not just a consequence of ‘the cloud,’ but our demand to do pretty complicated things–manage our bank accounts, text everyone we know, shop, browse the web, and so on–from our phones and tablets.

This reality becomes even more problematic in a classroom, where a teacher has to manage the actions–and ultimate footprint–of dozens of students on a moment by moment basis. The general response to this kind of overload is to take away access and privileges, and make everything as anonymous as possible.

While this may work at times, ideally all apps would be trustworthy–transparent about what kind of access and data they ask for. Until that Utopia develops, we at least have COPPA.

We’ve discussed this before–What Is COPPA?, for example. Below is a collection of 15 apps for the elementary school teacher–early education apps that are COPPA-Compliant, and on record as being knowledgeable of and sensitive to the unique requirements of COPPA guidelines.

If you’re an elementary teacher–and want to become more familiar with the kinds of apps that protect data and honor user privacy, the following 15 are a good place to start.

15 Early Education Apps That Are COPPA-Compliant

  1. Khan Academy Kids
    • Objective Info: Free, ad-free educational app for children ages 2-8 covering reading, math, and social-emotional learning, aligned with educational standards.
    • COPPA Compliance: Explicitly 100% free with no ads or subscriptions, ensuring no collection or sharing of children’s personal identifying information (PII) beyond what is needed to support internal operations.
  2. PBS KIDS Games
    • Objective Info: Free app featuring over 250 curriculum-based mini-games starring popular PBS characters for ages 2-8, with an emphasis on learning through play.
    • COPPA Compliance: Compliant by minimizing data collection and using contextual advertising (not based on tracking or user profiles), strictly adhering to rules regarding the collection of persistent identifiers from children under 13.
  3. ABCmouse
    • Objective Info: Subscription-based comprehensive online curriculum for ages 2-8, offering over 10,000 learning activities across all core subjects.
    • COPPA Compliance: Meets COPPA requirements by requiring verifiable parental consent (VPC) before any child accounts are created and strictly limiting the types of personal information collected from children.
  4. Starfall
    • Objective Info: Nonprofit literacy and math program for Pre-K through Grade 5, focused on learning phonics, reading, and early math through interactive activities.
    • COPPA Compliance: The organization maintains a robust privacy-first approach across its apps and website, operating largely ad-free to avoid third-party tracking and minimize the need for PII collection.
  5. Duolingo ABC
    • Objective Info: Free and ad-free early literacy app for ages 3-7, using gamified lessons to teach the alphabet, phonics, and sight words from the creators of Duolingo.
    • COPPA Compliance: Designed specifically for young learners and is free of third-party ads, thus avoiding the behavioral tracking and PII collection that the COPPA rule strictly restricts.
  6. Prodigy Math
    • Objective Info: Engaging role-playing game (RPG) style platform for grades 1-8 that adapts math practice to the student’s level; core gameplay is free.
    • COPPA Compliance: Complies by collecting only pseudonymous usage data from child users and requiring verifiable parental consent for the creation of accounts and optional parent communications.
  7. Epic!
    • Objective Info: A digital library with over 40,000 books, audiobooks, and videos for children ages K-5; free for educators for classroom use.
    • COPPA Compliance: Offers educator accounts under a school-authorized consent model, allowing schools to act as the parent’s agent in providing consent for data use as required for educational purposes.
  8. codeSpark Academy
    • Objective Info: An app that teaches computer science fundamentals and coding to children aged 5-9 using a word-free, challenge-based interface.
    • COPPA Compliance: Explicitly COPPA-compliant and certified by KidSAFE, ensuring no personal information is collected from children and operating without third-party advertising.
  9. Endless Alphabet
    • Objective Info: Interactive app for ages 3-7 that builds vocabulary and spelling skills using animated letters and word puzzles.
    • COPPA Compliance: As a paid app, it operates without ads, external links, or in-app purchases, creating a closed environment that does not engage in the tracking or profiling restricted under COPPA.
  10. BrainPOP Jr.
    • Objective Info: Subscription service featuring animated videos, quizzes, and activities across K-3 subjects, often used by schools to introduce complex concepts.
    • COPPA Compliance: Supports school-based use under a written agreement, which serves as institutional consent, or requires verifiable parental consent for individual child accounts under 13.
  11. ScratchJr
    • Objective Info: Free, open-source programming language app for children ages 5-7 to create interactive stories, games, and animations using icon-based blocks.
    • COPPA Compliance: Designed with privacy as a priority; the app is entirely free, contains no ads, and collects no personally identifiable student data, location information, or usage statistics.
  12. HOMER
    • Objective Info: Personalized early learning program (reading, math, creativity, SEL) for ages 2-8 that uses a research-backed framework to adapt to the child’s learning journey.
    • COPPA Compliance: The platform segregates parent PII from child usage data, ensuring that collection from the child is limited and that necessary data collection only occurs after verifiable parental consent is obtained during the sign-up process.
  13. Moose Math (Duck Duck Moose)
    • Objective Info: Free math learning app for ages 3-7 that uses engaging mini-games (like running a store or making smoothies) to teach Common Core-aligned concepts.
    • COPPA Compliance: Like all Duck Duck Moose apps (now part of Khan Academy Kids), it is completely free, contains no third-party ads, and uses no third-party tracking, adhering to a strict no-PII-collection policy for children.
  14. Toca Life World (Toca Boca)
    • Objective Info: Open-ended creative play and world-building platform focused on imaginative storytelling and self-expression; suitable for early elementary use.
    • COPPA Compliance: Toca Boca maintains a privacy policy that asserts non-collection of personally identifiable information (PII) from children and ensures no behavioral advertising or third-party tracking exists within the child-facing interface.
  15. Funexpected Math
    • Objective Info: Math and logic puzzle app for ages 3-7 that uses gamified challenges and an adaptive AI tutor to build cognitive skills.
    • COPPA Compliance: Explicitly COPPA-compliant and KidSAFE certified, which guarantees strict data management practices, no behavioral advertising, and the secure encryption of any necessary internal data.