Readeo – the Gift That Makes Social Distancing More Enjoyable
This post is sponsored by Readeo. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.
I feel like I start every post by saying this, but: this is a weird year. So many things have made it weird, but COVID definitely takes the cake. And as the holiday season approaches, it gets even more difficult as we come to the realization that we’re probably not going to celebrate with all of our family and friends in person this year.
Gift giving becomes a conundrum, too – what do you send to someone who you won’t be able to see in person? A gift card or their favorite treat can be fun, but I’d rather give the gift of something we can share, something that brings the gift of time even though it may not be in person.
That’s where Readeo comes in.
What is Readeo?
Readeo is a book chat platform with over 300 books (and more being added every day!). Kids can get on Readeo, choose a book, and request a chat with Oma or their cousins. Then they are connected through Book Chat webcams and they can read the book together!
See? A grandparent would love Readeo as a gift, because it means a chance to read books and have conversations with their grandkids!
Three Cool Things About Giving Readeo as a Gift During Social Distancing
The Guest List
You can designate 4 households – including yours – in an account as main households. That means they can get on Readeo and use it just like you do.
But, if you have people you just want to read occasionally with, they can create a free account and you can add them as a guest. You have to pick a book and invite them, and they can only access that one book chat (unless you invite them again to another book later). But how neat is it – especially this year – that they can read with such a wide variety of people??
Bookshelves
You can create bookshelves within the Readeo platform to save your favorite books. Each child could have their own bookshelf, and you can have as many as you want. I keep a ‘Want to Read’ shelf and right now a ‘Christmas Books’ bookshelf so it’s easy to access the books when we hop on to read with Oma.
The Arrow
When we first opened up a book on Readeo – Bear Wears Underwear, because obviously toddlers think underwear is hilarious – and we got Oma on Book Chat to read it, Cam wanted to start asking questions. He’d say, ‘what’s this?’ ‘who’s that?’ ‘what is that doing?’ and I thought I had to explain to my mom what Cam was pointing at.
And then Cam accidently touched it, and we realized that each Book Chatter – in this case, Cam and Oma – have a different colored arrow, and they can drag it around to point at the things they’re talking about. So now, when Cam says, “Oma, what’s this?” he drags his arrow there and they can have a conversation about it!
Conversation Starters
Have you ever tried to get your young kids to talk to their relatives on the phone? It’s like pulling teeth. Honestly, Camden will only talk to Oma if we use filters and he can giggle at the dragon and pizza head filters.
So Readeo is awesome, because it gives kids something to talk about. They get to talk about the book as they read it, and it gives them a wonderful common ground with their grandparents or whoever they’re reading with.
Books for Every Age and Interest – Readeo as Social Distancing Gift
Readeo has so many books in such a wide variety. There are books for 2 years old and for 9 year olds. I see a lot of diversity too, so kids are getting great exposure!
Some of our favorites:
- Chicka, Chicka Boom Boom
- Bear in Underwear (Cam’s favorite, not mine haha)
- Let Freedom Sing
- Library Lion
- Interrupting Chicken (this one is hilarious – it’ll have both you and your kiddos cracking up!)
- The Circus Ship
- LMNO Peas – the pictures in this book spark so much conversation!
Party Chat – why Readeo is the best gift during social distancing
You can also Book Chat with more than one person at a time; it’s called Party Chat! So even if you can’t see grandparents and cousins for the holidays – or for any reason – you can get them all in the same chat and read books together. How cool is that??
Plus Readeo is doing great things for the community! When I talked to them, they shared that they were working with a Boys and Girls Club that is local to my area – many of these kids are my former students!
And on Veteran’s Day, they were giving away free subscriptions to military families. Because this is the absolute perfect way for deployed moms and dads to still be able to read with, talk to, and build relationships with their kids while they may not be home.
Readeo combines two important life skills – relationships and reading – into one fantastic, useful and sentimental gift. This is perfect for the kids, grandparents, close friends – anyone who loves to get on and chat and read together!
Ready to try it? Head over to Readeo and get a 14-day free trial! Thanksgiving break may be the perfect time to try it out with family you’re not going to see in person!
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