News-O-Matic is an interactive, paid subscription-based newspaper for elementary age kids. Five news stories -- from world political news to celebrity stories -- are posted on the News-O-Matic app's main page each day. Stories are written by experts, and a child psychologist reviews the articles to ensure emotionally safe content. This app comes with more features then just news articles. It includes word games, puzzles and audio to listen to the articles. It also includes a map so that children can see how far from home a news story takes place. Each news story comes with three different reading levels.
News-O-Matic is an excellent news source for kids at home or in the classroom. Kids can read about real-world news such as politics and news of the economy, as well as stories with lighter topics like entertainment, celebrities, or sports. When you sign up, your first 30 days are free. You can get a feel for the type of articles available before subscribing. If you decide to subscribe you have the option of paying monthly ($1.99) or yearly ($19.99).
News-O-Matic won the Teachers' Choice Award in 2015 and was voted One of The Best News Sources for Kids by Common Sense Media.
Name of App: News-O-Matic
Audience: elementary age children
What the app does and why we recommend it: Allows children access to quality news articles that are written for them to understand and enjoy.
What platform we used to test the app: iOS
Cost (At time of review): Free for app with 30-day free trial; monthly subscription fee ($1.99) or yearly ($19.99)