Hooked on Phonics Review Best Reading Apps for Kids 2024

if you're as old as me you remember when Hooked on Phonics was something your parents had to order over the phone you might even remember the commercials on TV and have to admit was surprised when found out the company was still around but you no longer need to make phone call and while you'll still get something in the mail it's mostly all done online now but will your child really learn to read in 30 days let's review the Hooked on Phonics reading program and decide if this is good program to help kids learn to read or if it should have just stayed back in the '90s with flannel shirts and baggy jeans so what is hopon phonics all about well it's learn to read app designed to teach reading to kids from ages 3 to 8 and if you sign up you'll get access to two additional programs hooked on spelling and hooked on math Hooked on Phonics does not offer free trial but they do have an offer where you can get your first month for just $1 and that includes your first practice pack which will come in the mail I've got link for you in the video description if you need it and you could even get that dollar back if you end up not liking it in the first month with their 30-day money back guarantee here is the practice pack that they sent me for the first month got this workbook got these two cute little books here and even got this set of flashcards there were also some stickers but they've since gone missing if you do decide to keep the program after that first 30 days is up it will cost $15.95 month for up to three children once you sign up you will need to download the app you can download an app from the Microsoft store or the App Store to use on desktop computer or you can download the app on any iOS Android or Amazon device you'll also need to download the separate hooked on spelling and hooked on math apps if you you plan to use those we'll take look at all three apps but let's start with Hooked on Phonics when you signed up they should have asked your child's name and reading level so there should already be one child on the account when you download the app I'll show you how to add additional children when we take look at the parent settings little later in the video but if you open up the app your child can just get started right away without any additional setup needed if you click this blue button here you can change between the different modes pre-reader is where your child will start if they're still learning about letters and the sounds they make they recommend this level for kids ages three and four there are 12 steps in this mode and once they complete those they'll move on to the learn to read mode learn to read is the level for kids who already know the basics the steps are divided up by age and grade level so steps 1 through six are for kindergarten or ages four and five steps 7 to 12 are for kindergarten through first grade or ages 5 and six steps 13 to 18 are for first grade or ages six and seven and steps 19 to 30 are for second grade or kids ages 7 to 8 there's also hooked on spelling here which seems to be included in the Hooked on Phonics app without me having to download anything separately I'm using this on Windows desktop so this might not be the the case with all devices finally there is hooked on math over here which it does tell me I'll need to download separate app for so when your child is ready to start practicing they can just click the play button here or choose one of these options below I'll show you some examples for both levels but let's start with the preader level up top here are the steps to the preader level you can move forward or back in the steps by clicking up here if you want to do lesson over click on the letter below the lesson let's take look at one of the lessons now the letter Help the pals decorate their doors drag the object into the door that makes the beginning sound of the word mut mut you got it sun sun you got it sock sock you got it wow all sorted good job the letter so that's what the lessons in this level are like your child can also choose from one of these options here the first is Library this will bring them to an area where they can choose book from each step in the program these books also appear at the end of each step there's also section here for Games music and Rewards now let's look at the learn to read mode the setup is exactly the same but the lessons are going to be different instead of just focusing on individual letters and their sounds this part of the program will move on to working on actual words let's take quick look words that end in drag the egg into the nest to make word pen Jen Ren then ban great job that mircat is always yoking around underneath here they have the same options to choose from library games room music room and Rewards next is hooked on spelling hooked on spelling introduces your child to common spelling patterns through fun activities and games giving them chance to practice their newly learned spelling skills the program is very similar although there is just one option click play to get started listen up now you're going to hear more words listen carefully to the beginning sound in each word then choose the box where the word belongs if you want to hear the word again choose say it Ready Mop bat said bin man last before we get to the settings and additional features let's look at hooked on map this is math program for kids ages 3 to 9 that is included in your subscription for this one had to download separate app but everything looks pretty much the same you can choose between numbers and counting math fundamentals elementary math and core math here let's take look at lesson four five and six four coconuts five coconuts six coconuts four legs five legs six legs four flowers five flowers six flowers four shells five shells six shells listen to the number and look carefully at the Nets select the one that shows the correct number of fish and select done which net shows six fish excellent work you found it which net shows five fish excellent work you found it which net shows four fish excellent work you found it you star fish numbers down here is the free play area with couple of games to play and clubhouse to decorate so hopefully now you have an idea of how the Hooked on Phonics program looks from the child's perspective but we do have few more things to go over first let me show you how you can change the settings and add additional children to your account in either app click up here and enter your birth date to get to the parent settings you can actually just enter any date that makes you old enough and it works under account you can manage your subscription and change your password if you want to manage your subscription it's going to bring you to their actual website to log in not the app had some trouble with this login at first had to click the new user forgot password button and wait for the email to reset my password but eventually got it to work and just want to knowe you'll only have access to this if you sign up on their website first and not through the app have the link for you in the video description to where you can sign up for the 30 days for $1 and get those additional print materials in the mail honestly don't know how it works if you download the app first so from this Account dashboard you can track the shipment of your print materials view any additional purchases you've made update your account info change your payment info or cancel your subscription and view special offers I'll show you more about the additional offerings in just minute back in the app learner profiles is where you can add up to two additional children to the account you can also edit your child's info here in the phonex app you can change the game room visibility check off preader or learn to read and unlock all activities you can also view your child's progress through the program okay so now that you know what the Hooked on Phonics program looks like let's just go over few more important details first just want to let you know that if you prefer to get the hooked on phics program in print form instead of or an addition to the app they do still offer that you can find it on their website under shop all products this is not the same as the app I've just shown you these learn to read kits include either DVDs or online access to video lessons which you get on this website this is not the same as the Hooked on Phonics app that's included with these other bundles see how these look totally different than the app so if you're looking for this option be sure to pick one that includes the learn to read product and you can actually watch these videos here for free without even signing up just click down here on free learning materials from their website you can also order additional practice packs math practice bundles and book bundles okay so now that we've seen the program we still need to talk about how this is going to help your kids learn to read so here are some things you need to know first the lessons each take about 20 minutes they start with video or song to introduce the concept then they use games and activities so your child can practice what they learned your child will also get some Writing Practice in the practice pack that's included with your subscription they'll also put together what they've learned by reading online books and the books that are included with the practice pack of course at the pre-reader level you're going to need to read those books to them finally they'll celebrate success with inapp Rewards stickers and certificate but how does this help your kids learn to read what will they actually learn well here is what hooked on phonic has to say in the pre-reader section your child will learn all of the names and sounds for each of the letters of the alphabet they'll also get practice writing these letters so by the time your child finishes the pre-reader program they should know all of the letters and the sounds that they make and be ready to move on to the learn to read program in the learn to read program children will progress to putting letters together and learning the sounds of word families and they'll also be introduced to site words that don't follow the normal phonics rules once they Master the short vowel sound word families they'll move on to more advanced phonics skills so that's everything wanted to show you today about the Hooked on Phonics program so now let me tell you my thoughts on it I'll start by telling you what like about it first like that it's simple for your child to follow unlike some other popular learning apps that can get super complicated with all the activities with Hooked on Phonics the lessons are very straightforward and easy to follow just click the play button and get started also like that they include the practice packs so your child can practice writing and reading in real life not just on screen and like that it teaches using phonics think the emphasis on site words and lot of early reading programs can actually make it harder for kids to learn to read my 9-year-old learned to read with phonics and think it's really important that kids learn the sounds of letters and letter groups before trying to read individual words now for what don't like about the program well for one think it's really confusing that they have two separate programs and I'm honestly not sure if you get more with the oldfashioned learn to read program than you do with the app just don't know if the app is all you need if you know what mean when my 9-year-old was learning to read we did did whole bunch of different things including print materials apps and games so don't think you can just sit your kids in front of this program and call it day but think it's definitely great supplement to whatever offline curriculum you may be using also don't like that there aren't really any analytics to track your child's progress the way some other apps have you can see which Step they're on but that's about it so wish there was little bit more data that they could share with you if you have any questions about the hooked on phonic program let me know in the comments and I'd be happy to answer and if there are any programs that you'd like me to cover in an upcoming video I'd love to hear your suggestions thank you so much for watching