I made an App. Teach your kids to read! Tell your Cousins!

A personal update here wrt the /now section of this little blog. Some earnest and shameless self-promotion, just like Tim Berners-Lee intended. About 18 months ago, in a fit of passion, I left my job to pursue something I care a lot about: software that streamlines parent-led early literacy instruction, while minimizing active screen time. The app is LettersPractice.com. It has a pretty generous non-expiring free tier, and then a $20 one-time purchase. Very roughly speaking, the phonetic rules of English are simple in isolation but complex in concert. This concert-complexity is difficult to manage, as is pacing of the introduction on new facts. Introduce things too quickly, and a learner confuses things, becomes overwhelmed, and crashes out in frustration. A horrible experience for budding readers! The basic operation of my software is to involve the parent in the introduction of new ideas manage the release of new information according to observed mastery make the known / unknown…