New: screen reader accessibility on every platform. Stories that help children build empathy, self-awareness and the ability to regulate themselves. No ads, ever.
Help children ages 4 to 8 grow the attention, empathy and flexible thinking behind social and emotional learning. They do it by playing, in stories that take their time: no flashing rewards, no racing timers, nothing to beat. Children, and the grown-ups reading with them, often report feeling calm afterwards.
No ads. No data collected from children. Used by 100,000+ families and educators worldwide.
STORIES THAT WORK DIFFERENTLY
Our stories are Teaching Stories, traditional tales shared across cultures for over a thousand years, particularly from Afghanistan, Central Asia and the Middle East. Unlike fables that teach what to think, or behavioral stories that model what to do, Teaching Stories develop how children think by presenting characters who solve challenges through unexpected solutions.
Children come away with cognitive flexibility and a wider view of a problem, rather than a memorised lesson. Each time a child returns to a story, new meaning appears as their perception develops, which is why the same tale still holds something for an adult.
The approach draws on decades of research by Robert Ornstein, Idries Shah, Arthur Deikman, Doris Lessing, Georgi Lozanov and Paul Zak. Truth and Tales is designed with doctors, educators and neuroscientists.
WHAT'S INSIDE
- Interactive Teaching Stories: narrative games with choices and puzzles, followed by questions that have no single right answer
- Audiobooks: professional human narration, never AI-generated, for bedtime and quiet moments
- Read-along: words highlighted as they are spoken, which supports children learning to read
- Move It Move It: body movement activities inspired by yoga and tai chi
- Artist's Gallery: colouring inspired by the stories
Everything downloads for offline use.
SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING, WITHOUT THE WORKSHEET
Each activity builds the ground SEL depends on: noticing a feeling before acting on it, holding another person's point of view, staying with a problem that has no obvious answer. Truth and Tales addresses all five CASEL competencies and supports UK statutory Health Education at Key Stages 1 and 2. Research on social-emotional learning reports 11 to 13 percentile-point academic gains (Durlak et al., 2011). That describes the research field, not measured results for this app.
FOR SCHOOLS
Educator logins and individual access codes for children, with no child accounts and no personal data required. Pedagogical guides accompany every activity, and it works one device per child, in pairs, or projected to a whole class.
QUESTIONS FAMILIES ASK
Does it work with a screen reader?
Yes. Screens, menus and controls carry spoken labels and headings for VoiceOver on iPhone and iPad, TalkBack on Android, and the built-in readers on Chromebook, so a child or grown-up who navigates by listening can move through the app independently. Truth and Tales also includes dyslexia-friendly fonts, a colour-blind accessible palette, read-along with human narration, and simple controls for reduced mobility, following Universal Design for Learning principles. Artwork tapped inside a story scene is not described yet.
Can my child use it alone?
Yes. Narration and clear instructions support children who are not reading yet. Grown-ups who want to go further can use the open-ended questions in the pedagogical guides.
How is it different from other children's apps?
It uses game-based learning rather than gamification. Many apps motivate with points and streaks; here empathy and flexible thinking develop through the play itself. Research shows external rewards can reduce intrinsic motivation over time (Deci et al., 1999).
Is it safe?
Ad-free, with no data collected from children. Compliant with COPPA, GDPR and the UK Children's Code, LGPD and PIPEDA.
Mom's Choice Gold Award | GESAwards 2025 Winner | Common Sense Media 5 Stars | Apple "Kids We Love" and "App of the Day" | BIG Festival Impact Educational Award
This app has not received enough ratings or reviews to display an overview.
Children ages 4 to 8 grow attention, empathy, and flexible thinking through interactive Teaching Stories, audiobooks, movement, and coloring. Ad-free, with no data collected from children.
WHAT'S NEW IN 1.17.0
Truth and Tales now works with VoiceOver. Screens, menus, and controls carry spoken labels and headings, so a child or grown-up who navigates by listening can move through the app independently. Focus follows story lists as they scroll, dialogs keep focus until dismissed, and each screen announces itself. Artwork tapped inside a story scene is not described yet; that work continues.
In The Prince's Journey, children can now dress up the characters. The first run is clearer, so children reach the stories sooner, and About Us replays the opening story instead of a video. We also fixed a crash when asking for a new password, repaired the Back button on the plans screen, and made purchase confirmation more reliable.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is Truth and Tales?
An award-winning, research-backed social-emotional learning app for children ages 4 to 8. It combines narrative interactive games based on Teaching Stories, body movement activities (Move It Move It), colouring in Artist's Gallery, and audiobooks with professional human narration (never AI-generated) and word-by-word read-along. Designed with doctors, educators, and neuroscientists. Winner of the Mom's Choice Gold Award, a Common Sense Media 5-star rating, and Apple App of the Day. Used by 100,000+ families and educators worldwide.
What are Teaching Stories?
Traditional tales shared across cultures for over a thousand years, particularly from Afghanistan, Central Asia, and the Middle East. Unlike fables that teach what to think, or behavioral stories that model what to do, Teaching Stories develop how children think by presenting characters who solve challenges through unexpected solutions. The approach draws on decades of research by Robert Ornstein, Idries Shah, Arthur Deikman, Doris Lessing, Georgi Lozanov, and Paul Zak.
Does Truth and Tales work with a screen reader?
Yes. From version 1.17.0, screens, menus, and controls carry spoken labels and headings for VoiceOver on iPhone and iPad, TalkBack on Android, and the built-in readers on Chromebook and desktop browsers. Truth and Tales also includes dyslexia-friendly fonts, a colour-blind accessible palette, read-along highlighting with human narration, and simple controls for reduced mobility, following Universal Design for Learning principles. Artwork tapped inside a story scene is not described yet.
What does it develop?
Attention, empathy, cognitive flexibility, emotional intelligence, and critical thinking, addressing all five CASEL competencies. Stories are followed by questions with no single right answer, which invites children to notice their own thinking rather than recall a lesson. Research on social-emotional learning reports 11 to 13 percentile-point academic gains (Durlak et al., 2011); that describes the field, not measured results for this app.
How is it different from Khan Academy Kids, Lingokids, or Moshi?
Truth and Tales uses game-based learning rather than gamification. There are no points, badges, or streaks. Where many children's apps motivate with reward systems, children here play narrative games in which empathy and flexible thinking develop through the play itself. Research shows external rewards can reduce intrinsic motivation over time (Deci et al., 1999). Every story is also an audiobook with human narration, which makes it a gentle fit for bedtime.
Can schools use it?
Yes. School licensing gives educators logins and children individual access codes, with no child accounts and no personal data required. Pedagogical guides accompany every activity, and the app works one device per child, in pairs, or projected to a whole class. Supports Ontario PPM 169, UK statutory Health Education, and all five CASEL competencies.
Version 1.17.0
Subscriptions
Kids Learning Games: Annual
Every story, game and audiobook included. For ages 4-8
Free Trial
The developer, Explot, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Linked to You
The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:
Diagnostics
Data Not Linked to You
The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:
Usage Data
Privacy practices may vary based, for example, on the features you use or your age. Learn More
The developer indicated that this app supports the following accessibility features. Learn More
Supported Features
VoiceOver
Differentiate Without Colour Alone
Captions
Information
Provider
ALL CRIACAO DESENVOLVIMENTO E PRODUCAO DE INOVACAO LTDA
Size
239.7 MB
Category
Education
Compatibility
Requires iOS 15.0 or later.
iPhone Requires iOS 15.0 or later.
iPad Requires iPadOS 15.0 or later.
iPod touch Requires iOS 15.0 or later.
Mac Requires macOS 12.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.
Languages
English and 2 more
English, Portuguese, Spanish
Age Rating
4+
4+
Made For Ages 6–8 This app is rated 4+ with content restrictions.
Some content may be rated higher, and may therefore be restricted and managed by the developer through in-app controls.