iTunes App Review: “AlphaBooks”

AlphaBooks – Cavallo Media Group, Inc.

Released: March 18, 2011

ABOUT THE APP:

24 BOOKS IN ONE APP! The fun-loving Letter Buddies help children prepare for school. Simple stories with striking photo-illustrations develop vocabulary and basic reading skills.

• One book for each letter of the alphabet (X, Y, Z combined in one book)
• Clear, bright photography introduces key foundational vocabulary
• Simple sentences combined with fantastic photo-illustrations put the vocabulary in context and teach important school readiness sight words
• Cute and humorous, the Letter Buddies will entertain your children as they become fluent readers and learners!

Letter Buddies materials were originally developed for early childhood education and are currently being used in classrooms throughout North America! These popular teaching tools have now been adapted into the Letter Buddies AlphaBooks app so your child can develop valuable skills that will get them ready to enter Pre-Kindergarten or Kindergarten.  Perfect For
Children 2-6 years old.

Two-ways to read each e-book:

• “Read to Me” – listen to the narrated story with words highlighted as they are read
• “Read it Myself” – read the book in its traditional form

Educational Features:

• Learn early reading fundamentals
• Practice beginning letter sounds
• Acquire key foundational vocabulary
• Read along to vocabulary written in contextual sentences
• Expose children to important school readiness sight words
• Build awareness for simple sentence structures and basic punctuation

Additional Features:

• Text is perfect for developing and beginning readers alike
• Fun and engaging artwork supports simple text
• Narration supports a range of reading abilities
• Repeat audio by double tapping screen
• Narration can be turned on and off
• Text highlighting can be turned on and off

MY THOUGHTS:

When you first open AlphaBooks you choose which book you would like to read and there is one for each letter of the alphabet.  For example, you click “Old O” for the letter “O” and says “Hi, my name is Old O. Do you know any words that start with the letter o?”  You then scroll to the next screen which is a picture of something that starts with the letter, so in this instance it is a picture of an Octopus and it has the word Octopus on the bottom of the screen.  The next screen has a picture again of the Octopus and the letter “O” and says “Here is an octopus.”  Next it shows an Ostrich and says Ostrich.  It goes on and includes a bunch of pictures of items that correspond with the letter.  I think it is a great app because it really helps kids associate letters with words.  My 4 year old son is learning his letters and by showing a picture of an item and showing the word at the bottom it is helping him associate letters and words.  The pictures are everyday items that he recognizes and I have caught him staring at the pictures and words as if he is trying to really remember them.  There are so many great pictures and words in this app that it is perfect for kids learning there letters or just try to expand their vocabulary!

BUY IT: You can download AlphaBooks – Cavallo Media Group, Inc. for your iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad for $2.99

Mom and More Disclosure: This post was written for Family Review Network & Alphabooks who provided the complimentary product for review in exchange for my honest opinions.  Please see my Disclosure Policy.