Show HN: Ello (YC W20) – AI-reading tutor for kids that works with real books
This looks pretty cool! A few questions (specifically for early years):<p><pre><code>  - 5 books seems quite limited, especially for early years where shorter books are better. My kid currently reads 1 to 2 &#x27;readers&#x27; per day at home, outside of school. He not only gets bored reading the same book multiple times, but like most kids he ends up memorising a bunch of it so it&#x27;s less &#x27;reading&#x27; and more &#x27;remembering&#x27;. How do you plan to give kids ~30+ books a month?
  - There&#x27;s a lot of nuance in learning to read - my kid would take the easy way out if he could. The easy way out when we read together is to try with a word once, struggle, ask me what it says and move on. Depending on the context we do that sometimes, but most of the time we spend time dissecting it, comparing it to other words, understanding the context etc. He doesn&#x27;t have the self control (do any kids? lmao) to do that by himself, or to be persistent enough. With support it&#x27;s great - how do you plan on working through that problem, especially being able to dissect and compare previous experience?
  - I&#x27;m sure other parents can relate, but when it comes to learning to read, a lot of support is in keeping the child focused on the task. We generally like trying to read in a distraction free environment - after the novelty of Ello has worn off, have you seen any negative impact of having a screen with you constantly while you&#x27;re learning to read?
  - Depending on what you research, there&#x27;s a general sentiment around &#x27;talking through the book and understanding it&#x27; is key to help children develop reading skills. It&#x27;s less &#x27;learning the sounds words make&#x27; and more &#x27;reading for information&#x27;. Early readers attempt to do this with basic questions like &quot;what color was the ball&quot; or &quot;where did the dog sleep&quot;, but i&#x27;ve never had much luck with those. We tend to have more success in talking about the book as we&#x27;re reading. How do you plan to support that kind of learning ecosystem?
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Again, this looks very cool! The above are just questions I&#x27;d ask myself before I&#x27;d buy one and &#x27;outsource&#x27; some of our reading work, so just interested.