Archives for August 2020

Readability FAQs – August 2020

August 31, 2020

The Readability app is unlike any other learning app on the market. It’s the first learning app of its kind, which is why parents may have a lot of questions about how it works.

At Readability, we are more than happy to answer your questions to ensure you have the information you need to decide whether or not this app is right for your child. Here are the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about Readability:

Is there a discount for multiple students or low income families?

All new users can use Readability for free by starting their free 7-day trial. To continue using Readability after your trial is over, you will need to pay a monthly subscription fee of $19.99 for up to 3 users.

Is the Readability app just for kids that are already reading?

The Readability app is designed to help children at K-6 reading levels. We recently introduced a new feature for K level readers that goes through books word by word, allowing the reader to hear the correct pronunciation of each word.

The speed at which the books are read can be adjusted in the app’s settings. If your child has not started to read yet, we recommend starting our free 7-day trial to determine if Readability is right for your family.

How much does Readability cost?

Readability offers a 7-day free trial to new users. You can start your free 7-day trial today to determine whether or not Readability is right for your struggling reader. After the free trial is over, you will be charged $19.99 per month to continue using the Readability app. Up to 3 readers can use the app for this low monthly price.

Do I have to provide my credit card information to start a free trial?

Yes, you must provide your credit card information in order to start your free 7-day trial of Readability. However, your card will not be charged during this free trial period. Your credit card information is only required so we can verify your identity and confirm you are over the age of 18.

Your card will not be charged until your free trial is over. At this time, it will be charged $19.99 per month unless you choose to cancel your subscription. You can cancel your subscription at any time through the app.

To cancel your subscription, open the app and tap on the 3-bar tab in the upper left corner. Then, tap on “manage subscriptions” to cancel your subscription. You can also cancel your subscription by emailing support@readabilitytutor.com.

Is Readability based in the United States?

Yes, the Readability headquarters are in Long Beach, California.

Will my child read on their own or have access to tutors on the Readability app?

The app will read aloud to your child first before instructing your child to read the text aloud. The app will listen to your child read and correct pronunciation errors in real time so they can learn from their mistakes.

The app is also designed with an Interactive Voice-Based Questions & Answers feature, which will ask your child questions about the text to keep them engaged and check their comprehension.

These unique and innovative features allow children to communicate with the Readability app just like they would with a reading tutor.

What is included in the monthly subscription?

A monthly subscription to Readability will provide you with access to:

Unlimited content for reading levels K-6
Parent dashboard with data on your child’s performance, including:
- Time spent reading
- Words per minute
- Accuracy
- Comprehension
- Books read
- Report card email

What reading level is this app designed for?

Readability is designed for reading levels K-6.

Can homeschooling parents choose to start at a certain grade level?

The Readability app will automatically place your child at a reading level that is one level below their current grade level. This gives your child the opportunity to build their confidence in their reading skills.

Once they begin to improve, the app will automatically increase their reading level. However, parents can adjust their child’s reading level at any time through the app’s settings.

What is the difference between Readability and Kids A-Z?

Readability is the only smart reading and comprehension learning app on the market. It is designed with responsive speech recognition and artificial intelligence technology, which enables it to communicate with your child just like a reading tutor.

Another feature that sets Readability apart is the parent dashboard, which allows parents to track their kids’ progress. This dashboard will provide data on time spent reading, accuracy, comprehension, books read, and words per minute. If you have more than one reader using the account, the app will separate the data by reader so you can see how each child is performing.

Do you have a question about Readability? We’re here to help. Get in touch with our customer service team using this online form. A member of our team will contact you as soon as possible to address your concerns and answer your questions.

How To Improve Reading Retention In Struggling Readers

August 28, 2020

Children are great and fast learners. They are often learning and absorbing information without even realizing it.

Many kids learn how to read fairly quickly, but some new readers often struggle with understanding what they are reading. Sometimes it can be an indicator of learning disability, but often it is a matter of not being able to remember what they had read.

If your child is struggling with reading comprehension, you might want to incorporate ways for how to improve reading retention. Reading retention is an important skill to improve in your child’s reading process because it really determines if your child can understand the text.

What is reading retention?

Reading retention is essentially how much of the text you can remember and recall.

It is important to note the differences between reading comprehension and reading retention. Reading comprehension is understanding and enjoying what you are reading at the moment. Your child is able to read a sentence and immediately understand the meaning of it.

However, reading retention is how much information from the text your child is able to recall later on.

What are the ways to help my child remember what they read?

Improving reading retention is simply all about practice, practice, and practice. You can help your child improve this important reading skill by giving them many opportunities and ways to practice recalling information from what they have read.

In some cases, it might also help to give them different ways to review what they have read and even new ways of reading materials.

Discuss what they are reading – A great way to improve your child’s reading retention is to talk to them several times about what they are reading. This can help you find out what information they actually were able to retain and what information they could not.

Having discussions about the books and materials they are reading also helps to create a stronger bond between parents and children.

Repetition – Your child should read texts at least three or four times to be able to learn and remember the information. They should start by previewing the text which includes looking at titles and headings as well as skimming paragraphs or pages.

Then, they should read the text once over just naturally. Finally, they should go back and read the text and make notes or annotations to help them retain information or make note of things they do not understand.

It can take up to 14 exposures for a child to learn a new word, so it is important that they reread texts in order to get as many exposures as possible to improve their memory and learning.

Taking notes – Note taking and annotations are learning tools that are often taught and suggested to older students and especially in college. However, younger students and new readers can and should utilize these reading tools, too!

Studies have shown that actually handwriting notes can help remember important information better because writing stimulates an area of the brain called the RAS (reticular activating system), which filters and brings clarity to the information we’re focusing on,” according to Maud Purcell, a psychotherapist and journaling expert.

Encouraging your child to write notes and annotations can help them retain the information from texts better and helps them to become a better read overall.

Writing reflections – Along with writing notes, it is important to have your child take some time to reflect and think about what they have read.

Writing a reflection can also give them a chance to organize the information in a way that is meaningful for them and can help them make connections to things they are familiar with, which can help them retain information from readings better.

Go slowly – If your child is struggling to retain information from what they are reading, it could help to slow down their reading pace. Instead of having them read a book or text all at one time in one go, break up the reading into parts then have them read that portion, make notes, and reflect.

Then when they are done with that section, they can move on to the next section of the material.

Slowing down the reading process for them can help them find the main ideas and important information easier rather than becoming overwhelmed with all the information being thrown at them.

Try reading apps – Reading apps can be a great tool to use to get your child to enjoy reading as well as improve their reading retention. There are a wide variety of apps to choose from, but the right app will provide enough practice materials and enough opportunities for exposure.

For example, Readability is a great app specifically to improve reading retention because it provides several ways for a child to read a story.

Your child has the option of reading the story aloud themselves and the apps listens to them reading then gives your child feedback and error correction. They can also have the app read to them as they follow along.

The app also helps to make sure they retain the information through the built-in Interactive Voice based Questions & Answers that asks them questions about the story.

Improving reading retention early on in your child’s reading journey is extremely important because it is a skill they will need to rely on throughout their education and life. Retaining information from the class readings they are assigned is the primary way they learn new concepts.

Reading retention is a life-long skill that your child will use all the time. So, making sure they are practicing and improving reading retention by using tools such as Readability can make a world of difference in their learning and life skills.

Back to School Shopping for a Virtual School Year

August 27, 2020

Back in mid-July, Los Angeles and San Diego schools announced that they would adopt a virtual learning environment when class began in the fall. Nashville and Atlanta announced their plans for virtual learning, too, and many other cities adopted hybrid models–partial in-school and virtual learning–for fall.

Parents may find themselves scrambling to find childcare or work from home options to ensure that their children keep up with online lessons and aren’t left unsupervised. Adapting to a virtual fall semester isn’t going to be easy for many working parents; some may quit their jobs to stay home, others may struggle financially to try to make the situation work by enrolling their child in daycare. Some parents may even create their own homeschool program.

There is, however, one small glimmer that’s positive in this set-up: school shopping might not be so incredibly expensive. Every year, parents run down the exhaustive supply list mandated by schools; the list typically includes items like facial tissue, hand sanitizer, cleaning wipes, extra glue (LOTS of extra glue), paper towels and sandwich bags.

Back to School Supplies

Parents have complained for years that the supply lists are out of control. After all, how can kids need–or use–24 glue sticks? As school budgets are tightened, parents are forced to purchase items that the district–and the teachers–can’t provide. However, as Slate reported, some school lists have included brand-specific requests as well as copy paper.

Going virtual means parents can be in control of the lists this year…well, at least for the fall semester. What does your student need during virtual learning? Here are our recommendations:

A Laptop, PC or Chromebook

Many school districts provide laptops of Chromebooks at no charge to students. Some districts utilize one-to-one computing in the normal school year, so children already may be equipped with this must-have technology.

If you don’t own a computer, please reachout to the school. The district may be able to provide a laptop and/or wifi hotspot to the family.

A pack of pencils

Your child doesn’t need 30 pencils. Just buy a small pack, a pencil sharpener and some erasers. Buy only what you need.

Lined paper

Math is easier with lined paper; so is writing. Even if kids are expected to submit essays or writing assignments online, have them draft their work on paper. Buy a pack of wide-ruled paper for daily assignments.

Notebooks or Binders

Buy a notebook or binder for each class or subject; this allows kids to take notes and to keep class info in one place.

Extra erasers

Those little eraser nubs on pencils never last long. Buy a big pink eraser or pencil-top erasers instead!

A box of crayons

Let younger kids have one box of crayons for coloring assignments–if this is applicable. A new box of crayons is a bit of a rite of passage for kids for a new school year; keep this item on your list, especially since a small box is typically less than $1.

Hand sanitizer

If you can still find hand sanitizer, buy a bottle for the family. Fall is the beginning of the cold and flu season!

Memory sticks

Depending on what sites and programs your child will use via virtual learning, you may need to purchase a memory stick to save assignments and/or files.

A printer (and paper)

Some assignments or worksheets might need to be printed. Kids also may learn material better if they print out the assignment and highlight important information. A printer might not be a necessity, but it certainly can be an extra tool.

A quiet and comfortable workspace

U.S. News and World Report recommends a comfortable chair! When kids are sitting for hours learning online, they should be comfortable. Invest in a modestly priced desk chair that is comfortable and provides support. You also could score a great desk chair at a thrift store for a really cheap price!

Age-appropriate books

A child might not have access to a library, but kids still need to read daily. Order age-appropriate books online, or purchase low-cost books at secondhand stores or used bookstores.

What About Backpacks & Clothes?

Kids grow out of clothes quickly. If your child is outgrowing last year’s pants and tops, you may have to head online or to the store for some new clothes. However, since kids won’t be in class, the pricier brands can take a backseat this year. Peer influence over the wardrobe will be one less worry!

If your child’s backpack is still in good shape, keep it around for another year. Remember, they will likely only use it during the spring semester. There’s also no reason to invest in a new lunchbox.

This year, learning will look very different as many students head online to start the fall semester virtually. While this arrangement might not be convenient for parents, there is one glimmer of good news: less money to spend on supplies. Buy only the basics and take control of the list this year. Learning online means kids need fewer supplies than they would in the classroom. Now you can finally say good riddance to all those glue sticks! After all, two should suffice just fine!

How to Start A Reading Program At Home

August 26, 2020

Learning to read is not easy, which is why some children may require additional instruction outside of the classroom. Establishing a reading program at home can help your child stay on track and improve their reading skills without ever stepping foot in a classroom. This may sound like a major commitment, but starting an at-home reading program for kids is actually easier than you may think. Here’s how to start a reading program at home:

Pick A Theme

A reading program may not sound very exciting to reluctant or struggling readers. But parents can make it more fun and appealing by creating a theme for their reading program.

For example, create a chart with an illustration of a pot of gold at the end of a bright and colorful rainbow. Then, use an illustration of a leprechaun to track your child’s progress in the reading program. The leprechaun should travel further and further over the rainbow as your child logs more reading time. Their goal should be to reach the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

You could also use a “Reading Raceway” theme. Track your child’s reading progress using a racecar that travels around the track as your child meets certain goals.

These are two examples of creative themes that can keep your child engaged in your reading program. No one knows your child better than you, so flex your creative muscle and come up with a theme that will appeal to them.

Set A Goal

It’s important to establish a goal for your child so they know what they are working toward in the reading program. Practice makes perfect, so the more your child reads, the better they will become.

Experts recommend that children read for at least 20 minutes per day at home. Based on this recommendation, set a goal for your child to read at least 140 minutes a week while participating in your at-home reading program.

Create A Reading Log

The goal of establishing a reading program at home is to encourage your child to read more often. The only way to see if your child is reaching this goal is to use a reading log to keep track of how much time they spend reading.

There are countless reading log templates available for free online. Download and print one of these templates at the start of your program. Then, show your child how to fill out the sheet so they know how to log their reading time.

Choose the Right Reading Materials

Selecting the right reading materials is the key to starting a successful reading program at home. Choose books at the appropriate reading level for your child. If you select books that are too advanced, your child will struggle to read them, which can be frustrating and disheartening.

Don’t select the books for your reading program on your own. Let your child have a say in what books will be included in the program as well. This way, your child will have an opportunity to choose books that interest them so they actually want to read.

Host Reading Groups

Hosting reading groups is a great way to make your reading program more fun. Ask other parents in your community if their children would like to participate in your reading program as well. Then, schedule a reading group whenever everyone has finished reading a particular book. Ask everyone in the group to discuss the book and encourage them to talk about what they liked and didn’t like.

Talking about a book will help your child improve their reading comprehension skills, which are crucial to their academic success. Scheduling reading groups is also a good way to help your child meet other readers in the community.

Celebrate Successes

Make sure you reward your children once they reach their goals or achieve new reading milestones in the program. Choose any reward that you think your child would appreciate, such as a day off from chores, candy, an ice cream party, or a trip to their favorite park.

Giving your child rewards for reading will motivate them to continue working on their reading skills at home.

Download the Readability App

As they participate in your reading program, kids may need additional help with their phonics or reading comprehension skills. Provide them with the one-on-one help they need by downloading the Readability app on your smartphone or tablet.

The Readability app is designed with artificial intelligence and advanced speech recognition technology that allows it to communicate with your child just like a reading tutor would. The app listens to your child read and immediately corrects pronunciation errors to help them learn from their mistakes. It also asks questions about the text to keep your child engaged and interested.

Incorporate the Readability app into your reading program to help your child become the best reader possible. If you’re ready to try Readability, start your free 7-day trial today.

Effective Ways To Utilize Reading Comprehension Online Programs

August 25, 2020

Many students struggle when they are first learning to read, especially with reading comprehension. Students who never receive reading intervention early on often end up struggling throughout school, so it is important to take steps right away when you notice that your child is having trouble with reading.

A great way to help them improve their reading skills is to use reading comprehension online programs. The key is to use reading comprehension online programs effectively at home so that your child is actually improving their reading skills.

What is reading comprehension?

Reading comprehension is being able to understand and interpret a text. If your child is successful with reading comprehension, they should be able to:

Decode what they read. Meaning they can easily identify the words and sentences.
Make connections between the reading and what they already know.
Think deeply about what they just read and analyze the material.

New readers that are not able to summarize what they have read or think of ways to connect to the reading material might be struggling with reading comprehension.

The best way to improve reading comprehension is to practice reading every day. But, sometimes children get bored with just reading book after book. Today’s young minds need more stimulation than that. That’s where online reading programs can be useful.

What are effective ways to use reading comprehension online programs?

Even just 15 mins of reading time can vastly improve reading skills. Online reading programs such as reading apps can be a great tool to use for improving your child’s reading skills. Here are some ways to use them effectively every day:

Audiobook – Using a reading app as an audiobook gives your child a multisensory learning experience. Children learn in many different ways, not just the traditional classroom format this can help give a different learning experience.
Private Tutor – Hiring a private reading tutor can be extremely expensive. Find a reading app that can do the job at a cheaper price such as Readability. Readability gives feedback to your child as they read and provides you with a progress report just like a real-life tutor.
Reading break – Your child is likely reading traditional paper books in school. For children resistant to reading because of comprehension issues, this form of reading can quickly become boring. Give them a reading break by using a reading app to give them a different kind of reading experience that is more interactive and engaging.
Family game night – Instead of the usual board game, use reading apps for family game night. Everyone has an opportunity to have fun and also practice reading comprehension skills.
Screen time savior – Your child is likely getting a lot of screen time but you can make that screen time educational. Download reading apps onto their tablet to encourage them to spend their time playing reading games to help enhance their reading comprehension skills.
Let them teach you– Keep your child engaged by having them teach you to read by using the reading comprehension online program. Get them to play teacher because sometimes the best way kids learn is to teach it themselves!

Why is reading comprehension important?

Reading comprehension occurs everywhere, not just in the classroom. You use it when you read directions for where to go, street signs, filling out forms, and when you follow a recipe. That is why it is so important for your child to master the skill when they are first learning to read.

Reading comprehension is important because it is the primary way your child will learn in school.

Once your child masters reading comprehension they make the switch from “learning to read” to “reading to learn”. They no longer are learning a new skill but using the skill as a tool to learn.

Mastering reading comprehension means that your child can understand instructions and directions on their assignments. It also means they are able to understand texts and make connections to them.

Studies show that “good” readers activate prior knowledge in order to help them understand texts and make connections to the reading to help create meaning. This is when your child is able to use reading to learn something new and gain knowledge.

If your child is struggling with reading comprehension, they are not able to gain new knowledge because they cannot make connections to the text. It becomes an endless cycle and your child struggles with comprehension and learning in general.

However, your child’s reading comprehension skills can be improved with the right online program. Readability can help your child improve their reading comprehension and their reading in general. The app has multiple features that can give your child a personalized and engaging experience. Give Readability a try and you will see your child’s reading comprehension improve.

Why Is My Child Struggling With Reading?

August 24, 2020

The realization that a child is struggling with reading can take parents by surprise. A parent-teacher conference could have drawn attention to the concerns, and perhaps parents received test scores that showed that the child was reading below benchmark reading standards. Sometimes, however, parents are the first to pick up on a child’s reading struggle.

Difficulty understanding the plot of the story or stammering while pronouncing words could raise concerns for parents who feel that their child should be reading more proficiently. Parents may wonder: “Why is my child struggling with reading?” Parents may feel anxious and push for intervention, but denial of the problem also could be a convenient coping mechanism for parents who aren’t ready to confront their child’s struggle.

Fear of Getting Reading Help

Some parents may worry that their child will be labeled or feel that there is a stigma associated with special education instruction that may be part of an individualized education plan (IEP). While special education might have been stigmatized in the past, today many children qualify for some form of special education assistance. The National Center for Education Statistics reported that in 2018-2019, 14 percent of students in public school received special education services.

Still, not all reading difficulties require intervention, and not all students who read below benchmark will qualify for an IEP or specialized services. For those who don’t qualify for intervention or services in the classroom, the responsibility may fall on parents to help children at home to ensure that they make the strides necessary to increase reading fluency and hit benchmark standards.

Struggling to Help with Reading

Parents aren’t teachers, though. The struggle for parents becomes how to help children, especially if they are reading at a level–or several levels–below peers. How do parents successfully boost a child’s reading fluency? Or ensure that their child can meet the benchmark reading standards associated with their grade-level?

There are many options for parents, but not every option is ideal for each child. Reading struggles can be complex, involving both struggles in comprehension and phonics. Other children may only struggle with one component of reading. However, before parents can address their child’s reading struggle, they have to understand why their child is struggling.

Before starting any at-home strategies, parents should investigate the underlying cause of the reading struggle. So why is my child struggling with reading? Here are a few explanations for reading struggles in children:

Dyslexia, Autism and Hearing Impairment

Dyslexia, autism and hearing concerns could cause a child to struggle with reading. Children with autism may have amazing decoding skills but struggle with comprehension. A child with dyslexia may have multiple struggles that affect reading skills. And a hearing impairment may cause a child to miss sounds and, thus, cause them to struggle with reading or spelling. However, a child’s reading struggle could be unique with any of these diagnoses.

The Mayo Clinic defines dyslexia as “…a learning disorder that involves difficulty reading due to problems identifying speech sounds and learning how they relate to letters and words (decoding).” Mayo Clinic explains common hallmark symptoms of dyslexia that could raise red flags for parents; a child may read below the expected level, have issues with sequences, and can’t visually distinguish the similarities and differences of letters, but there are several additional signs, too.

If a parent suspects that their child may have dyslexia, they should ask for guidance from their child’s pediatrician. Children may need to see other specialists (like a licensed educational psychologist or neurologist) and/or clinicians for the appropriate diagnosis to be made. Autism, too, needs to be diagnosed by a professional, and a pediatrician may help parents find specialists to help with this journey. A hearing impairment can be diagnosed through testing, too.

Inconsistent Reading Habits

A child may struggle with reading if there isn’t enough encouragement to read at home. The more a child reads, the more fluent they may become at reading. This is why many school districts encourage children to engage in nightly reading–typically 20 to 30 minutes each day.

If parents are dismissing this recommendation, a child’s proficiency could lag behind peers. When kids are behind, though, parents can read with them each night. Help them sound out words and ask them questions about the story.

For young readers, make sight word flashcards so a child can easily and quickly identify all their sight words. Then encourage them to find the sight words in the stories they read.

Reading Has Become Boring Homework

Yes, kids need to read consistently. However, years of nagging may have left kids to feel that reading is just another homework assignment. This could lead to them not engaging in the reading assignments or not enjoying the act of reading. This reluctance to read or engage in their assignments can, once again, cause them to fall behind.

A Child Fell Down The Summer Slide

Reading isn’t just something to do during the school year. Kids need to engage in reading (and math!) during summer to keep skills fresh. The summer slide refers to a regression in skills related to the long summer vacation. Children who don’t open a book all summer can easily regress and lose reading skills.

Join a book club during the summer and keep kids reading!

Demographics

Reading difficulties could be tied to socio-economic differences, too. Reading Rockets explains that children may “…have weaknesses in vocabulary, academic language, and academic background knowledge.” That is, children might not have been exposed to as many words or have had the same educational advantages as their peers. This weakness could be related to parents not having time to read to them as well as other socio-economic struggles.

An Easy Way to Help? Use a Reading App.

Parents might not have the time to sit down and work one-on-one with a child. However, parents can utilize a reading app like Readability to keep kids reading and address their unique struggles.

Readability offers a built-in AI tutor that helps children throughout their reading journey. The virtual tutor will gently correct mispronunciations and ask children questions related to the story to gauge understanding. The app advances in difficulty as the child exhibits proficiency so that lessons are never too difficult…or too easy.

Ready to try out Readability? Sign up for a free seven-day trial today and help children become more fluent readers!