First Phrases vs Score 4 Articulation
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
First Phrases
This interactive app helps young children learn to combine words into meaningful phrases. It features animated characters performing actions and allows for recording and playback to aid language development. Ideal for speech therapy and early literacy support.
- 72 verb + noun phrase combinations
- Animated characters performing actions
- Record and playback speech
- Group setting for multiple users
- Data collection and reporting
- Visual support for learning
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From SmartAppsforKids.com: "In my opinion, First Phrases is a must-have for parents of children working on increasing expressive vocabulary, as well as the therapists and teachers who support their learning. First Phrases is creative, utilizes the iPad’s features in effective ways, and is engaging for young children. Highly recommended." This interactive, illustrated and animated app is perfect for a toddler, preschooler, or any child who is learning to put two or three word English phrases together. It provides many opportunities to hear (receptive), see, and say/record (expressive--if the child is talking) 72 different verb + noun combinations, such as: eat the carrot, blow the bubble, ride the bike, throw the ball, sleep on the bed, put away the toys, and more. With 6 different characters performing the actions, there are 456 possible animations so your child will never be bored! Each verb form is paired with several associated nouns to make a logical phrase such as "eat the apple" or "eat the banana" or "eat the carrot". It is also a great way to teach the article “the” in a meaningful phrase context. Use with 20 children, making it an excellent choice for professional use by a speech-language pathologist. There is also a group setting that allows several children to be engaged at once yet still have their own personal settings. Replay missed items, email results or print them out on the Session Results page! How to play: Tell the characters what to do! Touch the illustrated parts of the phrases in order one at a time (e.g. “eat... the... carrot”). The child hears the pre-recorded spoken phrase modeled. You can have this repeated once, twice or three times in the settings for maximum auditory input. Children who are not yet talking can skip the recording option and simply tap/see the associated animation on the Easy Level to learn the meanings of the phrases and to build language comprehension. The child then watches the character (bear, mouse, cat, dog, boy or girl) perform the command to help associate the words with their meaning. Now it’s the child’s turn to say it and tell them what to do! Tap the microphone and record, listen again, and watch the character follow the direction. Use the optional visual support to help remember what to say! On the scoring page, an adult can indicate what parts of the verb phrase were produced correctly for data collection if desired, then tap "Done". When all parts of the phrase are correct the character gives a thumbs-up. This format is especially powerful for children with speech delays and autism spectrum disorders who need strong visual support with as little background clutter as possible, and for use in speech therapy sessions. The format also is a terrific way to support early literacy for left to right orientation, reading (with text on feature) and word boundaries. Options include text on/text off, recording feature on/off, girl or boy narration voice models, presentation of the phrase in 3 segments (verb + the + object) or 2 segments (verb + the object). A perfect speech therapy app for children with special needs! PRIVACY POLICY: We do NOT collect personal data from our users and have no ads. Personal data regarding user performance on the tasks on this app are self-contained and not transmitted in any way. This is a one-time download fee. We do not have subscriptions. Developed by noted speech-language pathologist Patti Hamaguchi, M.A., CCC-SLP who is also the author of books such as "Childhood Speech, Language & Listening Problems: What Every Parent Should Know", "A Metacognitive Treatment Approach to Treating Auditory Processing Disorders", several tests (RESCA-E, ELCI, TAPS4) To find out more about this app and our other upcoming projects, go to: www.hamaguchiapps.com Questions or need Tech Support? Email us at info@hamaguchiapps.com
Score 4 Articulation
This game turns speech practice into an engaging activity for children. Developed by a speech-language pathologist, it uses a connect-four style game to motivate repeated practice of specific speech sounds. It offers various sound targets, difficulty levels, and rewarding visual feedback to enhance articulation skills.
- Connect-four gameplay with speech practice
- Targeted practice for various speech sounds
- Pronunciation models and repetition counter
- Single-player and two-player modes
- Adjustable difficulty levels
- Visual rewards for practice milestones
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Turn speech practice into a fun, engaging game! Created by a speech-language pathologist, Score 4 Articulation is the ultimate articulation app designed to make speech practice enjoyable and effective. This innovative app combines game-based learning with targeted speech sound practice to help children improve their articulation skills. Whether you're a speech-language pathologist seeking an effective therapy tool or a parent looking for a fun way for your child to practice speech sounds at home, Score 4 Articulation is the perfect solution. KEY FEATURES: Engaging Gameplay: Enjoy the classic challenge of connecting four in a row, now with a twist! Each turn begins with practicing a speech sound, making articulation practice an integral part of the game. Speech Mastery Through Play: During each turn, players can tap the word on the game piece to hear a pronunciation model before practicing it aloud. A visual counter tracks each repetition, encouraging the player to practice the word more frequently. This interactive approach motivates extensive practice, effectively refining the student's articulation skills. Targeted Sound Practice: Choose from a variety of game boards, each focusing on different sounds, including R (initial, vocalic, blends), S (initial, blends, final), L (initial, medial, blends), SH (initial, medial + final), CH (initial, final), J (initial, medial + final), and TH (voiceless). Target words have been meticulously selected by a speech-language pathologist, and a clear pronunciation model can be heard aloud by tapping on the image. Multiple Modes and Levels: Challenge the computer in single-player mode or play against a friend, SLP, or parent in two-player mode. Select from easy to difficult levels to suit the student’s skill level. If two students are practicing together in a group speech therapy session, they can each select a different target sound and play the game together, making group sessions more interactive and effective. Rewards and Motivation: Achieve four in a row to win and celebrate by coloring in three stars! Additionally, the visual counter rewards every 10 repetitions with stars or diamonds, motivating children to practice more and track their progress. These fun visual rewards encourage continued play and learning. Research-Based Effectiveness: Research suggests that massed practice, with many repetitions in a short period, enhances speech sound acquisition and motor learning (Maas et al., 2008; Bislick et al., 2012). This game leverages this principle to help children improve their speech more effectively. With Score 4 Articulation, speech practice is no longer a chore—it’s a game! Help your child or students master their speech sounds while having fun. Download now and start practicing!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Score 4 Articulation at Free against First Phrases's $15.99. Score 4 Articulation also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.2) and update cadence (monthly vs every 4 months). On review sentiment, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Score 4 Articulation is free to download; First Phrases costs $15.99 up front. First Phrases sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Score 4 Articulation sells 20 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Score 4 Articulation holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 13 and 19 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 94% of First Phrases's written reviews are positive against 100% of Score 4 Articulation's.
First Phrases ships an update every 4 months, Score 4 Articulation monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | First Phrases | Score 4 Articulation |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $15.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.2 (13 ratings) | 5.0 (19 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 93.8% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 13 | 19 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Monthly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 612 MB | 426 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Hamaguchi Learning & Development, LLC | Speech and Language Games LLC |
Customer experience
First Phrases
Score 4 Articulation
Bugs and requests
First Phrases
Reported bugs
5 issues- Screen share disconnects during animations
- App crashes frequently
- Settings do not save
- Words do not flip to show phrases after update
- App not working after new iPad purchase (resolved)
Requested features
8 requests- Store recordings for progress tracking
- Add more phrases
- Allow more student profiles
- Save multiple recordings
- Repeat targeted phrase with icons on all pages
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- Data collection feature
- Add more verb-noun combinations
- Data tracker for student progress
Score 4 Articulation
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
First Phrases
- In-app purchase$0.99
Score 4 Articulation
- TH.$2.99
- J.$3.99
- CH.$3.99
Show 17 moreShow fewer
- Buy Two$4.99
- R.$5.99
- S.$5.99
- L.$5.99
- Buy Remaining Sounds$7.99
- Buy Remaining Sounds$9.99
- Buy Three$9.99
- Buy Remaining Sounds$11.99
- Buy Remaining Sounds$13.99
- Buy Remaining Sounds$14.99
- Buy Four$14.99
- Buy Remaining Sounds2 variants$15.99
- Buy Remaining Sounds$16.99
- Buy Five$17.99
- Buy Remaining Sounds2 variants$18.99
- Remaining Set of Sounds$19.99
- Buy Six$19.99
Questions
Is First Phrases free?
Is Score 4 Articulation free?
Which has better reviews, First Phrases or Score 4 Articulation?
Do First Phrases or Score 4 Articulation have ads?
Which is updated more often, First Phrases or Score 4 Articulation?
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