Are you using the Letter Tiles app and need a few tips for using it more effectively? We’ve got you covered! Watch as Shanna demonstrates our top 11 tips in the video or continue reading below!
There are three ways to place letter tiles in the word-building area, so take your pick! You can drag the tile from the tile storage area and drop it in the word-building area, you can swipe the tile, or you can simply tap the tile.
There are two ways to move the tiles around the word-building area. Use one finger to move an individual tile or use two fingers to move an entire word.
To remove one tile at a time, drag or swipe the tile down toward the tile storage area. To remove all the tiles at once, simply drag one tile up to the top of the screen.
The first way to find a tile in the tile storage area is to swipe left until you find your tile. To avoid grabbing a single tile, use two fingers on the screen as you scroll. You can also narrow your search by using the category tabs at the top of the Tile Storage Area to find specific tile types. For example, if you’re looking for a Vowel Team tile, just touch the Vowel Team tab to find your tile.
When you touch and hold a letter tile, you are given two options. You can capitalize the first letter on the tile (ear becomes Ear) or you can hear the different sounds the phonogram on the tile makes.
Are you using an older edition of All About Reading and the lessons don’t quite match up? Or maybe you prefer to use the reading version of the syllable tags instead of the spelling version. Choosing All Tiles from the subject drop-down menu gives you the option of using all the tiles from all levels of both programs.
To eliminate the possibility of adding unwanted placeholder boxes or moving tiles around during blending exercises, click the lock icon in the navigation bar above the word-building area.
If your child is having a hard time spelling a word, narrow his options by placing a limited number of letter tiles in the word-building area for him to choose from.
When you tap the screen in the word-building area, a light gray box will appear. Each box is a placeholder for a single phonogram and can be moved around just like a regular tile. These Elkonin boxes (or sound boxes) can help children segment words into their individual sounds, a critical skill for spelling. The gray placeholder tiles can be helpful in many situations, such as the lesson in which your child must choose whether to use C or K at the beginning of a word.
On the other hand, if you or your child finds it frustrating to have these placeholder tiles appear when touching the screen, you can turn them off in the settings menu.
When it’s time to divide a word into syllables, you can easily pull the word apart by touching your fingers on the two tiles where you want to split the word and dragging outwards.
Afraid you’ll forget some of these helpful tips? Don’t worry—there are videos right on your app to remind you of all these helpful features! Simply go to the Settings menu and click on either Overview or Advanced Features to watch the videos. To exit the video, touch your screen and find the X button in the upper right corner.
Have you discovered a tip for using the Letter Tiles app? Please share in the comments below!
Nina Carpenter
says:Wondering if anyone uses this App while working with kids remotely.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceNina,
Students who work with remote tutors would need to have their own access to the Letter Tiles App, as would their tutor. This way the student can practice spelling concepts as needed and teachers can demonstrate as needed as well.
Bethany
says:Hi! I just downloaded the app, but whenever I touch a letter tile, the app exits. I tried restarting my iPad mini after downloading. Any ideas why it might be doing this?
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceBethany,
I’m not sure why this is happening for you, but we will help you make the app work. What iOS is your iPad using?
Maria Sonnenberg
says:thank you for the video! I’ve been using the app for a while now, and my kids have figure out most of the tips. We love it! it make them want to do they work. I has also helped me a lot with some phonograms since English was not not my first language! I also love that they can capitalize a letter if needed, and that its easy to bring with us if we do school on the road!
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceYou’re welcome, Maria! Glad to hear that the app is working out so well for your family.
Tricia
says:A note for people who haven’t yet purchased the app: we got the kindle version and use it on multiple 7″ fires. All 3 of my kids love it, even the toddler. It was an amazing investment… but. On that particular device the space to build words is limited to 2 lines of 15 letters each. It works, and it works well, but I’m probably going to end up eventually purchasing the app for a different platform to go with a larger tablet that I have already been saving for. If you have tablets from multiple platforms and only want to buy one version of the app, go with the one for the device with the biggest screen.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceThank you for this, Tricia.
Yes, smaller tablets do limit the space available for building words. Since All About Reading and All About Spelling ask for just one word at a time, these smaller tablets work fine. However, many children enjoy building many words at once, or phrases, or even sentences. Larger tablets allow for more of this kind of play.
Linda Pepperman
says:The tile app is perfect for reading and spelling at all levels – I work with dyslexic students – it is visual, easy to understand but space saving as well. I teach students to independently find their lesson and they live watch their progress of added letters. Not only are their lessons enhanced but but their independence on an electronic device. The fun crackling sound when moving the entire board group of letters off the board produces a giggle from the students and from me as well.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceLinda,
I hadn’t thought about how choosing each new lesson on the app would be encouraging for students, but now that you mention it I can see how it would be. What a lovely unexpected motivator! Thank you.
Lee Ann
says:Thanks for all the suggestions and tips. I’m new to the app so I can’t wait to try it out.
Shawna
says:Great info thanks
Kelly C.
says:What an informative video. Thank you!
We haven’t purchased the App, yet.
Originally, we thought we would just keep using the tiles however after traveling a little recently we are rethinking this as travelling with tiles and a magnetic surfaces is a bit cumbersome. The app is so practical on many levels and I think my tech savvy children will enjoy it all the more.
We’ve been using using “All About Learning” materials for almost 2 years and we couldn’t be happier!
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceThe app does make traveling much more convenient, Kelly. I’m pleased to hear All About Learning Press materials are working out so well for you and your family. Thank you.
Sunrose
says:Love the app! It’s a game changer! We can do our lessons at anywhere and anytime without worrying about losing any tiny tiles!
Merry
says: Customer ServiceAwesome! So glad it’s so useful for you, Sunrose! If you haven’t already, we’d love it if you reviewed the app on the app store to help others know what to expect.
Amy
says:We are excited to get started using the app!
Merry
says: Customer ServiceHave fun, Amy! We’d love to hear what you think of it.
Erikamari M
says:This is so cool! I had no idea about this app…seems like something my 1st grader would love. Would you say that this needs to be done with the curriculum or can it be played on its own as well?
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceErikamari,
You can use the Letter Tiles App more generically and not just with All About Reading or All About Spelling. Check out these tutorials which might give you some ideas for how you could use it:
Basic Features
Advanced Features
Hopefully this will give you a feel for whether the app would be useful for your particular situation. If you have additional questions, please feel free to ask.
Jess
says:Love this app – thank you!
Merry
says: Customer ServiceI’m so glad to hear that you enjoy the Letter Tiles app, Jess! If you haven’t already, would you mind rating the app in the app store you purchased from? Your rating will help other customers know what to expect, and we’d really appreciate it!
Amanda Bowen
says:I knew some of these but the ones I did not know are making the app so much more useful! Thank you.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceYou are welcome, Amanda! I’m pleased you found this helpful and useful.
Catherine McCausland
says:Great ideas! Thank you
Dawn Mendonca Meskil
says:This is great, thank you!
Dawn
says:Thank you for such useful directions on using the Letter tiles app. Most apps do not have directions which can be very frustrating.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceYou’re welcome, Dawn! It can be difficult to know all the little tricks and helpful actions in some apps, but we hope to make it clear and easy so that you can use it fully.
Sabrina Kent
says:love the app….so easy and don’t have lots of clutter
Ina
says:Thank you for the tips. We love the tiles app. We can read and spell wherever we want without having to worry about losing tiles.
Srishti Arya
says:I tutor a girl who is in pre-school. She used to be a shy kid, but now she has considerably improved. The resources, like tactile cards, playdough, building blocks, among many others, have made the teaching process easier. My kid (I tend to think of all of the students as my kids because I don’t just tutor them and focus on their course but also want them to engage willingly, develop and be the best version of themselves. I just want them to put their best foot forward in everything) does not only love engaging in the process but also finds learning so much more fun. She loves to color, paint, paste, cut and draw. She is learning to draw and I couldn’t have found better activities to engage her into. Thank you for existing and making the learning process extremely fun!
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceSrishti,
Thank you for sharing how wonderfully your student is doing! And I know what you mean about her being your kid. I think teachers must feel that for them to be good teachers!
Lauren McCray
says:Didn’t know this app was around. So cool!
Colleen
says:I’m excited to try this out. Thank you.
Elizabeth M
says:Does this work on any IPad?
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceElizabeth,
The app supports all iPads from the iPad 2, released in 2011, to current models that are updated to iOS 9.3 or later. You can find more information in the FAQ on the Letter Tiles app page.
Angela K
says:We are trying to download the APP onto a generation 4 (2013) iPad. The APP will not download because it requires iOS 11. I thought we needed at least 9.3 or later. Super bummed.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceAngela,
Yes, I am very sorry about that. At the end of June, Apple stopped supporting iOS 9.3. Unfortunately, that means we won’t be able to continue supporting the app for older devices (like iPad 2-2011 and iPad 3rd Gen-2012) if there are issues in the future. We are supporting all iPads released in 2013 to current models that are updated to iOS 11 and later.
Since you have a Gen-4, could you update it to the current iOS? It sounds like you may be able to.
Amanda
says:Wow. We already have tiles and a white board (and the habit of using them), but that app looks really well designed! That’s so great for school-on-the-go or smaller spaces!
Vikki
says:This app looks great. I think I will have a play with it and see how I can make use of it for small group learning.
Nancy Barton
says:Thank you for sharing this fantastic information!! Wish they had this when my kiddos were little!
Melissa B
says:I had no idea you had a letter tile app!
Amy Gomez
says:I can’t recommend this curriculum enough! It truly has made all the difference with my girls. Such a blessing!
Michelle Newton
says:My child is in 7th grade and I realized she wasn’t spelling as well as our 5th grader. AAS has helped her to hear and see the different letters and sounds.
Chee Kong Kan
says:We are using AAR with our dyslexic child with success. In fact we’ve given our level 1 to a friend with an autistic child. AAR is easy to use and saves us from a lot of work which allows us to concentrate on teaching the child.
Buhle
says:It looks like it will be a useful tool especially once we start learning how to spell with my child. Thanks.
Mardi Bailie
says:This will most definitely appeal to my three boys. We are on an incredible homeschooling journey and I would love to get them all onto this program, as we have now researched many and this is definitely the one we have picked.