Wonster Words · Reviews
What families say about Wonster Words
Reviews our players' parents left on the App Store and Google Play, grouped by what they are about. Lightly edited for length; the words are the reviewers' own.
Last updated
They ask to play it
The thing parents mention first is that their child chooses it.
Where to start with reading at home →
You forget it is even learning
“It has many fun ways of learning. Sometimes you forget it is even learning because it is so much fun.”
Easy and fun
“The content is well thought out. My son has a hard time staying interested in most programs. This one makes learning easy and fun.”
He dreads school work
“He dreads doing ‘school work,’ but the night we downloaded the app he ended up ‘playing’ on it for over an hour. I love that it progresses with your child. It's helped him with his reading and sight words tremendously.”
She doesn't know she's learning
“Cute and entertaining. My daughter doesn't know that she's learning while having fun. I find myself wanting to play it in my spare time, when she's not looking.”
She chooses it over TV
“My 3-year-old will actively choose to play this rather than watch TV now. She loves making the words and then getting to see the little cartoons. It has made a huge difference in a short time.”
Satisfied dad
“To my pleasant surprise, I'll find my 4-year-old checking in on Wonster Words every now and again to see what new words await him. This app makes learning fun for him, which is all I can ask for.”
Every morning while I do her hair
“My daughter was really struggling at school because she finds letters boring. But she loves this app and plays with it every morning while I do her hair. She's learnt loads.”
Never gets old
“My daughter started playing Wonster Words when she was four, and a year later she still begs to get on my phone and play it. It has helped her pronounce words, spell, and recognize a word in a group of words.”
We have skyrocketed in reading
“We have skyrocketed in reading with my 3 boys. They always want to play, and I see so much progress in very short amounts of time.”
Zero ads
“Mom loves there are zero ads. Kiddo loves this app and says it is a fun way to learn.”
Honestly I couldn't be happier
“My 3-year-old is a Wonster Words addict and honestly I couldn't be happier. The ‘fun’ is actually him spelling and learning phonics.”
Phonics and sounding out
Blending sounds into words is the skill parents came looking for.
Phonics guides and word lists →
My son is a super star
“This app has improved his reading so much. He struggled with letter sounds and blending — he rocks now. The turnaround on his grades is amazing.”
Absolutely amazing
“My 5-year-old has had trouble grasping the concept of reading. He has been using Wonster Words each night and has started to spell on his own. We are sounding out words together. He looks forward to playing the games and even reminds me of his practice time.”
He doesn't even know he's practicing
“This app has been a consistent go-to for my son. He started using it at 2.5, and he loves all of the activities within each learning thread. He's gained additional phonemic awareness and doesn't even know he's practicing.”
Great app for kids struggling to read
“My daughter is very articulate and great in math. However, she was guessing and falling behind in sounding out and recognizing proper spelling. This app is helping with words and sounds. She enjoys the games and it keeps her going.”
Preschooler's pal
“Wonster Words has been great for my preschooler. He enjoys it so much and has learned how to read many three-letter words.”
It's really helped him sound out words
“My first grader loves this app. It's really helped him with sounding out letters and words better.”
My 3 year old was reading after one session
“This app has instantly turned my 3-year-old into a reader. He's instantly able to read and recognize short words.”
He finds words around the house
“My 3-year-old loves Wonster Words. He enjoys playing the games and listens to the sounds for letters. He finds words around the house and tries to sound them out. I love that this game engages him even when he isn't playing.”
He's written out words with his magnetic letters
“My 3-year-old son loves this app. After a few weeks with it, I go in his room to see he's written out words with his magnetic letters — flat, cat, bat, mad, gas, and the newest word tonight, jump. He also points out words he recognizes in books I read to him. He can sound out words.”
Taught my 2 year old to read
“We bought this app for my son when he was 23 months old. Since then we periodically play the game together. He just turned 2, and he is reading short words by sounding them out. He walks around the house and identifies letters on things he sees, and then sounds them out.”
Less of a battle
“My 7-year-old is loving this learning game. He's having difficulty with phonics in school right now, and I've noticed since we started using Wonster Words he's doing much better. It's less of a battle to get him to sit down and practice his sounds and words.”
Our three year old understands phonics
“He sounds out all the words, and as he gets older he can just say the words.”
Very effective
“Great game. Has taught my 3-year-old a lot about letter sounds and combination sounds.”
He reinforces what I'm teaching
“My 4-year-old really enjoys this app. It reinforces what I am teaching him about phonics and sound blending.”
Mommy, phantom is a ph word
“My 4-year-old twins really like the videos, and they are constantly telling me examples they learned — ‘Mommy, phantom is a ph word!’”
She's able to spell at words and sh words
“My three-year-old loves it and is able to spell at words and sh words because of this app. It's really cute and very helpful.”
Great way for kids to learn phonics
“My son loves this app. It's a wonderful way for kids to learn the digraphs — blended letter sounds. They're having fun and learning at the same time. They love the animations that follow each word after it's spelled.”
He's learning blends right now
“My three-year-old loves this. He's learning blends right now, and enjoys practicing the sounds on this app. He likes the silly monsters too.”
Great word families
“My 3-year-old daughter loves this. I love that it does phonics — letter, chunk and blend sounds — and letter names.”
Best app for emergent readers
“This is the best app I have found yet to teach the basic skills that help kids decipher words. It helped my kids develop an understanding of the alphabet, word families, and phonics. The best part is that my kids love this app and can't put it down.”
He amazes me
“My 3-year-old loves this app. It is his favorite thing to play. He amazes me by knowing words and their definitions. He also loves to practice on his own now by coming up with words that have the same sounds.”
He's doing these exact sounds in school
“My six-year-old is doing these exact sounds in school and was having a hard time until I downloaded this app. He learned so fast because it was so fun for him he didn't even realize he was learning. When I saw him picking this app in his free time, where he could play all the other non-learning games, I was in awe.”
Letters and letter sounds
The alphabet, letter names and the sound each letter makes.
Great support for my 4 year old
“My 4-year-old has little interest in learning his letters and sounds. So far, this has been a great way to sneak in some extra practice. I was looking for something for phonics and not just letter names. This fits the bill perfectly.”
She has almost all the letter sounds memorized
“My kids love this app and have learned so much. My 6-year-old was having a hard time learning the sounds each letter makes; since using the app she has almost all the letter sounds memorized.”
In one month, at 2.5
“This app taught my son all of his letters and their sounds in one month when he was just 2.5 years old. Now I'm using it for my daughter. I can't recommend this highly enough.”
He learned his letter sounds better than from me
“My son is 2.5 and he has been using it since he was 1, and loves it. He learned the sounds of his letters from this app better than from me.”
It's generalizing
“My daughter loves it and now associates sounds with letters outside of the game. It's generalizing!”
After one week she's finally getting it
“I have been working on letter recognition with my three-year-old since she was two, and after one week of playing Wonster Words she's finally getting it. This game is great — educational and entertaining.”
He identifies letters perfectly
“My 3-year-old son identifies letters perfectly. He wasn't really interested in learning, only wanting to play as kids his age normally do, but this app has helped him tremendously and he absolutely loves the activities.”
She could barely recognize letters
“My daughter could barely recognize letters when we first played this, but after a few days playing she was able to find all the letters needed for the words of each level.”
Both the letter names and the sounds
“This is a great app to help children supplement their learning. I love that it helps with both learning the letter names and sounds. It's a fun app and I would recommend it to those with children who are learning phonics or just need extra help.”
The letters say their name and their sound
“One of the best educational apps I've downloaded. The games are fun, and I love how the letters say their name and repeat their sound over and over when you hold the letter down. My 2.5-year-old loves it.”
Spelling
Spelling, pronunciation and what the word means, together.
Spelling guides and word lists →
Super spelling
“My son has improved his spelling and pronunciation considerably in just a few weeks.”
He's been struggling with his spelling
“I have a second grader and a third grader. He absolutely loves this. He's been struggling with his spelling and with how to spell and pronounce other words, and this has been a huge help. They have sentences to describe the word and everything. The mini-games are amazing.”
He doesn't realise he's learning
“This app has really helped my son with his spelling, with reading words and with recognizing words. He loves learning through this app and does not realise he is doing so.”
The best spelling game in the world
“My 8-year-old son loves it and calls it the best spelling game in the world.”
Finally a great word app
“This is one app I'm finally truly happy with. My son is 5 and will pick this app over any game. It truly has it all — spelling, definitions, pronunciation. It's a must for young kids.”
Spelling and pronouncing it correctly
“My little boy loves this educational game so much. He even downloads it on his own, from one mobile to his very own tablet. I highly appreciate it as well, because not only does he learn how to spell words but at the same time how to pronounce them correctly.”
Spelling and vocabulary both improved
“My grandchildren spend hours on this app. Their spelling and vocabulary have both improved tremendously.”
Her own spelling list
Parents typing in the week's school spelling list and the app building the practice around it.
How to teach spelling at home →
Custom spelling lists for the win
“Wonster Words spelling has been a big help for my 3rd grader prepping for weekly spelling tests at school. I enter the spelling list as a custom list at the beginning of each week and he can practice at his leisure, while I can check his scores for daily progress.”
He is actually passing his spelling tests
“Best game to help my son with spelling. The feature that allows you to add specific lists of words has made it so he is actually passing his spelling tests. This has been a game changer for us. He's also reading better because of it.”
Wonster Words is amazing
“Absolutely love this app. I love how I am able to personalize my son's spelling list to the words he is doing in class. Highly recommend Wonster Words.”
Editable spelling list
“My first grader is able to practice her spelling words in a fun, interactive way. Being able to create my own word list was essential for our needs, and we are now using it this summer for review.”
Love the new feature
“You can now add your own list of words for them to work on. Finally! This is such a great feature and is really helping my 1st grade struggling reader learn her weekly words. And she's having fun and enjoying it.”
Great for kindergarteners
“We use it to help my little one practice his kindergarten spelling words. He loves it. Not only does it help with his weekly spelling words, but also the sight words he's learning in class.”
Spelling is fun
“I love this for my child's spelling words. I am able to add our own words for her to practice and she enjoys the games.”
Sight words
The high-frequency words a child is expected to know on sight.
He now knows sight words up to third grade
“My kindergarten son is learning sight words and staying entertained during the day. He now knows sight words up to third grade.”
It has increased his sight words so much
“An amazing app that my 4-year-old loves. He asks to play it and I gladly let him. It has increased his sight words so much.”
We use the sight words the most
“This has many fun games and learning activities. We use the sight words the most, and my son loves the extra activities with puzzles that teach vocabulary. The animations and interactive elements make it fun and engaging.”
I can see an improvement
“My grandson loves this app. It is helping him get more interested in sight words. He gets on it every day, and I can see an improvement in his words and his reading.”
1st grader loves it
“Great vocabulary and sight words. It's entertaining as they play and learn.”
Keeping up at school
Grade level, standardised tests and the first weeks of kindergarten.
Is my child on track with reading? →
He finally is getting it
“My 5-year-old son was struggling with letter sounds in kindergarten. We couldn't find an effective way of helping him that would keep him engaged — we're talking scoring red in standardized testing, and us parents being told he needed serious intervention. Then Wonster Words. His teacher was like, ‘I don't know what you're doing but he finally is getting it.’ All I did was change what he was absorbing. This app is fun, engaging and hilarious. My husband and I have already told so many friends about it.”
From a low reader to grade level
“Just in one month I watched my daughter come from a low reader to at grade level now. She has an A in reading after being in 1st grade one month. She loves this app.”
The teacher asked what we were doing at home
“My 3.5-year-old son asks to play this app all the time. He is in preschool, and about a week after he started using this app the teacher asked what we were doing at home, because he is doing really well with recognizing his letters.”
Already prepared for kindergarten
“This has really helped my daughter. She's going to kindergarten next week and is already prepared.”
Favorite
“My 5-year-old daughter just started kindergarten and this app has really helped her improve on the things they are learning. She has so much fun with it. I enjoy watching her learn while she plays.”
She barely even knows she's learning
“I can't begin to express how much I love this. My granddaughter loves it more, of course. She's been at it for an hour and shows no sign of stopping. She barely even knows she's learning. She's 6, but I started her out on the level for 4-year-olds — I wanted her to experience some success before it gets challenging. I think it was a good choice.”
She had fallen behind
“With the pandemic my daughter had fallen behind and still didn't know how to read, but this app has helped her a lot.”
Can play independently
“My 20-month-old does the books, my 3.5-year-old can play most games unassisted, and my 5.5-year-old can play independently. They love it.”
A description and a video of each word
“I love that my son is learning to spell and getting a description and video example of each word. He has been using this app since he was 1.5 and he is now 2.5. Everyone thinks he is in elementary school because of his use and understanding of vocabulary.”
Speech and language
Late talkers, speech delay, apraxia, and vocabulary that arrives with the words.
He has started talking so much
“My son has started talking so much since he started using Wonster Words. He absolutely loves it.”
Within a week
“My 2-year-old went from very few words to actually speaking and spelling words within a week.”
His vocabulary has exploded
“My 4-year-old loves this app. We have tried quite a few learn-to-read apps and programs and he hasn't been engaged or excited to do them — it was always a chore. Wonster Words he asks to play, and he's learning without realizing he's learning. He also had a mild speech delay; within a few months of using this app his vocabulary has exploded. He went on his kindergarten tour yesterday and so many teachers commented on his vast vocabulary.”
He has apraxia of speech
“My toddlers absolutely love this app. They have learned so much so quickly. One of our kids has apraxia of speech and this has helped him a lot, because of the prompting to repeat out loud.”
The amount of words he can articulate
“My 2-year-old loves this. I have seen an improvement in the amount of words he now can articulate. I will recommend this app to my friends, and to parents who have toddlers with speech delay.”
He's learned new sounds the first use
“I have been using this for my nearly 3-year-old with a speech delay. He's learned new sounds the first use. It's actually really cute, and not super annoying like some children's apps.”
Helping him speak and read
“My three-year-old has a speech delay and this game is helping him not only with speaking but also teaching him to read. He laughs often and it really holds his attention.”
Non-stop chatterbox
“My three-year-old was slow to articulate many words. Speech therapy was helpful, but he seemed bored with the simplistic repetitions. We got this game to work with him at home on pronunciation and alphabet recognition. He quickly learned all the sounds of the alphabet and the letters, and a whole pile of vocabulary words, and loves doing all the different activities. He's four now — a non-stop chatterbox with a huge vocabulary. He uses all the app words in his pretend play and storytelling.”
He sees the letter C and says cat
“My son is turning 3. He doesn't speak very well but can comprehend very well. This app has helped him with learning letters and sounds in a very short time frame. He sees the letter C and says ‘cat.’ He sees the letter M and says ‘monkey.’ That was within 2 days.”
He speaks sentences now
“My 3-year-old loves this game. Very educational. My son learned his alphabet and learned the meaning of words. It really increased his vocabulary. My son speaks sentences now, and you can understand what he is saying.”
A vocabulary delay, and he is very visual
“My son has a vocabulary delay and he is very visual. This app is awesome because it has the visual ‘movie’ component to every word, as well as an explanation. He loves playing it and loves the games that go with some words.”
She can express herself clearly
“This tops the list for apps I have purchased for my daughter, who is now 4. Despite her speech being behind, her vocabulary of words is brilliant because of Wonster Words, and she has been able to use the words to express herself clearly. The animations for the words are always a good follow-up.”
Her first year of preschool
“My daughter has been using this app since she was 2 years old. Her vocabulary, comprehension and sentence structure started to astonish people during her first year of preschool. She is excited during the games. She loves phonics, learning the alphabet, and is proud of new vocabulary words she incorporates into her daily conversations. Sometimes while chatting with her I have to remind myself, ‘She is only 4 years old.’”
Autism, ADHD and learning needs
The families for whom this is the app that finally worked.
Learn in ways I couldn't reach her
“My daughter is autistic. She's been using this app since she was a toddler. She's non-verbal, unable to talk in full sentences. This app makes her shine — she laughs and lights up and is able to complete tasks. This educational app has made my daughter learn in ways I couldn't teach or reach her.”
The best app we have found
“My son loves this app. We have had it for 5 years and he still plays it. In fact, he is mostly non-verbal and it has been the best app we have found to encourage him to say words. It is a winner for autism parents everywhere.”
Breakthrough
“Our 2-year-old autistic son absolutely loves this app and plays it every day. Just yesterday he found the letter Z on the fridge letter magnets and said ‘Z!’ He only uses about 5 words consistently, so hearing him voluntarily speak a new word and identify a letter was so amazing.”
It makes me want to cry with joy
“My son is a non-verbal autistic child and this app actually gets him to do his letter sounds, and he tries to make word sounds. It makes me want to cry with joy.”
Great autism app
“My 2 children with autism love this app. They learn so many new words — not just how to say them, but what they mean, how to read them, and how to spell them. They love the cartoons that go along with it. It really makes learning fun.”
I have seen my child blossom
“I have seen my child blossom with this app. He is even saying some words from it. He has autism, so to find an app that helps with his speech — it's interactive, so it keeps his attention while also helping him develop his vocabulary.”
Unbelievably helpful
“My son has autism and has been playing this game for years. He loves it. Not only are the characters really cute and fun, but it keeps him engaged and entertained. He loves to learn. His vocabulary has increased since using it and he's doing better with sounds. He goes to speech therapy and OT weekly, and this is an added bonus for him.”
6 year old with ADHD
“My son has really bad ADHD and, for the life of me, I cannot understand his ADHD brain, so we clash a lot when I'm trying to teach him. But this game has literally saved me so many frustrations for both my son and me.”
He takes his own initiative
“My son absolutely loves this app and actually takes his own initiative to play, read and work on his morning reading with this app instead of watching videos.”
He flaps his little heart out
“My 9-year-old brother is autistic and way behind the norm for his age, which is fine, but every little bit helps. This app is great because it's showing him how to spell it, how to say it, and then demonstrating and defining it. He has already replayed each -at word at least three times. He flaps his little heart out at this app.”
Dyslexia help
“My 10-year-old has dyslexia and benefits from alternative methods of learning phonics. Wonster Words has been helpful in reinforcing and introducing letter sounds and blends. He enjoys playing the games and interacting with the letters.”
Willing to work with letters on paper
“My son loves this game, and it quickly taught him that each letter makes a different sound. He has some developmental delays, and difficulty differentiating sounds, so it is absolutely amazing how much this game helped. He now is willing to work with letters on paper. The animations are a great length for holding interest and explaining the word.”
Teachers, SLPs and therapists
The people who do this for a living. Every credential below is the reviewer's own words.
Great language building app
“As a Speech-Language Pathologist I find Wonster Words highly effective in teaching letter sounds and recognition. The repetitive sounds and quirky intonations are sure to engage all learners.”
An amazing educational app
“I'm a new speech therapist working at a pediatric clinic and this app has been my saving grace. I love it and my kids love it.”
Great phonological awareness
“As a mother and a speech pathologist, I could not love this app any more. My son, who is also on the spectrum, started reading at the age of three and I think this application helped foster that skill.”
A must have for speech therapists
“This app is a must have for speech therapists. The kids love the interactive content.”
The best
“As an in-home SLPA this app has been a life saver. No need for physical flash cards or books — this app has it, and it's perfect. It keeps the user engaged when working across all areas.”
I use it for speech and at home
“This app is great and very interactive. It works well with different ages and the stories are animated, which is even better. I would highly recommend it. I use it for speech, and for my own children at home as well as at work.”
I am a retired Speech-language Pathologist
“I am a retired Speech-language Pathologist and I provide trainings for preschools. I love this app for vocabulary building, early reading and spelling. It really is fun for kids from ages 2 to 8.”
Each of my students loves this app
“Lots of fun and very engaging. I have been using it for remote learning and in-person tutoring. Each of my students loves this app.”
Retired reading teacher loves Wonsters
“As a retired teacher who looks for the educational value in each app my children want, I was delighted by their choice in Wonsters. From its clever name — thank you for helping my children sort out their m/w confusion — to its playful content that teaches phonics and blends while expanding their vocabulary, Wonsters keeps my children laughing and learning all at the same time.”
Makes learning fun
“I am a preschool teacher and have also taught infants and toddlers, so I know that learning in a fun way is the best way. This app is perfect. My two-year-old plays it with ease and asks for it every day, and I don't mind letting her use it as she is learning very important skills for reading. She is learning letter sounds, letter recognition and how sounds work together — and she doesn't even know she's learning. That's the best part.”
Learning made fun
“My grandsons love this app. They giggle and laugh out loud as the characters illustrate the meaning of each vocabulary word. As a retired educator, I recognize the value of this program's components. As the child drags letters into the appropriate place to spell the vocabulary word, the letter's phonic sound is heard. Once spelled, each vocabulary word is demonstrated through the app's hilarious characters.”
Motivating
“I am thrilled that a student of mine is drawn to this app. It is great to encourage his phonics and speech practice as he engages in and repeats letter names and words. He needs all that practice and is motivated by the errorless-learning puzzle format and humorous games.”
Great for adaptive learning
“I love this game for my special needs students. It works on literacy and OT.”
A more efficient way to learn to read
“I just can't believe that he would pick up the sounds so quickly. The other day we were at the pool and he told me, ‘Look mommy, t, t, t,’ as he was pointing at the depth sign. I love that he is learning to sound out the letters. I've worked at a Montessori school, and to me that is a more efficient way to learn how to read.”
Try it with your own child
Every review above was left by a family who found Wonster Words on their own. It is free to download on the App Store and Google Play, with a 7-day free trial.
Try Free