A Primer on Mobile Apps for Young Students Learning to Read

70% Reading Apps, Games, and Products of the top- selling apps in the education category of Apple's iTunes store are directed at preschool- or elementary- age children. PERCENT OF LITERACY SKILLS SOURCE: Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop TARGETED BY POPULAR EDUCATIONAL LITERACY APPS Most apps focus on very basic skills ITUNES PAID ANDROID PAID ITUNES FREE 35 ANDROID FREE 20 20 15 по 10 10 10 1010 10 LETTERS AND SOUNDS PHONICS WITH WORD RECOGNITION VOCABULARY COMPREHENSION ABILITY TO UNDERSTAND AND TELL STORIES GRAMMAR LETTER WRITING SIGHT WORDS SPELLING SOURCE: Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Illustration: iStockphoto/Bortolino Examining Quality RATINGS BY COMMON SENSE MEDIA Numerous websites and services offer reviews or ratings of apps, games, and other technology platforms. One of the best-known is Common Sense Media, a nonprofit organization that judges apps and other products on age-appropriateness, the quality of design production, and child engagement. ABCS ELMO LOVES ABCS FOR IPAD * Platform: iPhone | Price: $4.99 Category: educational games AGE 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12 FEEL ELECTRIC! Company Platform: iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad | Price: free Category: books Electric Feel Electric! AGE 5 6 7 8 10 11 12 COSMOS CHAOS COSMOS CHAOS * Platform: Nintendo DS. Nintendo DSi | Price: $29.99 Category: education AGE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 10 11 12 SCRIBBLENAUTS REMIX Platform: iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad | Price: $.99 Category: puzzle games AGE 5 6 10 11 12 13 SOURCE: Common Sense Media REVIEWING TECH PRODUCTS Children's Technology Review presents reviews of technology products in a monthly PDF to paid subscribers, and it offers a searchable Web database. It judges apps, games, and other products on the basis of ease of use, educational value, and other factors. War Horse I don't care. You can go by bike. Novel and Audiobok Read the illuratod novel oe limen Michael Morpurpos reading MARVIN K. MOONEY WILL YOU PLEASE GO NOW! ** Performance Timeline Insights: Platform: iPad, iPhone, Android Price: $4.99 Ages: 4 and 8 Teaches/Purpose: reading Winh the e EGMONT lluminations WAR HORSE k Platform: iPad | Price: $13.99 Ages: 9 and up Teaches/Purpose: history, reading, horses, music, World War I, Germany, England SCARY ENDLESS ALPHABET Platform: iPad, iPhone Price: Free for a limited time abc Ages: 3 and 6 Teaches/Purpose: alphabet, ABC song, reading, letter recognition, music gatito ABC FARM Platform: iPad, iPhone Price: $2.99 Ages: 3 and 8 Teaches/Purpose: language, English and Spanish, reading, letters LETTER SCHOOL ** Platform: iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch Price: $2.99 Ages: 3 and up Teaches/Purpose: handwriting, letter formation, numerals, upper/lower case SOURCE: Children's Technology Review EDUCATION WEEK