Cool App For Learning To Read: Ladybird I’m Ready for Phonics!’

I’ve been on the lookout for a really good reading app and Ladybird have just released I’m Ready For Phonics for both iPhone and iPad. Packed with twelve rich levels to unlock which take some time to work through  (it took at least half an hour to get through level 1 alone which is a measure of the sheer value in this app as many kids apps have about that much time in their totality), I’m Ready For Phonics helps with synthetic phonics learning at school and also helps to prepare for the Phonics Screening Check at the end of year 1.

Developed by literacy and phonics expert Kate Ruttle, work on initial letter sounds, blending, segmenting, sounds, tricky words, and letters plus your child can record their voice as they practice sounds and then play it back. They achieve stars for completing each activity. Parents can manually unlock all of the levels, plus there’s a glossary and Parent’s Guide To Phonics included.

The activities have been really engaging plus they prompt discussion. For instance in level one (top image), your child chooses the missing word that begins with the letter. I got Saria to go through all words including the one that wasn’t the correct letter and while there are some words that they’ll guess from image, others will need to be sounded out and they crop up again on other letters (and activities) helping your child to get more familiar with the words.

it does have a (slightly cheesy) space theme but don’t let this hold you back – Saria 5, is really enjoying using it and doesn’t see it as ‘learning’ so it’s a great add-on to all the other reading that she’s doing. £4.99 on iTunes and if you have more than one child, they can each have their own profile.

Tagged phonics, phonics apps for iPad