Nothing lights a child’s imagination like reading, and few things are better at fostering literacy in young ones than having someone read along with them. The Sparkup Magical Book Reader, from Sparkup Ltd., allows children the experience of reading along with a parent or guardian, even when said grown-up isn’t around. The Sparkup clips onto the back cover of any book, at which point readers can record themselves narrating the front cover, and then the interior pages aloud. The device synchs up the audio and images together, so that parents and children can pause, turn back a page, and otherwise proceed at their own pace.
When attached to a book, the reader can hold itself upright. Meanwhile, the few buttons—ones for recording, stopping, and volume control—are located in such a manner that they are fairly intuitive. During my demo, the Sparkup seemed smart enough that it could tell my different books apart from each other, and even after spending just a short time with it, I could see the versatility this kind of technology offers. Sure, you can utilize it as a surrogate during reading time, but in theory, a parent could also record a special message, or play music in the background to accompany their reading. They can even pre-record themselves, upload the file via the device’s USB port to their computer, and then email it to a child who’s far away.
For those using the reader for the first time, it has spoken directions that are straightforward and easy to understand. In addition, the Sparkup Magical Book Reader has pre-recorded books available for download, which only adds to the ways it can enhance reading time. Sure, every kid eventually reaches the point where they have to start processing the written word all by themselves, but devices like the Sparkup Magical Book Reader help make the journey there as memorable as possible.
