The New York Times reviewed a “learning to read” app for iPad, about which I have also heard great things: Learn with Homer. And by “Homer,” one doesn’t mean Mr Simpson. Haha.
Anyway, the app is free for download from the App Store. It features some wonderful animation that will no doubt captivate your 4-year-olds with vibrant colors. The writer says apps like this have helped her son “move from knowing shapes and sounds of letters to actually reading words.” Great for a kid getting ready to go to “real school” for the first time, don’t you think? Check it out here.
The app does a very good job in relation to the literacy standards in the Common Core for kindergarten. With regard to ELA-literacy standard K-5—recognize common types of texts (e.g., storybooks, poems)—the main reading page of Learn with Homer has kids select which type of text they’d like to work with: Homer stories, poetry, folklore, folk songs, and nursery rhymes. And when it comes to Reading Foundational Skills, almost every standard in the Common Core is nicely handled in a friendly way that keeps kids practicing the skills they have learned.
If your kid really enjoys Homer, as I expect he or she will, you can, of course, purchase additional products, like iPhone covers and throw pillows designed in a Homer motif, but the app itself is free. If you want to expand it, though, some of the add-on features or stories can be as expensive as $2 each.
The app, which launched in January, is backed by $2.2 million in seed funding raised from several venture and angel investors, including Great Oaks Venture Capital, an early CFO of Priceline, a former CEO of Thomson Reuters, a former managing partner at Bessemer Venture Partners, and Matt Turck. Mr Turck invested personally, but he currently serves as managing director at FirstMark Capital.
Given how important reading is—children won’t learn math or science if they can’t read well—teaching very young children to read has been viewed as one of the most important foundations but toughest nuts to crack in education. It’s helpful to create an engaging, game-like environment on a tablet while prioritizing the learning experience in a way that doesn’t compromise either the learning or the game excitement. In balancing those two sides of good app development, Learn With Homer hits the mark.
The New York Times piece also features other reviews for “learn to read” apps, including Kids Reading (Preschool) for Android and Montessori Crosswords, which costs $3 for iOS devices.