App review by Amanda Bindel, Common Sense Education | Updated May 2015
PocketPhonics Stories
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PocketPhonics Stories

Comprehensive, serious phonics program has great supports, some fun

Get it now
  • Download from App Store
Learning rating
Editorial review by Common Sense Education
Community rating
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Grades
Pre-K–2 This grade range is based on learning appropriateness and doesn't take into account privacy. It's determined by Common Sense Education, not the product's publisher.
Subjects & Skills
English Language Arts, Critical Thinking
Price:  $12.99
Platforms:  iPad
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Take a look inside

5 images
Trace letters while hearing and saying the sound.
Practice spelling words by choosing the letters after hearing the sound.
Kids read illustrated books that focus on the sounds they've learned.
Parents can customize letter style, choose upper or lower case, and select print or cursive.
Quizzes check for word recognition and comprehension.

Pros: A good learning approach plus lots of ways to work with multiple users: set up individual accounts for an entire class or multiple groups.

Cons: There's no way to skip content and start students at a more advanced level.

Bottom Line: Though it’s effective, this straightforward phonics review and practice tool could offer more fun.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

Since teachers can set up multiple groups populated with multiple students, this is a great choice for classrooms or for reading interventionists working with multiple schools. Teachers can grant access to view entire classes or only individual students, so interventionists can share reports with homeroom teachers and/or parents. Classroom teachers can have students work through the app at their own pace, individually, freeing up time to pull students in small groups or for one-on-one instruction.

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Standards:

PocketPhonics Stories is a comprehensive phonics program to teach kids to read. It's designed for group or classroom use, with the ability to give parents access to view individual student progress. Teachers set up a class or group and then add each reader.

Once teachers have set up the account, choosing the handwriting style and letter case, kids focus on activities related to a set of six letters at a time. They trace the letters, saying the letter sound, and then build words using those letters. Once they've mastered the letters, they move on to reading short books focused on the letter sounds mastered plus a few sight words. The books include a quiz that tests word recognition, which must be mastered before moving on to the next set of letter sounds. If kids answer incorrectly, a few choices are eliminated and they can try again. They can replay books and letter sounds until they've mastered them.

PocketPhonics Stories is a complete program for teaching kids to read, starting with single-letter sounds and advancing to blends and long-vowel sounds. A teacher can set up an entire class or multiple classes easily. The reports are handy for keeping parents informed about how kids are progressing, as well as for teacher monitoring. Kids earn certificates for completing levels, which may help with motivation. The books are short, though not especially high-interest. While the learning approach is very effective, this isn't a jazzy, fun app like so many others geared toward kids, so it may not be an app kids choose to explore on their own. However, this could be a great choice for early childhood educators or for parents looking for a solid phonics program for young children.

Overall Rating
Engagement Would it motivate students and hold their interest? Is it visually appealing? Would it inspire teachers to try something new or change their instruction?

Though gamified a bit with a star rating and certificates, PocketPhonics Stories is more about instruction than fun; however, the increasing challenge may keep kids engaged.

Pedagogy Does the tool help teachers promote a more student-centered experience? Will students gain conceptual understanding or think critically? Does it deepen teachers’ pedagogical thinking?

Readers advance from single-letter sounds to blends and digraphs and long-vowel sounds to become fluent readers. They'll focus on 12 six-letter sets, practicing reading, writing, and spelling with each set.

Support Can students and teachers get assistance when they need it? Is it created with people of different abilities and backgrounds in mind? Is learning reinforced and extended beyond the digital experience?

Teachers can set up classes online or in-app and receive reports of progress and time spent on activities. Teachers can give parents access to see an individual student's performance, too.

Common Sense reviewer
Amanda Bindel Classroom teacher
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Key Standards Supported

Reading Foundational Skills

  • RF.K.3

    Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.

  • RF.K.3a

    Demonstrate basic knowledge of one-to-one letter-sound correspondences by producing the primary or many of the most frequent sound for each consonant.

  • RF.K.3b

    Associate the long and short sounds with common spellings (graphemes) for the five major vowels.

  • RF.K.3c

    Read common high-frequency words by sight (e.g., the, of, to, you, she, my, is, are, do, does).

  • RF.1.3

    Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.

  • RF.1.3a

    Know the spelling-sound correspondences for common consonant digraphs.

  • RF.1.3b

    Decode regularly spelled one-syllable words.

  • RF.1.3c

    Know final -e and common vowel team conventions for representing long vowel sounds.

  • RF.2.3

    Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.

  • RF.2.3a

    Distinguish long and short vowels when reading regularly spelled one-syllable words.

  • RF.2.3b

    Know spelling-sound correspondences for additional common vowel teams.

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