No more struggles with reading—kids can now become masters of story creation with Ello!
Ello, the AI reading companion has introduced a thrilling new feature that allows children to take part in creating their own stories. This innovative addition encourages kids to express their creativity and actively engage in their reading experience, making storytelling more enjoyable and interactive than ever!
The new feature, called ‘Storytime,’ encourages kids to unleash their creativity by choosing from a variety of settings, characters, and plots. For example, children can create a story about a hamster named Greg who performs in a talent show in outer space!
With Ello, kids have a wide range of prompts to choose from!
The interactive platform features a bright blue, friendly elephant AI companion that adds beauty and fun to Ello. Kids can read aloud while the companion evaluates their speed and provides corrections in a very interactive way. Plus, if they’re unsure about any word, kids can get extra help by clicking the question mark icon!
Ello also offers two reading options for storytelling. One mode features more interaction between Ello and the kids, while the other is designed for younger readers, allowing Ello to handle most of the storytelling.
Ello believes its Storytime feature stands out with its advanced AI system that adapts to each child’s responses. It focuses on teaching critical reading skills through phonics-based strategies, claiming to outperform OpenAI’s Whisper and Google Cloud’s speech API.
In addition to storytelling, Ello offers weekly lessons to help kids improve their skills. For example, if Ello starts with the sound ‘ch,’ the AI gradually builds on that by introducing words like ‘chair’ and ‘cheer.’
In today’s advancing era, security concerns are a priority. That’s why Ello’s engineering team dedicates significant time to testing, ensuring that all stories are safe and suitable for children. Similar to Instagram, which recently implemented AI restrictions to ensure users are 18 or older, Ello is also focused on maintaining a safe environment for children
Currently, children can choose from a predefined set of story options to spark their creativity. However, the company plans to expand these choices in the future.
Catalin Voss, co-founder and CTO of Ello:
“If a teacher creates an open story with a child, they provide the [building blocks] through interactive dialog. So, I imagine it would look quite similar to that. Kids prefer some guardrails at some level. It’s the blank paper problem. You ask a five-year-old, ‘What do you want the story to be about?’ And they kind of get overwhelmed.”
Initially, Ello was available only on tablets, including iPads, Android tablets, and Amazon devices. Now, it has broadened its reach by launching its iOS app!
Ello offers an affordable pricing plan, allowing kids to enjoy its features for just $14.99 per month. Families receiving government assistance can access it for only $2.99 a month! Plus, Ello partners with low-income schools to provide incredible opportunities at no cost.
To top it off, Ello has recently made its library of decodable children’s books available online for free!
