The other day Grasshopper Apps sent me an email letting me know that it’s I Like Books app is free to download for a short period of time. Of course, I immediately downloaded it.
The app contains 9 books all titled I Like something (one is I Love). The I Like subjects are animals. boats, cats, colors, dogs, drawing, fall, Grandma and I Love Dad. Each book allows the user to select either being read to or to read on one’s own. With either selection one turns the page either forward or backward by swiping the page or tapping on the arrow. A third option is Autoplay, whereby the books is automatically read to the child and the pages turn without clicking on the forward arrow or swiping the page. The Settings option allow for sound, swipe, word highlights, story highlights, and picture highlights to be turned on or off. One can also customize the story by recording one’s own storyline or changing the text. This option is incredible because it allows the speech path to change the story to reflect a specific goal. For instance, if the speech path would like the focus to be on the pronoun “he” rather than the “I” in the story, she can record and/or type in what she would like the storyline to emphasize. Customization can be erased and a new version made.
The stories are represented by photographs with clear and appealing images. Most of the pages are divided in two, each with its own storyline. The pictures complement on another. Some offer contrasting concepts others expand on a concept and some are a starting point for discussion of the two pictures. The vocabulary in the pictures is extensive without being overwhelming. I can see this app being used to target pronouns, verbs, opposites, similarities, vocabulary, descriptions (color, emotions, size and more), location, associations, reading, writing, and spelling. The customization feature allows a child to record or type her version of the story as well. I am impressed with this app’s versatility. It has the “wow” factor.
Suggested uses: pronouns, verbs, opposites, similarities, vocabulary, descriptions (color, emotions, size and more), location, associations, reading, writing, and spelling.
Ages: 2-7 years
Cost: free for a limited time. I don’t know what the price of this app will be but most Grasshopper apps are $.99.
Rating: +++++
Website: www.grasshopperapps.com
This app is now one of my favorites
About the Author: Mirla G. Raz
I am an Arizona licensed speech pathologist and am certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. I have been in private practice for over 30 years working extensively with children who have speech and language problems. I received my Master’s degree from Seton Hall University in New Jersey. After graduation, I decided that I need sun and warmth and so headed south to work for the Volusia County Schools in Daytona Beach Florida. The next year I moved to California where I was offered a job working for the Los Angeles Unified School District in the severe oral language handicapped program. My next move was to UCLA where I worked in the department of Clinical Linguistics at the Neuropsychiatric Institute. In 1981, I moved to Arizona where I went into private practice. It gives me tremendous satisfaction to know that I have helped hundreds of children gain normal speech and language skills.
