Comparison

Pattern Shapes, by MLC vs CHAT

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Pattern Shapes, by MLC

This app allows students to explore geometry and fractions through interactive shape manipulation. Users can create designs, fill outlines, measure angles, and annotate their work. It's an open-ended educational tool for learning mathematical concepts.

Highlights
  • Explore geometry and fractions
  • Create custom designs
  • Measure angles with protractor
  • Duplicate, resize, and recolor shapes
  • Fill built-in outlines
  • Annotate work with drawing tools
  • Share creations via image or code
Features
Read full description

Students use Pattern Shapes to explore geometry and fractions, creating their own designs, or filling in outlines. As they work with the shapes students explore geometric relationships, think about angles, investigate symmetry, and compose and decompose larger shapes. Many of these explorations lead naturally to thinking about fractions as parts of a whole. This virtual version of pattern blocks is an open-ended educational tool, ideal for elementary classrooms and other learning environments that use iPads. Pattern blocks are a key model used in Bridges in Mathematics, second edition. Online preview available at: www.mathlearningcenter.org/bridges FEATURES • Rotate shapes in increments of 15 degrees. • Measure angles with the protractor tool. • Duplicate and change the color and size of shapes. • Fill the built-in outlines with shapes or create your own to share with others. • Choose between a triangular or square grid, or a blank background. • Hide and reveal work with resizable covers to create your own problems and model strategies. • Use the drawing tools to annotate work and show understanding. • Add equations, expressions, and descriptions with the math text and writing tools. • Share your work by saving an image or providing a share code to others. ABOUT US This resource is brought to you by The Math Learning Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to K-12 education since 1976. Our mission is to inspire and enable individuals to discover and develop their mathematical confidence and ability. www.mathlearningcenter.org This app was crafted by Clarity Innovations. We help improve teaching and learning by creating solutions that match promising technologies with the needs of education. Visit us: www.clarity-innovations.com

About

CHAT

This interactive tool uses puppet-guided interviews to help researchers collect structured responses from young children. It's designed for early childhood research, improving data consistency and child engagement in developmental psychology and educational studies.

Highlights
  • Puppet-driven interactive interviews
  • Structured data collection
  • Enhanced child engagement
  • Improved data consistency
  • Reduced training overhead
  • Optimized for field studies
Read full description

CHAT-E is an interactive interview tool designed to facilitate early childhood research using engaging, puppet-guided interactions. Developed in collaboration with Northwestern University and Head Start programs, CHAT-E helps researchers collect structured responses from young children in a playful and standardized way. Built with research usability in mind, CHAT-E improves upon traditional interview methods by reducing training overhead, enhancing data consistency, and promoting child engagement through animated puppet hosts. The platform is optimized for field studies in developmental psychology, language acquisition, and educational interventions.

Screenshots

CHAT4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: CHAT at every 6 weeks against Pattern Shapes, by MLC's every 26 months. CHAT also leads on device support (3 vs 1). Pattern Shapes, by MLC's advantage is review sentiment (70% vs 50%). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pattern Shapes, by MLC ships an update every 26 months, CHAT every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on June 2, 2026 and June 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Pattern Shapes, by MLC versus CHAT: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPattern Shapes, by MLCCHAT
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (17 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews70.0% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings17 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 26 monthsEvery 6 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS14.7 — better15.1
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB37 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperThe Math Learning CenterSynergetx

Customer experience

Pattern Shapes, by MLC

All ratings17 ratings
Positive82.4%
Neutral5.9%
Negative11.8%
Written reviews10 reviews
Positive70.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative10.0%

CHAT

Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

In-app purchases

None

Pattern Shapes, by MLC

No in-app purchases

None

CHAT

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Pattern Shapes, by MLC free?
Pattern Shapes, by MLC is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is CHAT free?
CHAT is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Pattern Shapes, by MLC or CHAT have ads?
Neither Pattern Shapes, by MLC nor CHAT shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Pattern Shapes, by MLC or CHAT?
Pattern Shapes, by MLC ships an update every 26 months, and CHAT every 6 weeks. Most recently, Pattern Shapes, by MLC was updated on June 2, 2026 and CHAT on June 25, 2026.

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