We all know how technology can be a total time & mind trap for little ones – once they get on it, there is a fight to get them off. When I found out about Reading Rainbow, I was really impressed with the selection of materials for all ages and interests.
So how does it work?
It is a free app (with in-app purchases – which I will get to later) – you can sign up 1-5 children up within your family.
Reading Rainbow is set up as a series of islands for you and your children to enjoy. When we first started our subscription, there were only 4 islands and currently there are 7 – Action, Adventures & Magical Tales, Genius Academy, Awesome People, National Geographic Kids, Animal Kingdom, My Friends My Family and Music Mountain. On each of the themed islands there are TONS of great books and video “field trips”. There are a few videos available in the “free” settings, but the great videos are only for subscribers. Of course…
The books are well-written, beautifully illustrated, all-age appropriate choices. With the different islands, you can easily find lots of great choices for your little one. The app is easy enough for kids as young as 3 or 4 to choose books on their own.
When you choose a new book, it has to load the first time (it goes quickly), then it goes into your child’s virtual backpack. Each backpack holds five books at a time. If you want to download a sixth book, you simple go into the backpack and drag a book into the return slot. This helps to ensure that your kiddo doesn’t max out the memory on your device as well!
When you open a book you have a choice to have the book read to you, or you can read it to your child/ they can read to themselves. Throughout the book there are areas where you can interact with the illustrations and help bring the book to life. The narrators are fantastic and very easy to listen to and understand. When you complete books, you receive stickers, which you can use to decorate your islands inside a virtual scrapbook.
The video content is fantastic and the guide LeVar Burton (yes… the original guy from Reading Rainbow… and Star Trek – The Next Generation) takes you into submarines, to zoos and on lots of interesting adventures!
Free vs. Subscription
The app is free, but a free account allows you to download only 5 books total… ever… and you have only a few video “field trips” to view.
The subscription is offered through a monthly $9.99 or you can pay for a six-month subscription for $29.99 – which is only $5 per month. Considering the number of books that are available, it is a pretty great deal and cheaper then late fees at the library (at least at our house it is!).
Parental Dashboard
The app collects information as your child uses it – so you can see how much time they are spending on reading and the books that they are enjoying. I don’t use this much – I am just happy that the kiddo likes this almost as much as Angry Birds.
Summary
Reading Rainbow is a great app for kids 3 – 8, lots of new content all the time. The subscription is not cheap, but in my opinion well worth the money considering the available content!
This busy Mom | Partner | Marketing Specialist spends her home time creating gluten free meals, DIY goodness & taming her must-watch/read list at The Persnickety Mama.
