Recently I was contacted by Jonathan at Smarty Ears about reviewing two of their apps to target reading skills. Since the majority of my caseload is preschool, I asked Jonathan if he would agree to let one of my co-workers use the apps and write the reviews. He was kind enough to agree.
This review is written by Jennifer Malloy, MS, CCC-SLP. Jenn splits her time between an elementary and middle school in my district. Take it away Jenn!
I was lucky enough to review another amazing app - the Reading Rehabilitation Toolkit from Smarty Ears ($9.99 in iTunes). I currently use many
Smarty Ears apps in speech and language therapy daily so I was extremely
excited to review this app!
This app is a great tool to increase student’s reading
fluency as well as reading comprehension.
It allows both quick play as well as creating users. If "create a user" is selected, data is tracked and recorded by day and level. After entering the student’s name, the
student is able to select an avatar. There are many avatars to choose from!
**BONUS: Selecting an Avatar is a great way for students to use descriptive words to select a
specific
avatar. I don’t let them point to
select, a selection is made my using your words!
The next screen allows the user to select one of six levels of difficulty. The six levels (as described in the ABOUT section of the application) are as follows:
- Word-Images match: This activity provides users with one word on the screen, which they must attempt to read and identify the corresponding image.
- Image-Words match: This activity provides users with one image and they must identify the corresponding word among several words.
- Phrase-Images match: This activity provides users with one phrase and they must identify the corresponding image.
- Image-Phrase match: This activity provides users with one image and they must identify the corresponding phrases among several phrases.
- Read and Answer: Users must attempt to read simple questions and answer based on the provided scenes.
- Phrase Building: This is the activity that integrates reading and writing. Users are now able to attempt composing the simple phrases used throughout the application on previous activities independently by placing words on the screen.
The first level, Word Images Match, allows student to read one word and select corresponding picture from a field of 5. After selecting the correct corresponding picture, the student records him/herself reading the target word. The app allows user to track student’s progress. After attempting to read the target word the follow options are available to track data: 1. Unable to read aloud 2. Read with assistance 3. Read independently.
Image Words Match:
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The second level, Image Words Match, allows the student to look at a single picture and select the target word from a written field of 5. Again, after selecting the correct corresponding word, the student records him/herself reading the target word. The app allows user to track student’s progress. After attempting to read the target word the follow options are available to track data: 1. Unable to read aloud 2. Read with assistance 3. Read independently.
Phrase Images Match:
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The third level, Phrase Images Match, allows the student to read a small, three word, phase and select the corresponding picture from a field of 5. After selecting the correct corresponding picture, the student records him/herself reading the target phrase. The app allows user to track student’s progress. After attempting to read the target word the follow options are available to track data: 1. Unable to read aloud 2. Read with assistance 3. Read independently.
Image Phrase Match:
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The fouth level, Image Phrase Match, allows the student to see a single image and select the target phrase from a written field of 5. Again, after selecting the correct corresponding phrase, the student records him/herself reading the target word. The app allows user to track student’s progress. After attempting to read the target phrase the follow options are available to track data: 1. Unable to read aloud 2. Read with assistance 3. Read independently.
Read and Answer:
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The fifth level, Read and Answer, allows the student to look at a picture, read the question, and select an answer from a written field of 5. The field contains 5 single words that answer the “wh” or “how” question presented with the picture. When an incorrect selection is chosen an unfriendly chime is sounded. The student receives a checkmark and an uplifting sound when the correct answer is selected.
Phrase Building:
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Likes:
- It is very versatile I used this application with both my middle school students as well as my home health care clients.
- User Friendly: Easy to navigate while using and while reviewing data.
- Increases with levels of difficulty.
- Progress tracking and data collection.
Dislikes:
- None that I can think of!
The Bottom Line:
I really enjoyed using this app. It is straight forward and
user friendly, two aspects I look for when using apps for speech and language
therapy. I liked that the students were
involved with selecting avatars and recording their voices. This avatars and
voice recordings increased the students’ focus and interest.
~Jenn
PS, To watch a video tutorial and see Reading Rehabilitation Toolkit in action, scroll down to the bottom of this page.
Disclaimer: Smarty Ears provided a copy of Reading Rehabilitation Toolkit for the purposes of this review and giveaway. However, opinions expressed are those of the SLP who provided the review.