Very good
Wonderful, as a babysitter this is exactly what I was looking for to give the kids a more productive time learning. I think this is the only app that uses the Jolly system in teaching phonetics in such a basic manner that only young children would appreciate. The stickers are a nice way to encourage them as well.
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Simple yet effective
I've found that with my niece she is drawn to the colourful pictures and sounds, and is therefore more likely to learn with this app. I'm so glad that this exists as she is still learning to speak and this will help immensely. The pronunciations seem fine and I haven't seen it done much better in other apps that are just too complicated for their target ages. Thanks, great app!
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Good support for teacher
This app really helps in class. I teach the different phonics groups and the kids are liking the app a lot. The pronunciation is good so they learn it correctly. This app is one of the few that teaches CORRECT phonics!
accurate, unique
The content of the app is quite unique as it offers the correct phonics! Most of the other apps I have tried do not do this so well done!
Phonics Match
I teach in a school that uses the Jolly Phonics program and I absolutely love this. It's a great support app.
Limited
I found the app engaged my son and he enjoyed playing for stickers, however when teaching phonics the accent on the app makes some of the sounds inaccurate and over pronounced; standard English would be more appropriate. Also, expensive for what the app is offering. There are no opportunities to read whole words and test the sounds taught.
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Good but not perfect
This is the only app I've found that offers synthetic phonics, as taught in UK primary schools which means it deserves a good rating for that alone! Other 'phonics' apps have nothing to do with real synthetic phonics, and just follow the alphabet. For example, they do not teach the sounds that are created by two written letters (sh, ch, th, oa, ee, oo er, etc...). This app does teach this, which is great. Also, the spoken sounds are the correct units of sounds (/s/ not /suh/, /m/ not /muh/) which is rarely done on these apps.
I have only given 3 stars for two reasons:
1. It would be good to have a little variety in the games - they are all matching memory games, so it's not too versatile, and children will get bored quickly. Perhaps a couple of other options, eg. bingo, listen and spell, match the word to the picture - all standard teaching tools.
2. The bigger reason - the speaker of the sounds is not a native English speaker. She has a very good accent, but it's not perfect (her pronunciation of 'tie' and 'pig' do sound quite foreign, whereas other sound she does very well). Given the nature of the app (teaching units of sound) correct pronunciation is vital. A British speaker (and an option for a US speaker for American users) would be essential if this app is to hope to have any long term success.
I have only given 3 stars for two reasons:
1. It would be good to have a little variety in the games - they are all matching memory games, so it's not too versatile, and children will get bored quickly. Perhaps a couple of other options, eg. bingo, listen and spell, match the word to the picture - all standard teaching tools.
2. The bigger reason - the speaker of the sounds is not a native English speaker. She has a very good accent, but it's not perfect (her pronunciation of 'tie' and 'pig' do sound quite foreign, whereas other sound she does very well). Given the nature of the app (teaching units of sound) correct pronunciation is vital. A British speaker (and an option for a US speaker for American users) would be essential if this app is to hope to have any long term success.
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Excellent App!
This is a very good phonic and memory game. It is structured in a manner that my child feels like she is making progress and she therefore stays learning longer than I would have predicted. Also, I like that there are a lot of 2 letter combinations such as "ch" and "oi". When associated with a picture, these more complicated sounds tend to stick in my daughter's memory.
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Phonics
As a teacher that teaches jolly phonics I would rather see letters matched to sounds eg n with a picture of a net. The children are just matching the shape of a letter not the letter with the sound. You are giving them the answer. You also need to remember if children are at Satpin for example they are 5 or 6 years old, to put cat for t is too confusing. You need a t picture. Thanks for making a satpin game many classes are using iPads now. From New Zealand Vicky
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Ok app
The app is ok. The accent is sometimes a bit odd and I would prefer all of the selections have the sound at the start of the word. For example T as in Tap, rather that T as in caT.
