Number bonds to ten · KS1 · Ages 5–7
The bit of maths they have to know by heart.
Bonds is a falling-block puzzle built on one idea: any line of blocks adding up to exactly ten clears away. Your child practises the pairs that make ten — 6 and 4, 7 and 3 — a few hundred times without noticing they are practising anything.
No ads. No tracking. Nothing to buy inside.
Bonds has no network code in it at all. Not “we promise not to” — there is physically nothing in the app that can send anything anywhere. No adverts, no analytics, no accounts to create, no in-app purchases, no links that lead somewhere else, and no way for anyone to contact your child through it.
You pay £1.99 once. The App Store privacy label reads Data Not Collected, which is rare in this category and is the whole reason it is worth saying twice.
What your child is actually practising
Number bonds to ten are on the Key Stage 1 curriculum, and they are the foundation for adding and subtracting quickly later on. A child who knows that 7 needs 3 does not have to count on their fingers for the rest of primary school.
Bonds turns that into a game with a short loop. A block falls, your child looks for what it needs, and the board clears. A single session is a few dozen repetitions of exactly the recall that matters — without a worksheet, and without the app ever saying the word “practice”.
- Pairs to ten: 1 and 9, 2 and 8, 3 and 7, 4 and 6, 5 and 5
- Three or more numbers making ten — 1, 2, 3 and 4 together
- Looking ahead: the next block is always shown
Start on Easy. It is built for learning.
Three modes, each keeping its own best scores, so a child is never measured against an adult’s game.
Easy
A slower clock, and the board always gives your child the number they need. This is the one to start on — it is for learning the bonds, not testing them.
Medium
The clock quickens and the board starts holding back a little. For a child who already knows their bonds and wants a game.
Hard
The board withholds what you want and a new row pushes up from the floor. Genuinely difficult — this one is for you.
What it does not do
Worth saying plainly, so you are not disappointed: there are no progress reports, no parent dashboard and no record of what your child got right. That is the direct cost of collecting nothing — there is no account and no server, so there is nowhere for a report to come from.
Scores live on the phone only. They do not move to a new device, and deleting the app deletes them.
Questions
Will a five-year-old manage it?
On Easy, with someone sitting next to them at first. The reading load is nil — it is all digits — but the idea that a line has to make ten usually needs showing once.
Is there anything they can accidentally buy or tap through to?
No. There is nothing to buy and no link out of the app.
How long is a game?
A few minutes. It ends when the blocks reach the top, and there is no streak, no daily reward and nothing designed to pull them back.
Questions or problems? Help, or email hello@axstudios.app.