LightSail is an amazing reading app for all ages!
Community Review for LightSail
My Take
Overall this is a fantastic program to help students grow an incredible amount. I have had students grow 3 grade levels in their reading ability. Their vocabulary has increased and their ability to answer a prompt is amazing now. Grading the short answer is so incredibly easy for me since they give me suggested responses for all questions. Students have places to reflect, question, and discuss as well. It's a great program any way you slice it!
How I Use It
My students read at least 10 minutes a day on LightSail. The set up is easy and they take a quick assessment to figure out their Lexiles. From there the students can choose from thousands of books, but if their lexile is below level they are limited to 'Power Texts' that are at their level. Every time they read they are given CLOZE, multiple choice, and short answer questions that are specific to the text. They cannot go on reading until they complete the question. Their lexile changes often based on their reading. Students have chosen amazing classics (and loved them!), and new books on the market. They earn badges for their success often to keep them motivated. The dashboard for students is being reimagined, so that will be better soon. Right now it doesn't offer a lot of good data that is helpful to the student. But it will.