From Tangible to Augmented

Abstract

This paper presents an augmented reality (AR) system that supports early reading and spelling acquisition of English for children. The design of the AR system was based on and extends our prior tangible reading system called PhonoBlocks. In this paper, we discuss why and how we extend the work from PhonoBlocks to an AR system design. The goal of our system is to teach children explicit letter-sound correspondences. Two key design features of our system, which are different from other systems, are the use of augmented dynamic colour cues and 3D physical lowercase letters that help to draw children's attention to how letters' positions in words change letter sounds. Unlike our previous system, our AR system uses off-the-shelf technology so it can be easily scaled and distributed. We discuss the advantages and opportunities for our AR solution, and outline our future plans for evaluating this system.