Comparison

Stamping Words vs ExploreMath

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Stamping Words

This app is part of a comprehensive reading and writing curriculum designed for beginning readers or those who have struggled with literacy. It uses a unique "stamping" method to help children express themselves creatively through writing, even before they can read or write traditional letters. The program aims to make reading and writing enjoyable and effective for all children.

Highlights
  • Part of Baratta-Lorton Reading Program
  • Teaches reading and writing skills
  • Uses a unique stamping method for creative writing
  • Designed for beginning readers
  • Aims to make reading and writing enjoyable
Features
Read full description

Center for Innovation in Education Stamping Words Dekodiphukan Description The sixth of the fourteen apps that comprise the Baratta-Lorton Reading Program. The Reading Program is a reading and writing curriculum for beginning readers and any child who has already experienced difficulty in learning to read. 99% unique – 100% effective - 100% free Background for the fourteen apps The Baratta-Lorton Reading Program also known as Dekodiphukan (pronounced decode if you can) was developed by the Center for Innovation in Education whose many other offerings include Mathematics Their Way, the first non-traditional math curriculum adopted in by the State of California. Dekodiphukan has been in use in classrooms across the United States and Canada since 1985. The Program has been used to teach thousands of children to read and to write regardless of background or supposed lack of reading readiness. To date, no child using the program in a classroom setting has ever failed to learn to read or to write. This Dekodiphukan reading and writing curriculum is now a series of fourteen apps plus a parent-guide for the iPad that, within a period of six months to a year (or occasionally a bit longer for some special needs children), will enable every child using it to read and to write. Reading with enjoyment. Writing creatively. Dekodiphukan is a full fledged curriculum. It is a set of specific learning activities, not a set of games. The curriculum’s fourteen apps are all free with no ads - popup or otherwise - included. While the apps may be downloaded all at once and stored in a folder on the iPad, no more than two or three of the apps are used at any one time by the child. Stamping The sixth of the Fourteen Apps Why is this app called Stamping?  Because in the classroom version of the Baratta-Lorton Reading Program students use stamps to stamp out the sounds for the words they wish to write.  The “stamps” may look different in app form, but their use is just the same. The stamps for the 44 sounds offer children a unique opportunity to begin creative writing as soon as they have learned all 44 sounds.  Writing with the stamps permits children see reading and writing as interchangeable The logical progression of learning, presented in the Flipbooks, Booklets, Worksheets, and Picture Packets is, of course, important in insuring every child learns to read and read well.  But the logical progression cannot capture for the child the excitement that comes from being able to put his or her own words on paper, or the feeling of power that writing affords when what one has written can actually be read by someone else - even if initially that someone else may only be parents and siblings. Stamping allows the child to begin writing before he or she can read or write traditional letters, or even hold a pencil well. The child is ready to begin stamping or “writing” any words he or she wishes as soon as he or she has learned all 44 sounds.  “Ready to begin” does not mean ready to master.  For a child to stamp out a word correctly, he or she must hear all the sounds within that word.  This is not always easy, but it is always possible.  All it takes is time, practice, and a parent with whom to share the experience. The child’s first efforts may not be readable by anybody but the child doing the writing.  The words may be missing sounds, or include extra sounds, or the wrong sounds, or have the sounds in the wrong order.  None of this is important.  What is important is that the child is free to write anything he or she wishes, how ever well or poorly the child may perform this writing at the start. Stamping An assessment tool for the sounds a child hears in words Used by the child to write stories of his or her own creation Stories are savable, editable, and printable When ready, the child learns to writes these same stories in traditional letters using the decoding chart

About

ExploreMath

Features
Read full description

In this app, you can explore different topics on math With by-topic questions built in The nicely designed user interface gives a good experience when you are using the app

Screenshots

ExploreMath4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: ExploreMath at every 6 days against Stamping Words's every 3 months. ExploreMath also leads on device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and iOS requirement 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Stamping Words ships an update every 3 months, ExploreMath every 6 days. The most recent releases landed on September 16, 2026 and June 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
Stamping Words versus ExploreMath: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStamping WordsExploreMath
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.4 (5 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings5 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 6 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS15.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB4 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBob Baratta-LortonKai Hin Tsoi

In-app purchases

None

Stamping Words

No in-app purchases

None

ExploreMath

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Stamping Words free?
Stamping Words is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ExploreMath free?
ExploreMath is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Stamping Words or ExploreMath have ads?
Neither Stamping Words nor ExploreMath shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Stamping Words or ExploreMath?
Stamping Words ships an update every 3 months, and ExploreMath every 6 days. Most recently, Stamping Words was updated on September 16, 2026 and ExploreMath on June 5, 2026.

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