Clue Catcher Strategies for Using Context Clues

Reviewed by SmartAppsForKids: 4 Star Review! “Bottom Line: This app teaches the all-important skill of understanding word meaning through context.”

Reviewed by OMazing Kids: “I love the clean intuitive interface, scaffolding, wide range of vocabulary, arrows to easily skip ahead or go back, ability to set up multiple users…”

Reviewed by Speech Musings: "I love the app for many reasons but the biggest one is that it actually teaches and doesn’t just test (like many apps)."

Reviewed by Teachers With Apps: "...fills a void of helping students develop vocabulary skills through context clues and inferencing."

Reviewed by BestAppsforKids.com: "Clue Catcher helps teach a much-needed skill and it does so in a quality way."

Reviewed by BestAppsforKids.org: "Clue Catcher is a strong tool for home and classroom use."

Clue Catcher is a wonderful tool for parents and teachers to help teach the inferencing skills necessary to use context to define unfamiliar words. Clue Catcher provides multiple opportunities to learn and practice the strategies necessary to be successful in this area to improve overall comprehension. Students will learn how to identify the words and phrases that are meaningful and contribute to a better understanding of an unfamiliar word’s meaning. This time-saving application covers vocabulary across elementary and secondary grade levels (3rd grade - 10th grade). It is ideal for differentiated instruction necessary for Response-to-Intervention (RTI) and for addressing Individualized Education Plan (IEP) goals. Speech-Language Pathologists, Reading Specialists, Special Educators, ENL Teachers, and Classroom Teachers will find that this tool is invaluable in helping to teach the skills and strategies to help improve comprehension and overall communication skills.

Clue Catcher lets you ...
-view the target word both in isolation and within a content rich sentence
-highlight the keywords within a sentence that will help a student to generate an appropriate definition
-select a ‘Think Clue’ which will guide the student through higher-level critical thinking skills which will help them relate to the word in a way that is meaningful
-select the best choice from three options
-keep track of correct and incorrect responses, for progress monitoring and data collection purposes
-set up individual students and assign them to specific grade level vocabulary lists
-change the grade level assigned to specific students as their skills improve
-discontinue and pick up at a later time, without losing your data
-ideal for group or individual instruction

Clue Catcher can be downloaded onto your IPad for free and includes five words per grade level that you can use to explore its functionality. Complete grade level data can be bought from within Clue Catcher via In App Purchases on a grade-by-grade basis or in discounted bundles.