Boo helps children to practice on Swedish language sounds and pronunciation.
Observe! Before you consider buying this - please try the lite version which is free. The Lite version contains fewer sounds but the functionality is about the same.
This is Boo!
Boo helps children practice the language sounds that the child needs to get better at. He is meant to attract spontaneous imitation and repetition of Swedish language sounds and simple syllables. At the same time, he strengthens the useful awareness of what happens in the mouth when you make sounds, by clearly showing how to make the sounds. (This is called phonological awareness and is documented to be important for learning to read and write.)
The app is developed by a licensed speech therapist. The children can use the app by themselves or together with an adult. By the child using several senses at the same time to imitate and rehearse, it becomes easier to overcome obstacles and learn to sound correctly.
Who can Boo help?
The app is developed for children between 3 and about 6 years old who have, or would need to have, contact with a speech therapist or speech therapist due to difficulties with pronunciation. The app helps and motivates children to:
• practice one or more individual language sounds
• practice distinguishing between voiced and voiceless consonants
• practice putting sounds together and harmonizing them into simple syllables, or
• train the connection between the letters and their corresponding language sounds in early reading training.
Boo can be a stepping stone to better pronunciation and learning to read!
Boo can also be helpful for those who are learning Swedish, for example newly arrived children or adults.
What can be done?
Sounds found in the full version are the consonants P B T D K G S F V M N NG L J H, three variations of the R sound, the consonant connections SP ST SK and the vowels A E I O U Y Å Ä Ö. Boo sounds and shows with his mouth how to make the sounds individually or together as simple syllables. Boo also shows which consonants are voiced by visualizing vibrating vocal cords. The child learns by playing, experimenting, listening and observing.
You can record and listen to yourself along with Boo, and have him speak slowly, repeat or just do the sound movements without sound. For children with difficulty concentrating, Boo can nudge them from time to time to keep them engaged in the activity. Behind an adult lock are instructions and useful tips from the speech therapist, as well as settings such as the option to hide/show sounds that Boo should be able to say.
In a small minigame, you can practice identifying different language sounds when Boo makes them, either auditorily and visually (with sound on) or just visually (sound off).
Read more about the app at www.bildligttalat.nu.
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ATTENTION! There is also a free version of the app for those who want to try it before buying it.
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Boo is developed based on speech therapy and therapeutic experience with children with verbal dyspraxia or phonological language disorder. The app has been tested by 8 children aged 3-6 years who attend a speech therapist. The tests have shown great motivation for play training and spontaneous repetition of sounds in a way that proved difficult before.
The app is developed and designed to be used on a tablet as such is easier to handle for small children's fingers. However, it works well technically even on smaller screens, but it can then be difficult to hit certain buttons. Please try the lite version first! And feel free to rate and comment!