Some kids are born to be bookworms—they quickly learn how to read and begin devouring every book, magazine, and newspaper in sight. But unfortunately, learning to read is not easy for every child. Many children struggle to keep up with their classmates in reading, which can lead to significant setbacks.

If your child is struggling to read, it’s important to provide them with the tools that they need to blossom into a better reader. Thanks to technology, parents can help their children develop crucial reading skills using smartphone and tablet apps.

Here’s what you should know about the best apps out there to help your child to read:

What Age Should A Child Be Able to Read?

Some children begin reading at the age of four or five, but in general, most children do not learn how to read until they are six or seven years old. But this doesn’t mean that your child will pick up a book on their sixth or seventh birthday and start reading fluently. Kids will first need to reach a number of reading milestones along the way.

Some of the basic reading skills that your child should develop at every age include:

• Age 1-2
  • Point to familiar objects
  • Scribble on paper
  • Turn the pages of board books
  • Identify objects when asked
• Age 3
  • Listen to books being read aloud
  • Recognize the letters in their name
• Age 4
  • Learn how to rhyme
  • Write their names
  • Recite most of the letters of the alphabet
  • Begin matching familiar letters with their sounds
• Age 5
  • Pair written and spoken words
  • Write familiar letters, words, and numbers
  • Read simple, familiar words

If your child is not meeting these milestones—or is not reading at grade level—reading apps can help.

What is the Best App to Teach A Child to Read?

There are countless reading apps out there. Some are designed solely to help kids build their vocabulary or improve their reading comprehension, whereas others aim to help children with phonemic awareness. However, Readability is the only app that helps children develop all of these crucial reading skills.

This app will read a passage aloud to your child, then use responsive speech recognition technology to listen as your child reads it aloud on their own. If your child makes a mistake while reading the passage, the app will instantly provide feedback so they can learn as they go.

The app also features Interactive Voice-Based Questions and Answers (IVQA) to keep your child engaged as they read. The app will ask your child questions related to the passage they are reading and listen as they respond to evaluate their reading comprehension.

Kids can use the app independently, but parents won’t be left in the dark regarding their progress. Parents can log in to their dashboard to see an overview of their child’s reading progress, including their accuracy and comprehension scores.

Together, these features provide your child with a unique experience that is similar to working one-on-one with a reading tutor.

What Are the Benefits of Using A Learn-to-Read App?

There are a number of different benefits to using a learn-to-read app to help your child improve their reading skills, including:

• Accessibility: Apps are accessible on smartphones and tablets, so your child can use them whenever and wherever you go. This makes learn-to-read apps much more accessible than private reading tutors.
• A diverse selection of reading materials: Kids often lack the motivation to read because they aren’t reading anything that interests them. But fortunately, learn-to-read apps allow kids to choose from a wide variety of reading materials.
• Kid-friendly: Your child won’t have any trouble figuring out how to use these apps—even if they aren’t quite tech-savvy yet. The apps are designed with kids in mind, so they can use them without their parents’ help.
• Results: Learn-to-read apps can help your child improve upon their reading skills so they can keep up—or speed past—their classmates.

These are some of the many benefits to allowing your child to use learn-to-read apps at home.

Give Your Kids the Tools They Need to Succeed

If you’re ready to unlock your child’s reading potential, download the Readability app on your smartphone or tablet today. Take advantage of the free 7-day trial now so you can put your child on the path to becoming a strong reader.