Research indicates that only 31% of fourth graders read proficiently, and roughly half of all kindergarteners are at great risk for not learning how to read. These statistics are staggering! By reinforcing reading skills at a young age, you can help your child be confident and successful in school. Try these apps to help your child develop stronger reading skills.
Montessori Words and Phonics
Ages 3-8
Montessori Words & Phonics - Apps on Google Play
Montessori Words and Phonics is a great app for helping students build stronger reading and spelling skills. Users are presented with moveable letters that they can drag to form words. For example, they might be presented with a colorful picture of a sun. They would drag the letters s, u, and n to the center of the screen to form the word sun. Students build their phonemic awareness, sound/letter relationships, and blending skills with this app, which helps to improve their foundational reading and writing skills. Various levels of difficulty are integrated, and students love the sounds, colors, and animations they are presented with when they complete a word.
Nessy Learning
Ages 4-11
Nessy Learning follows the Orton Gillingham approach to building stronger reading and spelling skills. It helps students build foundational skills in phonics, reading comprehension, spelling, and vocabulary - key elements of reading and writing success. Multi-sensory activities are integrated, including animations, videos, and interactive games that kids truly enjoy. The structured, engaging lessons are great for students with dyslexia, but all students can benefit from this multi-sensory approach to learning. The app can even be integrated into Orton Gillingham tutoring lessons.
Bob Books Reading Magic
Ages 4-6
Reading Magic: #1 App | Bob Books
The Bob Books Reading Magic app helps make learning to read fun! With the app, students learn the names of the letters and their corresponding sounds, and how to blend sounds together to form words. The app offers many engaging games, including drag-and-drop activities for word forming and four different levels of difficulty so children can advance to higher levels within the app as their reading skills improve. Students also love the built-in rewards program where they complete colorful animated scenes as they progress forward.
Starfall
Ages 2-8
This multi-sensory app uses engaging songs, pictures, and games to help students build their core academic skills. Students develop their letter and sound recognition, blending, reading fluency, and spelling skills with these interactive games and activities. The app was founded by Dr. Stephen Schultz, who has dyslexia and wanted to help children build their skills in a multi-sensory, research-based manner. The app can be integrated into dyslexia tutoring sessions.
Epic!
Ages 2-13
Instantly access over 40,000 of the best books & videos for kids on Epic
Epic! is a massive digital library of books, audiobooks, and videos designed to help students access all types of reading content. It includes fiction, non-fiction, and educational material with over 40,000 illustrated books, chapter books, read-alouds, and audiobooks. Epic! also offers books with highlighted text and narration, quizzes, and rewards to help students develop a love for reading.
Reading plays a role in essentially all aspects of school. If your child continues to show difficulty with reading, specialized reading tutoring and Orton Gillingham instruction can be very helpful. However, by encouraging your child to use these apps, you can help them build this important skill and learn to enjoy reading.
