For first and second grade, about five to eight, and for any child learning to read German.

Which reading method does it follow?

The syllable method most German primers use: syllables coloured blue and red with arcs. The letter order follows a typical first-grade primer, but you can tick any letters, so it fits any school and any primer.

The child plays entirely in German, with a German voice. The grown-ups corner, where you tick the letters, is in English.

Does it remember progress?

Yes, on this device. A word read right first time three times in a row counts as sure and comes back less often; words that keep tripping your child up come back more.

No. Games for children never show ads.

Rupert liest

Kids

About Rupert liest

Learning to read in German, the way first grade teaches it. A grown-up ticks the letters the class has done, and Rupert only gives words made of those, newest letter first. Words come in syllables, coloured blue and red with arcs underneath as in the primers, and every syllable can be tapped to hear it. Find the syllable you hear on the syllable carpet, read a word and show its picture, and flash-read words that get quicker as she does. Spoken in German, and it remembers which words are sure and which are still tricky.

Rupert liest is for children learning to read in German at school. A grown-up ticks the letters the class has done so far, and every word Rupert gives is made of those letters only, so there is nothing to guess: everything on screen can be read. Words are split into syllables, coloured blue and red with an arc under each, the way German primers do it, and any syllable can be tapped to hear it. In Silben the child hears a syllable and finds it on the syllable carpet. In Wörter they read a word and tap its picture. In Blitz the word flashes up and is covered by a cloud, and the time it stays up gets shorter as they get quicker.

Tips

Tick the letters as the class does them. The newest letter comes up most often, so the game practises what was done at school this week.
German is read in syllables. When a word is hard, tap the first syllable, then the next, and let your child put them together out loud. The whole word is never said before it is read, so it cannot be guessed from the sound.
Sit with your child and let them read the word aloud before tapping a picture. Reading aloud to a person is still the best practice there is.
Five minutes a day does more than half an hour on Sunday. A round is eight words.
The grown-ups' corner shows how many words can be read with the letters ticked, and which ones are still tricky. Read those together on paper too.
Single sounds like m or s are never played on their own: a computer voice says them badly. Syllables like Ma and Mo are spoken instead, which is how the syllable method teaches them anyway.

Questions

What age is it for?: For first and second grade, about five to eight, and for any child learning to read German.
Which reading method does it follow?: The syllable method most German primers use: syllables coloured blue and red with arcs. The letter order follows a typical first-grade primer, but you can tick any letters, so it fits any school and any primer.
Is it all in German?: The child plays entirely in German, with a German voice. The grown-ups corner, where you tick the letters, is in English.
Does it remember progress?: Yes, on this device. A word read right first time three times in a row counts as sure and comes back less often; words that keep tripping your child up come back more.
Are there ads?: No. Games for children never show ads.