Apps let kids do amazing things. Want to count wiggling bugs, style orange frizzy hair on your virtual head, make a bowl of peas talk, or save the world from pollution? It's all possible with the apps selected for my favorites from this year's releases.

The following list of my top apps for kids ages 3 to 12 all have one thing in common: They create wonder. Whether the app is a game, a book, or a creativity starter, all of these apps deliver an experience that your kids will adore.

PETTING ZOO

Fox & Sheep, best for ages 4-up, $1.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Android, Amazon [1] [2] [3]

Bubbling over with silliness and whimsy, this app by Christoph Niemann will get the whole family laughing. Filled with zany animals for kids to touch, poke and stroke, the app constantly delights with its novel and surprising interactions. Touch the face of a bunny, and it falls back and springs forward. Also fascinating is the way one illustration fluidly morphs into the next. With 21 animals to pet and play with, kids will be giggling over this new zoo.

Best For: Animal lovers and belly laughers.

CHATTERPIX KIDS â€" by Duck Duck Moose

Duck Duck Moose, best for ages 4-12, Free, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad [4]

Get ready for a big "Wow." This free app lets kids turn anything they can photograph into a puppet. Want to make the family dog talk? You simply snap a photo, draw a line for the mouth, and then record the dog's words. You can even decorate your subject with things like glasses or hats. When you're done, your subject talks. You can save your animated creation to show friends. It's a guaranteed giggle generator. And the sky's the limit in terms of what you decide to make talk.

For teens and adults, there's "ChatterPix" that allows for social media sharing.

Best For: All kids. Hilarity will ensue.

ANSEL AND CLAIR: LITTLE GREEN ISLAND

Cognitive Kids, Inc., best for ages 6-12, $1.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Android, Amazon [5] [6] [7]

This masterful ecology simulation puts kids in charge of their own island. In each of the 18 levels, kids solve a pollution problem, from cleaning up an oil spill to creating a wind farm. With fun missions, songs and loads of interactive activities, the app lets kids landscape their island. In the process, they learn about how to solve some of the world's pollution problems. The simulation game makes learning about ecology fun and entertaining.

Best For: Kids interested in science and saving the planet.

DINORAMA

thesixtyone, Inc., best for ages 7-12, $3.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad [8]

This entertaining simulation game puts kids in charge of creating a profitable zoo filled with multi-colored animated dinosaurs. Kids design the zoo, take care of the dinos, get feedback from paying customers and add attractions. This well-balanced sim is self-contained, so there aren't any in-app purchases or ads, just pure worry-free fun.

Best For: Dino-loving kids and budding entrepreneurs.

LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD by Nosy Crow

Nosy Crow, best for ages 3-8, $5.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad [9]

A modern version of the classic fairy tale, this app is special because kids get to choose how it ends. When Little Red Riding Hood traipses through the woods on her way to visit her sick granny, she encounters forks in the road. The ending you experience is based on the path you choose. In each novel ending, Little Red outsmarts the devious wolf and rescues her dear old granny. This story is a hoot to read, and it offers extra silliness when kids touch the characters to hear them speak. Because it has so many different endings, it's an app that kids will want to play over and over again.

Best For: Kids who like choose-your-own-adventures books and apps that make them laugh.

LA LUNA: THE STORY PROJECT

Disney, best for ages 4-11, $3.99, iPad [10]

The wonder in this app comes from its feel-good magical story about a little boy joining the family business of sweeping stars off the surface of the moon. Based on an Academy Award-nominated animated short film, this book app seamlessly blends interaction into the presentation of the film. Kids can also explore a special section that teaches them how animated films are made.

Best For: The whole family. The story is poignant and memorable.

WEE YOU-THINGS

Wee Society LLC, best for age 3-7, $2.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad [11]

"Wee You-Things" made this list because it delivers an important message about empathy and accepting others. Presented as a charming rhyming book, the app introduces kids to 24 quirky characters. Each character shares a "You-Thing" that makes it special, such as being blue, tall or having a purple tooth. One wears glasses, while another has a tricked-out wheelchair. The app draws kids into the experience by having them meet and then touch each friendly character. It ends with asking kids to take a photo to share what is special about their own self.

Best For: All children. By creating a joyous celebration of uniqueness, this app teaches kids tolerance of others who are different.

TOCA HAIR SALON ME

Toca Boca AB, best for ages 4-12, $2.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad [12]

Kids snap photos of their faces and then style their own hair in the wackiest salon ever. Want frizzy orange hair? No problem. Fancy a hairdo where you grow the hair on one side and chop it off on the other? Go for it. The app offers lots of ways to personalize your image, from adding hats and glasses to blowing your hair out to look like a lion's mane. This app is the next iteration in the "Toca Hair Salon" series and, like the ones before it, it is a blast. Android users, this one isn't in your market yet, but "Toca Hair Salon 2" is and it's equally wonky.

Best For: Kids who love getting creative with photos.

BUGS AND BUTTONS 2

Little Bit Studio, LLC, best for ages 4-6, $2.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad [13]

Using realistic-looking bugs and an assortment of craft buttons, this math app makes exploring educational concepts fun. Presented as games, the 18 activities have kids sorting, counting, ordering numbers, identifying shapes, applying logic and more. A real plus is that the app tracks how kids are doing with the content and adjusts its presentation based on their performance. These bugs are mischievous but never scary.

CUT THE ROPE 2

ZeptoLab UK Limited, best for ages 7-up, $.99, iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad

Om Nom, the cute little candy-eating alien who rose to fame in "Cut the Rope," has gone missing. Lured out of his house by a gang of sweets-stealing spiders, Om Nom needs help solving puzzles in five new locations: Forest, Sandy Dam, Junkyard, City Park and Underground. The puzzles involve strategically cutting ropes from which Om Nom's beloved candy is dangling so that the cute alien can eat his treat. Each location introduces a new helper, including Roto, a helicopter-like bug who has the power to carry Om Nom and other things, and Lick, whose frog-like tongue can create ramps for the candy to roll on. These puzzles are wacky, thought-provoking and wildly entertaining as kids help the beloved Om Nom get to his candy.

Best For: Kids (and adults) who love puzzles. This app launches on Dec. 19 for iOS and will be released for Android devices in early in 2014.

Jinny Gudmundsen is the author of the new book: iPad Apps for Kids [14] , part of the For Dummies series. Contact her at techcomments@usatoday.com . Follow her @JinnyGudmundsen [15] .