Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 by Applicable2U

Simplex Spelling Phonics 1

By Pyxwise Software Inc.

Pyxwise Software Inc. has recently launched Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 and it could not have come at a more appropriate time for Applicable2U.  It is now the second trimester of our school year and my son, although he is 5, is beginning to dig deeper into the mechanics of spelling and reading in his kindergarten class.  We have reviewed educational apps by Pyxwise Software in the past, so we were immediately intrigued when we read in their iTunes library description, “Simplex Spelling improves English spelling and reading skills by using a powerful combination of phonics lessons, spelling/word patterns, our unique “reverse phonics” approach and contextually relevant spelling rules.”  Amazingly, within days of its launch, Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 was already on the Apple’s New and Noteworthy apps under the Education category.  Through our exploration, we now know why!  According to research, readers who use this approach will find learners succeeding at a higher rate than those using typical flashcards.   As a child embarks on the road to spelling and reading there are five key areas that a child should focus on: vocabulary, phonemic awareness, sight words, phonics and comprehension. As you explore with this educational app, teachers and parents will quickly see how these five concepts have been integrated fluidly.  Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 is accessible via most Apple devices running iOS 4.0 or later.  Your spelling lists can now go where you go!   With a year full of spelling curriculum which has over 450 high frequency words divided into 42 lessons, your child will be building their confidence as their base foundation of literacy is being established.

Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 can seamlessly be integrated into any homeschool, classroom or home environment.  With the ability to create what appears to be an unlimited amount of user accounts, parents of multiple children will be thrilled that their child’s learning needs will individually be met.  In addition, teachers will be pleased to see that a mobile device can now be a part of a learning center for their students. Whether using this application individually or with a teacher or parent, young readers will find a number of support systems in place along the way.  Within the settings tab, users can work with either upper or lower case letters.  Developmentally, this is very appropriate to focus on one or the other, however, still having experience with both.  In addition, the keyboard layout can be changed to letters appearing alphabetically or like a real world keyboard. Regardless of which keyboard type you choose, letters will appear color coded, vowels will appear bluish/white in color and consonants will be red.  Visually this is very effective for learners.  When beginning a word list, your virtual teacher will briefly explain that sound or letter combination. Proceeding this explanation, the user will be required to spell words falling under that category.  Along the way, additional supports are provided such as: a hint button, the teacher saying the desired word in a sentence and various visuals clues for right and wrong answers.  If a user is unsure what a colored button will do, simply click the question mark at the bottom of your window and the Simple Spelling teacher will verbally explain.  With a simple tap of their finger onto any user friendly tool, letters can be: viewed with a green checkmark, dragged from left to right, provided hints and deleted if necessary.  Their finger is now a virtual pencil and an eraser.

So that learning is held accountable and parents and teachers can further instruct in an appropriate way, reports can be generated indicating words mastered and the number of attempts made within each word list.  Strategically, word lists are organized very clearly as it starts with the basic sounds each vowel makes both short and long.  Some might say that the English language is a bit tricky when it comes to those letter combination words (ie. “ai” or “ay”).  As you progress from individual vowel sounds into the next lessons, users will begin to explore the complexities of these letter combinations. From there, lessons will touch on the blended sounds letter make. The overall purpose of this educational app is not to memorize, but to rather transfer this learning to become efficient readers and spellers with a solid comprehension of the phonics approach.

Applicable2U is truly excited with the updates that have been made from their other spelling application, Simplex Spelling HD. Whether you have a 4-10 year old, this application is applicable to you.  For a simple .99¢ download, your child or student will be gaining a lifetime of academic skills that will be applied throughout their early stages of life.  To learn more about Pyxwise Software Inc., please visit their website here.  It’s time that you take the anxiety that can be built up in a child when reading and spelling with a simple download of Simplex Spelling Phonics 1 to youriTunes library here.

Reviewers website: www.applicable2u.wordpress.com

Holiday Wiz Quiz by Applicable2U

Holiday Wiz Quiz

by Simul Consulting Corp.

As we near the holiday season there are characters and songs that many individuals will recall and traditions that are repeated each December.  Whether you are a child or an adult, we all know Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, Christmas elves and the variety of decorations that are shared for all to see.  Who knew that these things could be interconnected with academic skills.  Simul Consulting Corp recently launched a special Christmas edition of Holiday Wiz Quiz.  This engaging, colorful resource will stimulate your child(ren) or student(s) ages 4-8 years.  By playing this educational app, your  child will be academically preparing themselves as they enter their school years and engage in learning with the help of seasonal connections.  With your trial download of Holiday Wiz Quiz, your wiz kid can explore 40 questions on the go via your iphone, itouch or ipad device running iOS3.2 or later.  Applicable2U highly recommends gaming for a reason and Holiday Wiz Quiz is guaranteed to do just that.  As your child(ren) or student(s) games for a reason they will be developing such things as their logical reasoning, spelling and math skills.

With their eye catching owl all decked out for the holidays, quiz takers will be supported in a number of ways.  As the developers have indicated, this is an educational app for children as young as four, however, there may be some learners that need parental guidance as well.  Applicable2u was impressed to see how they have incorporated verbal and pictorial directions, various types of reinforcements, and hints. Quizzes are made up of 20 multiple choice questions. Questions will be read aloud, however, if after hearing it your child needs it repeated, simply click the repeat button at the top of the page.  Like any MCAS, SAT or state exam, children are expected to review each answer.  There will be obvious incorrect answers, however, if one is chosen, the holiday owl will give a hint.  After reading the hint, a second chance will be provided.  It is important to note that the more frequently the owl supports your child, their final test results may be lowered.  A note to the developers - when hints are needed, is it possible to have those hints read aloud.  Or even for the developing reader, could they tap on each word as it is announced.  To visually guide your child along the road to success, the holiday owl will travel a 1-20 number line at the bottom of their screen. At the completion of each quiz, stars will have been earned and a report will be generated for the benefit of a parent or teacher.  These reports will provide both recent scores and an average of all your quiz experiences.  It will share their total score, how long it took to complete, the number of correct answers, how many times a second chance was given and those incorrect answers.  Quizzes can be repeated and new reports will be generated.

As you and your child experience the trial version, Applicable2U is certain that you will want to update your trial to the full version through an in-app purchase.  In the updated version, users will now have access to close to 300 multiple choice questions. An additional to note to the developers – might it be possible to offer multiple accounts within the full version?  This would be an added support for parents with multiple children, teachers and homeschoolers.  This time of the year is a very exciting one, why not maintain that excitement as they build their confidence as they play, learn or reinforce a great deal of academic and high order thinking skills.  To learn more about Simul Consulting Corp, please visit their website here.  To begin your trial today of Holiday Wiz Quiz click hereto add to your iTunes library.

Reviewers website: www.applicable2u.wordpress.com

Simplex Spelling HD by Applicable2U

  Simplex Spelling HD
     by Pyxwise Software, Inc.

  If you happen to have a young child just learning or is in need of support with their sight words, then Simplex Spelling HD is the way to go!!!  Its name says it all, it’s very simplex.  Applicable2U has explored a number of spelling applications, and this is the best one yet.  This educational app comes complete with 220+ sight words.  It was recently updated earlier this week and is designed for a variety of Apple devices. As a parent, you might be asking yourself, “why does my child(ren) need to learn sight words?”  For those just beginning to read, sight words are important to know since they are typically words that are difficult to sound out or to illustrate. Academically, there are several important reasons.  First, they act as confidence builders. When reading orally with your son or daughter many of these sight words will appear on each page.  According to research, “Dolch’s sight words make up 50 to 75% of the words in any children’s text and knowing these lists of high frequency words gives young readers a huge advantage when attempting to read new stories.“  By recognizing these same words while reading it will free them up to approach more challenging words.  In addition, sight words provide context clues to the meaning of a sentence.  With a very clear and easy to follow design, parents, teachers and even students will be pleasantly surprised with the results.  While experiencing this application, Applicable2U felt like we are a part of an interactive spelling bee.
By the time a student enters fourth grade they are required to know a specific number of sight words.  These words are taught/mastered by children in a variety of ways through the guidance of flashcards, worksheets, and guided reading opportunities.  With the age of technology, why not add a technical component to learning these words.  There are a number of positive components that Applicable2U saw in Simplex Spelling: 
PROS -
√ It is designed to meet the needs of all children
√ It appears that an unlimited amount of users can be added to the application
√ Setting options can be customized for each user
√ An introduction level which provides the user and also a parent/teacher an explanation of how to navigate the system
√ Letter options can be presented as a keyboard or in ABC order
√ Color coding as a way to reinforce
√ Overall amazing visual and auditory support
√ Multi-sensory with dragging and tapping options
√ Click the question mark and the user will be provided an explanation of buttons or symbols
√ Users are provided hints and are able to hear words/sentences read again
√ Maintenance of reports showing mastery and attempts a particular word
√ Lists can be chosen based on student need(s)
√ Word lists can be revisited and saved for future use
√ Users are given the word, followed by a sentence and the word repeated (Very spelling bee like)
√ Users can skip forwards and backwards within a word list
√ Provides the user(s) opportunities to listen and concentrate when the voice is speaking – incorporating headphones would be a plus!
√ At times challenging but through repeated use, young spellers will win in the end

CONS -
√ The color choice of the letter word bank  may be a challenge for some students
√ In the “question mark” explanation it would be nice if the backspace button was also added

Overall, as you can see, Simplex Spelling HD has a number of positive components.  Currently, it is selling in your iTunes library for $6.99.  Some might say that it is a lot of money, but the academic results that you will see in your student or child will be amazing.  Simplex Spelling uses a reverse phonics approach, but it is certainly not reverse in its thinking as it heads in the right direction of teaching our young population to spell towards the future of reading!  If you would like to learn more about Pyxwise Software, Inc. please visit their website here.  Whether you have a kindergartener or late elementary aged student(s) or child(ren), Simplex Spelling HD is applicable to you.  Start your download today by clicking here.

Reviewers website: www.applicable2u.wordpress.com

Bob Books Series 2 by Applicable2U

Bob Books Reading Magic Set 2
 by Learning Touch

 Learning Touch development group has added once again to their collection of reading applications set 2 of the infamous Bob Books. If you are familiar with the hardcover version of this series, then you know that enjoyment and learning will be extended for your little one(s) anytime or anywhere you may be. But now, in the format of an app on your Apple device.  The Bob Books collection was designed to guide children through the early stages of reading.  When reading your little one(s) will be provided a great deal of  repetition and consistency as they read short stories and learn new letter sounds.   Amazingly, Bob Books Series 2 has twelve new scenes for those advancing beginner readers looking to build their confidence and to become independent readers. It is an educational and interactive book that will appeal to all through the use of adorable graphics, sounds and animations. With four levels of play, users will not want to put down their device of choice as they will be entertained while learning to read!

Upon entering Bob Books Set 2, it is evident that viewer feedback was taken into consideration as the format organization has slightly changed from the first app collection of Bob Books.  Similar to the previous series, depending on the academic reading level or age of the user, parents and/or teachers can change various options within the book.  For example, spelling can be set as phonics based or by letter name.  This is a very useful option as it guides children to make connections between the letter and its sound.  In addition, music and sound effects can be set to: never, sometimes or always. Again another useful option as this age group tends to have a short attention span and can be easily distracted by outside things.  One of the newest additions to this application series is the "Where would you like to start" page.  It is here that each level is explained.  Level 1 - has users dragging and dropping letters into place as it is matched.  Level 2 -  builds upon level 1, however, letters now need to be placed in the correct order from left to right.  Level 3 - it is here that the user will no longer be provided any visual hints.  Level 4 - has users spelling those words seen in levels 1-3.  To extend the challenge further within this level, users will be provided extra letters as a possible distractor.    

Initially pages start out as black and white with a short sentence at the bottom.  To begin the "magic," readers will see several objects on each page shaking and rattling.  This motion indicates which words need to be spelled.  Once spelled, objects will magically be filled with color and that word within the sentence will appear in bold.  It is important to note that each part of the sentence is not spelled out, such words as "and" or "the" for example are not a part of the repetition.  Such sight words and many others can be reinforced with support from a parent and/or teacher in another format. A nice added feature that this series of apps has is that the user is in control of movement from one page to the next. This allows those just learning to read the ability to show off their reading skills to others near by.   A note to the developers - for a future update, might it be possible to highlight in a different color, say bright yellow, each part of the sentence as the narrator is reading it in full.  By adding this feature it would provide the reader one more visual representation or form of repetition of each word.  

Overall, Applicable2u loves what Learning Touch has done with this series of books.  Do you have young ones just learning to read in your classroom or at home?  Then we feel that it is a MUST have within your iTunes account.  If you would like to learn more about Learning Touch, please visit theirwebsite here.  Interested in the first series of the Bob Books app, then please click here to add to your library of applications.   If you are already a fan and want to add Series 2, then please click here.  

Reviewers website: www.applicable2u.wordpress.com

Mr. Thorne Does Phonics by Applicable2U

Mr. Thorne Does Phonics
  by Mr. Thorne Productions

YouTube sensation Mr. Thorne from London, is at it again. This time he is taking over the iPad world with his amazingly entertaining and educational videos on the building blocks of reading and spelling through the phonics model. What is Phonics?  Why is it so critical for our children to learn in this manner?  Phonics is teaching children how to connect the sounds of spoken English with letters or groups of letters and to then teach them to blend the sounds of letters together to produce approximate pronunciations of unknown words. By teaching the strategies behind the model of phonics, a child’s frustration level will decrease as they read and spell words.  As a teacher or parent one of the many goals we have is to encourage our child to learn and to love reading.

Many might say that in order to teach children to read and spell phonically is dry and boring.  A colleague of mine said at times she feels as though she  needs to find ways to shake it up a bit.  Well, with the help of Mr. Thorne’s video apps for the iPad- Letters and Sounds and Blends and Spelling, phonics will be shaken up.  In conjunction with books, worksheets and discussions, children will begin to understand how to segment and blend words all in the palm of their hands.  So how does Mr. Thorne jazz this boring subject matter up?  With a great deal of modeling through body and facial visuals, repetition, opportunities to pause and discuss and examples, users will become more confident readers and spellers. Throughout, Mr. Thorne is constantly asking for your participation and providing opportunities to challenge as he changes locations, his crazy glasses, and hair style.  In addition his free spirit, calming teacher voice and movement will certainly add a sense of ownership and comprehension for all types of learning styles.

In our exploration of Mr. Thorne we did find other ways of accessing his educational videos via YouTube.  So why would educators or parents want to download his applications for the iPad.  For MANY reasons!!!  With two simple simple downloads from your iTunes Library, Mr. Thorne’s phonics videos will be at your disposal no matter where you are.  Videos are a part of the application, so there is no need to have internet access.  Technology is wonderful, however, every educator has had some negative technology fluke occur when they were not prepared.  Whether you are being observed by an administrator, working with a small group or even your entire class, Mr. Thorne’s videos will not break up while watching or require any streaming from the internet.  With a very clean and manageable menu, Letters and Sounds and Blends and Spelling can be accessible for all parties: educators, parents and children.  Applicable2U also loves how videos are tailored to a users current academic needs.

As you begin your phonics journey with Mr. Thorne, you will want to start with the Letter and Sounds application.  Here users will be provided an understanding of phonics and the importance of phonemes.  Along the way he will share through only video coverage, Alphabet Sounds, Digraphs and Trigraphs, Tricky Words and a Challenge.   Once letters and sounds have been mastered, download and move on to his Blends and Spelling videos app, where he will break up blends and spellings into two videos and share those Tricky words and apply it all together into a Challenge.

Applicable2U is very impressed with the effort that Mr. Thorne has put into modeling phonics in a fun way.  BothLetters and Sounds and Blends and Spelling can be incorporated at home and in school for individual or group implementation.  To learn more about Mr. Thorne, please visit Mr. Thorne Does Phonics website here.  As an both a parent and an educator, you will not regret the money that you will spend on these two iPad applications.  To download either from your iTunes library, please click Letters and Sounds or Blends and Spelling.

Reviewers website: www.applicable2u.wordpress.com

Word Wall by Applicable2U

Word Wall
By Punflay

As an administrator, parent or colleague upon entering a classroom, you are most certain to find large chart paper posted throughout the room. What role does this chart paper have in the classroom? They are used as academic visuals for students. Educators will call these visuals word walls. Word walls are organized collections of words that promote group learning. Designed to guide children as they develop sight words, word families, and rhyming words as a way to incorporate into their writing. Punflay has miraculously taken this concept for early elementary students and applied it to your Apple device. It is very simply named, Word Wall.

As you guide your students to become fluent readers and competent writers, group learning centers that involve activities like: See, Hear, Say and Write will be evident. A fifth center can now be added, a mobile learning center for further reinforcement. Word Wall is very student friendly, interactive, graphically appealing, and age appropriate for a large group of individuals. Whether you are a kindergarten, ESL/ELL, or special needs teacher or parent, this educational app is an excellent addition to your curriculum.

To begin exploring this educational app, simply tap a word cloud. Users should be encouraged by a parent or teacher to choose first one side of the rainbow - writing abc's or writing words. It is here that learning can begin with letters and their sounds, vocabulary development with pictures and words, while also introducing word families. As they progress, users will be introduced to over 75 sight words, and 12 word families. Activities are differentiated to meet various learning styles from the tactile learner to those that are spatial or visual leaners. With very clear and concise directions users will begin to develop necessary reading skills as they build a collection of reinforcement word families or letters. Through this mobile learning center, users will slowly become confident as they learn to read through similar paper activities of seeing, hearing, saying and writing. Whether your child wants to continue reinforcing or repeated exploration is necessary, Word Wall can successfully meet your student and child's needs. Once a child's comfort level with letter recognition, sound and word families, users are encouraged to challenge themselves.

Apply previous learning to four additional activities: See and Find, Hide a Word, Bubble Words and Jigsaw Words. As students apply their new knowledge, their learning will be disguised through repetitive interactive activities. See and Find offers two modes of play: easy and hard. Developing readers will play a memory card game. Simply match ten illustrations with its word. A note to the developers, would it be possible to slow the timing down between an incorrect match. Although the answer is incorrect, shouldn't it be the user that makes the realization rather than the device. Hide a Word puts the user in the dark. With their finger acting like a flashlight, users must find ten hidden words. No matter what your finger control may be, the spotlight is manageable. Just be patient as you play, some words are more difficult to find than others. Bubble Words reinforces those sight words or word families learned earlier through a spelling game. Simply catch the correct letter bubble and drag it into place. Words are dropped onto what looks like lined paper. As this activity develops ones spelling, it is also reinforcing how letters should be written - the difference between upper and lower case letters. The last activity, Jigsaw Words, breaks words learned into pieces. Visually, a user will need to discriminate initially what each puzzle will form. To guide a struggling learner, additional support is also provided as pieces have both words and its illustration. In addition there is a shadow board which guides users in building each word. Regardless of which reinforcement activity is played, users will earn stickers for every ten stars collected. Stickers are stored on "My Wall." Your wall is a place to stamp and create a picture that can be saved to your photo gallery app on your Apple device.

Overall, Applicable2U gives Word Wall a thumbs up for an effective educational app that can accompany a home schooling or early elementary setting. Word Wall app is an alternative method of posting words learned, the important thing is that children are exposed to a print rich environment that provides them with the tools they need to read and write more effectively. If technology will also provide them these tools, then why not!!! If you would like to learn about this app and others by Punflay, then visit their website here. If developing reading skills is your need, then begin downloading Word Wall from your iTunes library here.

Reviewers website: www.applicable2u.wordpress.com

#AppMondayTAS-Fill the Gap

Fill the Gap is a simple spelling app for iOS.  While that statement is true, it tends to miss represent the app.  Fill the Gap is simple in premie, but rich in features.  At it's core Fill the Gap asks students to fill in the missing letter of a word, a picture is provided, as well as a pronunciation.  You can choose from first or last letter, missing vowel, missing blends, digraphs, and irregular vowel sounds.  You have an option to choose word length as well - 4, 6, 8 or any number of letters.  If you get the answer correct you get both audio and animation rewards.  Incorrect responses get an audio sound and the correct answer is flashed on the screen, it will not move on until you get the correct answer.  

Fill the Gap also includes some simple data, called Smudge Marks.  It sorts the data by word length or you can view all correct or incorrect.  This is a great feature of the app, but I would like to see some options to export the data (email or copy), also if you get a question wrong multiple times, it is counted each time in the data, which can be a little misleading.  Overall, Fill the Gap is a solid app for working on literacy skills for many students!

At this time Fill the Gap comes in many different versions:

iPad: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fill-the-gap-smudge/id415104902?mt=8&ls=1
iPhone: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fill-the-gap-pocket/id417629706?mt=8&ls=1
Mac: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fill-the-gap/id415118585?mt=12&ls=1 
• Android https://market.android.com/details?id=com.magmentis.firstwordsfillthegap

Fill the Gap Lite is the FREE version of  app (with a limited number of words, but can work for a try of the app):

• iPad: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fill-the-gap-smudge-lite/id416335221?mt=8&ls=1
• iPhone: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fill-the-gap-pocket-lite/id422713980?mt=8&ls=1
• Mac: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fill-the-gap-lite/id422715245?mt=12&ls=1

App - Fill the Gap - iPhone Version

Price - $0.99 (at time of posting)

Type - Universal (works on iPhone, iPad & iPod Touch)

Restrictions - None

Skills Addressed - literacy

The developer has offered 5 codes for Fill the Gap Pocket for iPhone/iPod Touch to giveaway this week. As always you can enter up to 3 times, using the following methods:

1.  Comment on this post at Teaching All Students

2.  Tweet about this post using the hashtag #AppMondayTAS

3.  Like the Teaching All Students Fan Page on Facebook  leave a comment

Good luck!  Make sure to have all your entries in by Friday, April 8 at 12pm Central time.  I'll pick the winners after that! 

Patrick 

**The developer provided the reviewer with a copy of this app**

Reviewer Blog - Teaching All Students