SWR SpellWriteRead Phonograms 4+

No sound?

Has anyone else had issues with the app audio not working on an iPhone? If so, have you figured out how to make it work?

Developer Response ,

I apologize for the issue. Root cause was Apple changed how the silent mode button works on devices. I assume will work with headphones, just not through device speaker. You have two options to resolve. 1. Disable the silent mode: it's the Bell icon in the mini swipe down menu from the upper right corner. 2. Update to the latest app version 2.1

Caution before buying

This is a very expensive app so be cautious before buying. I don’t think there is enough information in the description to accurately understand what you’re getting before buying. If I could return it I would because unfortunately there is only one “game,” if you can even call it that, and there are no instruction for how best to use the app.

Essentially it is just buttons that tell you the sound a letter or multi letter phoneme make and the rule that goes with it. And unfortunately you cannot have it only say the short sound or the long sound of single letters. It always tells you all the sounds it makes which in my case is unhelpful because my son knows that “i” is i when it says it’s name but struggles with the short sound “i” as in “itch” when reading. So he can “play” the game and get the answer correct because he can identify visually the letter i because it also says its name. As well, there is nothing visually interesting or stimulating or challenging about the one “game.” At the bottom it simple counts how many questions you’ve answered and it is discouraging for a child because if you get an answer wrong it goes back to 0. We haven’t figured out yet if there is an end to the game or any kind of incentive to finish it. Every time it goes back to 0 my son just wants to give up. This is basically just an electronic drilling tool. Not fun or helpful in my opinion. Feels like a waste of $17 after tax.

Great for beginners and reviews

I am a new homeschool mom of a fifth grader that has had to do eye therapy to correct binocular vision and help with tracking. He has only been exposed to this program for his fourth grade year so I am hoping that this app will help me learn how to continue to help him grow and make reading and writing more fun and enjoyable. I do hope that the advanced phonograms will be added and maybe some activities, too. I would have rated 5 stars had the advanced ones been on here and/or their been examples with each sound.