Reading is an important skill that young children often learn in school. However, because of the coronavirus outbreak, millions of children are now without the appropriate reading instruction they would usually get from school. Homeschooling is now the new normal, but many parents are lost with how to help their children improve their reading skills. Luckily, the best homeschool reading program can be accessed easily through a tablet or even smartphone.

Reading apps can help parents teach their children to read at home and improve their reading skills. There are tons of reading apps to choose from so sorting through all of them can be overwhelming. 

Which homeschool reading program is best?

Finding the right homeschool reading program can be difficult. With so many options out there, it can be difficult to know which apps actually work and which ones your child would best benefit from. The best way to pick reading apps is to first know what your child already knows, what they should know, and what they need to improve.

Your child’s teacher should be your primary contact and informant when it comes to maintaining their education right now. They know exactly the level your child is currently reading and know what they should be trying to achieve. Their teacher likely has some curriculum in place that you can build upon so make sure to ask them for their advice and work with them to build the best homeschool reading program that you can.

For the most part, the number of sight words and how quickly your child can read might be an indicator for their fluency and reading comprehension. These are the reading skills you want to target at home while your child is not able to be in school. Here are some of our favorite apps to use for your homeschool reading program: 

What is the best app to improve vocabulary?

Vocabulary is a huge part of being able to read. Increasing your child’s vocabulary will help them to read quicker and easier. Vocabulary building starts with sight words. Sight words are the most commonly used words in a language such as “he”, “and”, “stop”, etc.

A child’s bank of sight words should increase about 100 words each grade. So, by the end of first grade your child should be able to identify over 100 sight words and by second grade they should be able to identify over 200 sight words. At the end of third grade, they should be able to identify over 300 sight words!

Sight Words– The Sight Words app is great for children of any reading level to help increase their sight word and vocabulary knowledge. The app is available at different reading levels. Your child can learn and have fun at the same time as the app uses word games to facilitate learning.

What is the best app to improve fluency?

Improving vocabulary is just one step in improving reading. Your child should also be working on their fluency. Fluency is being able to read as naturally as possible. What does that mean? Basically, your child should be able to read in the same manner and speed that they talk. They should not be stopping frequently to identify or pronounce words.

Readability– This app is great for improving your child’s fluency because it offers them a model for reading and also gives them feedback to help them improve. Readability essentially acts like a private reading tutor for your child. The app uses A.I. and speech-recognition technology to help your child improve their reading. The app has a collection of original stories that is updated frequently to provide your child an endless supply of reading material.

Your child can choose to either have the app read the story to them as they follow along, or they can read the story aloud while the app listens to them. As they read, the app will identify errors they make and give them instant feedback for improvement. This app can help your child increase their fluency and in turn helps them improve their reading comprehension.

What is the best app to improve reading comprehension?

Reading comprehension is the ultimate goal of learning to read. Once your child is able to master this skill, they make the switch from “learning to read” to “reading to learn”.

Reading comprehension is an important reading skill that will help them all throughout school. It is essentially being able to understand a text and make connections to it to their prior knowledge and experiences.

With improving reading comprehension, your child is not only able to understand and analyze a text but they are also able to create their own stories and thoughts based on the text.

StoryKit- Your child will improve their reading comprehension and their creativity with four classic stories and fun illustrations. Once your child is done reading the stories they can then create their own edits and changes to the story such as adding their own narratives or illustrations.

Homeschooling your child during this time can be difficult and stressful. Using a homeschool reading program with apps can help them learn to read but also have fun and make actual improvements . Also, utilizing apps like Readability that give you progress reports can help you see if and how your child is improving. This can help you make sure your child is on track once they are able to go back to school.