Learn to read with SUPER WHY!'s iPad app

It's amazing how time flies; three years ago, my boys were just learning how to read, and now they're making their way through Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's stone!  Such is the power of a good book -- a great story and a great set of characters will inspire any child to read.

Three years ago, a different set of characters inspired my boys to read:  the quartet of literacy superheroes of PBS Kids' Super WHY!  Watching Super WHY! episodes and completing a week's worth of Super WHY! Literacy Activities really helped them get started.

I was lucky to have Super WHY!  to help my boys, and parents of beginning readers these days are even luckier.  Not only do they still have Super WHY! show, they also have the Super WHY iPad app to make learning to read even more fun.

I received a copy of the app on my iPad to review, and even though my kids are too old for the app now, I wanted to give it a shout out because it's so similar to the lower-tech (but just as effective) Super WHY! printout activities that my boys enjoyed 3 years ago.  And since it's an iPad app, not a sheet of paper, when kids play any of the 4 games on the app, it's almost like interacting with the Super WHY! show.

Kids can help Alpha Pig find his way home by tapping on the letter needed to complete a word.  When the word is completed, kids earn a virtual sticker for their collection.


Kids work on spelling skills with Princess Presto, tracing letters on the touchscreen and making objects appear by touching on the letter sounds that Princess Presto makes.

Wonder Red helps kids put words together by asking them to identify rhyming word groups.

When kids correctly identify the word that rhymes with the other words in her Wonder Words Basket, they get a vitrual sticker for their collection.

The final game in the quartet helps kids put it all together in a story, as Super Why asks them to select the word that completes the sentence so that the story makes sense.

The Super WHY! app is a fun, educational way for kids to pass the time on a road trip, and plane ride, or (if you happen to be in the UK like we are) on a rainy, grey summer day when they can't get outside.  The only possible downside in a world full of free apps is the price tag -- $3.99 -- but for the next few days, you can get Super WHY!  app for $1 off at the app store. 

PBS KIDS’ SUPER WHY! app, is available at a special price in the App Store from July 2nd through 9th. Starting July 2, parents can download SUPER WHY! for iPad for $2.99 ($1 off) and SUPER WHY! for iPhone/iPod touch for $1.99 ($1 off).


Disclosure: I received a free download of the app to review. The views and opinions expressed here are my own.
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