Common Sense Media Review
By Liz Panarelli
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Very cool app asks questions, creates stories from answers.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 7+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Download
Videos and Photos
StoryBuilder
What's It About?
In Levels 1 and 2 of StoryBuilder, kids respond orally to a set of questions about an image. The app presents questions in text and audio, and after each, kids see a sentence starter to help them form a response. In Level 3 of StoryBuilder, kids see an image with no question prompts; therefore, they can create any story they wish. Custom settings are available to choose the level and to set up how long the question or answer prompts appear on the screen. Kids can record their responses, as well as replay and save them as a story.
Is It Any Good?
STORYBUILDER does a great job achieving its aim -- helping kids formulate stories about a picture. The multiple levels and settings make it very customizable, so parents or teachers can tailor it for a kid's particular needs. However, the cartoons lack diversity -- almost all of them depict white characters -- and there are a few small typos. The feature to customize the app so that kids see a picture and greeting is nice, but kids will almost definitely need adult help to use the app to its full potential (or even just find the play button from the settings screen). Still, overall it's a great app for developing (and saving, sharing, and showing off!) storytelling skills.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Set up the app for your kids based on their specific learning needs.
Use StoryBuilder as a jumping off point for writing practice. Have your kids write down one of their recorded stories and develop it by adding more details and events.
App Details
- Devices : iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad
- Subjects : Language & Reading : speaking , storytelling , writing
- Skills : Thinking & Reasoning : analyzing evidence , making conclusions , prediction , Communication : conveying messages effectively , listening , speaking , Creativity : imagination , making new creations
- Pricing structure : Paid
- Release date : March 7, 2011
- Genre : Education
- Publisher : Mobile Education Store LLC
- Version : 1.6
- Minimum software requirements : iOS 4.1 or later
- Last updated : November 11, 2020
Did we miss something on diversity?
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