Mainstreet Memory {An App Review}

Hey friends!

I’m back today with an app review for Main Street Memory, an awesome app by Virtual Speech Center! Disclaimer: A copy of this app was provided for me to review; however, the opinions expressed below are all mine.

Main Street Memory:

Main Street Memory is a great app designed to assist children and adults in strengthening skills required for auditory processing and recalling auditory instructions. The app is set in a downtown/Main Street setting, with three different stores to choose from. This theme makes the game feel a little more realistic, and helps students (and/or adults) understand why being able to recall auditory instructions is so important!

When you first enter the app, you’ll see the screen pictured below. From here, you can learn more info on the app, adjust settings, and view reports. Or, you can click the START button to begin.

The Info page is a great way to learn how to use the app, and get additional help if you need it.

From the Settings page, you can adjust settings such as turning audio on and off, enabling reward, adding background noise, and others.

Getting Started:

When you click START to begin, you are taken to a page to add and select students and choose the shop you’d like to use. Once you select which student(s) you’d like, as well as which store you wish to use, you can then make more specific selections for each student. I LOVE that you can choose several students to play at once and modify the specific selections for each student. For instance, one student can be working on 1-step directions, while another student works on 3 step directions. I’ve used this app in a group of 6 before, but you can use it for even more!

Modifying the Difficulty:

After you choose your students and the specific store, you can make additional selections for each student. For instance, for the Sweet Shop and Jewelry Store, you can choose how many items and modifiers you want to use, as well as add in temporal directions. For the Pizza Parlor, you can choose how many pizza toppings you’d like the students to work with.

Pia’s Pizza:

Below is a screenshot from Pia’s Pizza. Users are given an order to complete, such as “I’ll take a cookie and pretzel, please.” Then the students drag the correct items to the bottom of the screen to complete the order correctly. If they need to hear the order again, they can tap the green speaker at the bottom of the page.

Jin’s Jewels:

Below, you can see a screenshot from Jin’s Jewels. The user is prompted with an order, such as “I’ll take a yellow bead with flowers and a green bead with blue triangles, please.” The orders get progressively harder, and the user can’t start fulfilling the order into the entire direction is given.

Sweet Shop:

Here, you can see a screenshot of the Sweet Shop. Users are provided with an order that they must fill, such as “May I have an orange cupcake and red Popsicle, please?”

Reinforcements:

After 5 responses are recorded, users earn a game as a reward. You can choose to play the game then, or skip it by tapping the buttons in the upper corners.

The game is similar to Pac-man. My students love it!

Session Report:

At the end of the session, you get a Session Report. This tells you the data for each user. You can print the data, save it, or email it to yourself or a parent! This makes keeping data for everyone a breeze (especially during larger groups!)

By going back to Reports from the home-screen, you can pull up reports from each session on each user!

Improving Auditory Processing & Memory:

I currently have several students that are struggling with auditory processing and memory. This app is highly motivating for them, and has been an effective way of strengthening these skills. I especially like the fact that you can add background noise. You can choose between static noise, people talking, or birds chirping. This is especially effective for some of my students who do well one-on-one, but struggle in the classroom with the added distractions and noise. Overall, I love this app, and use it often!

You can learn more about Main Street Memory and/or purchase it through iTunes by clicking HERE. This app is available for only $14.99! Be sure to check out Virtual Speech Center’s website HERE to learn more about other apps they have available!