Common Sense Media Review
By Christy Matte
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Soothing stories for kids who need calm.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 4+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Download
Videos and Photos
Sparkle Stories
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 17 parent reviews
Parents say this mobile app is an invaluable resource for families seeking engaging, imaginative, and educational audio stories that are suitable for children of various ages. Users appreciate the quality of storytelling, the gentle approach to sensitive topics, and the ability to incorporate the stories into their daily routines, with many finding it a perfect tool for screen-free entertainment and emotional development.
- family engagement
- educational content
- gentle storytelling
- age-appropriate material
- screen-free entertainment
- emotional development
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
Based on 1 kid review
Privacy Rating Warning
Privacy Rating
Our expert evaluators create our privacy ratings. The ratings are designed to help you understand how apps use your data for commercial purposes.
Pass
Meets our minimum requirements for privacy and security practices.
Warning
Does not meet our recommendations for privacy and security practices.
Fail
Does not have a privacy policy and should not be used.
Privacy Rating
Our expert evaluators create our privacy ratings. The ratings are designed to help you understand how apps use your data for commercial purposes.
Pass
Meets our minimum requirements for privacy and security practices.
Warning
Does not meet our recommendations for privacy and security practices.
Fail
Does not have a privacy policy and should not be used.
What's It About?
SPARKLE STORIES is a collection of more than 1,000 audio stories that focus on positive themes such as friendship, empathy, sharing, and being helpful. With simple pastel illustrations and a soothing storyteller, they are designed specifically to appeal to kids who are easily overstimulated. The stories are grouped into collections, each of which follow a cast of characters through a year-long set of adventures. While the website allows kids to browse by subject, age (3-9), character, and theme, the app is more restricted. The Storybox feature allows kids (and parents) to save a collection of stories to enjoy later; they can even be downloaded to the device for offline listening. The website also includes activities, crafts, and extensions for many of the stories.
Is It Any Good?
This vast collection of audio stories covers a wide range of topics, while still staying true to the mission of sharing positive messages. Sparkle Stories has some wonderful content, but as most of the stories and audio are provided by David Sewell McCann, it's going to be hit or miss for some families. McCann has a precise, tempered voice that will prove to be soothing for some and grating for others. Likewise, the feel-good nature of the stories may be too much in large quantities for some kids. That said, families who are looking for a repository of kid-friendly content to entertain their kids in the car or on-the-go will appreciate having access to such a large library to choose from. It would help to have a browse feature in the app, especially for parents who are looking for something quickly to entertain a restless child, but those who spend some time in advance-filling their Storybox with stories will enjoy that feature. If you want to find out if Sparkle Stories is the perfect app for your family, the 10-day free trial will let you try it out.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about storytelling in general and the ones in Sparkle Stories. Do you like it when someone reads or tells a story to you? Why or why not? Do you enjoy telling stories?
Many of the stories focus on themes of friendship, generosity, and kindness. Do you have friends who are especially kind and generous? How are you kind and generous with your friends? With your brothers and sisters?
How do you like this app as compared with other apps you could use? If you had to choose the best use of your time on a screen, would you pick this app over other apps on your device for entertainment? Why, or why not?
App Details
- Devices : iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad
- Subjects : Language & Reading : storytelling
- Skills : Emotional Development : empathy , identifying emotions , labeling feelings , Communication : listening , Responsibility & Ethics : embracing differences , integrity , respect for others
- Pricing structure : Free to try (10-day trial then $15/month subscription or $8 and up individual story collections)
- Release date : February 8, 2017
- Genre : Entertainment
- Topics : Adventures , Family Stories ( Siblings ) , Fantasy ( Fairy Tales ) , Friendship
- Publisher : Sparkle Stories
- Version : 1.0.8
- Minimum software requirements : iOS 8.0 or later
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
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