Literacy

WriteReader Teaches K–4 Children to Read by Enabling Them to Write Their Own Digital Books

• By Richard Chang
• 09/28/16

A learning platform that’s relatively new to the American market teaches K–4 children how to read by enabling them to write and publish their own digital books.

WriteReader is geared toward kindergarteners, primary school children and home users, and is designed to be accessible on all browsers and devices from practically anywhere. The Copenhagen, Denmark-based company has also created an easy-to-use iPad app.

WriteReader requires a free, 30-second signup for teachers, which allows them to edit children’s books on the go and share the results with parents. Once the teacher sets up a class, s/he may invite students by providing an automatically generated class code.

Students can start writing on topics based on their interests and experiences and use downloaded images or clip art from the WriteReader site. The content from kindergarten through third grade is aligned with American Common Core standards. The platform provides lesson plans and suggestions on subjects to write about, as well as brainstorming and writing tips.

After the books are created by students, they can be published online or physically into a kids’ library and be shared with family and friends.

WriteReader was developed in collaboration with primary school teachers and with input from researchers specializing in reading, literacy and digital learning, the company said. The initial version was financially supported by the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation.

To date, WriteReader is available in more than 40 countries and children worldwide have created more than 1 million books with the platform.

To learn more or to start a free trial, visit writereader.com. A free trial is also available on iTunes, as well as the full version for $9.99. In two months, WriteReader will charge $79 per year for a class of 35 students, with a 30-day free trial. An international children’s library can be viewed on WriteReader’s kids’ library site.