During the pandemic, we spent almost two years in Sweden, separated from our loved ones in Australia, our other home. In that time, my daughter turned two, then three. I had a baby, and that baby turned one.
The time apart was painful, but my parents and brothers kept their relationship with the kids strong by reading books together on a clever platform called Readeo.
When Coby Neuenschwander and his son Oliver moved far away from family, they discovered the very real limitations of video calls with kids. They get distracted, throw the phone, or just beg for it to be turned off to regain parental attention.
Neuenschwander's solution was a new platform that combines video calls with reading.
We decided to sign up for the Readeo trial period and see what it had to offer. We're now onto our third yearly membership.
There is a window on the left for my parents or brothers, one on the right for my kids, and a big section below for the book they choose together.
The library is updated often and has over 1500 titles. Most books are in English (some French and Spanish books, too, which has led to some pretty amusing attempted pronunciation, and my daughter's insistence that she can now speak both languages).
Age and topic filters can be applied, and books can be put on "shelves" that function as lists of favourites.
My kids are four and two at the moment, so most of the clicking is done on the other side of the world, but the platform allows for both parties to select books, turn pages and use coloured cursors to point things out to reading buddies.
Readeo boasts an average interaction time of around half an hour which, given the ages of at least half the participants, is no mean feat.
The eight- to 10-hour time difference - depending on the season - has meant my parents and brothers are often finishing up work or errands for the day as my kids are served their breakfast, providing the perfect opportunity to sit down and read a few books together while my husband and I get ready for the day.
Relationships are maintained and strengthened, literacy skills are supported, and breakfast is eaten with less fuss. For a virtual babysitting service in another hemisphere, it ticks a few boxes.
My parents will often take turns reading a few books to the kids, and sometimes even enlist the help of hand puppets to lengthen short attention spans. It's surprising how long they can go for on a good day. It's not uncommon for one or both kids to lose interest and wander off, but that's like almost anything else at their age.
The quality of writing and illustration in the titles varies, but we've curated a decent bookshelf of stories everyone can put up with.
The website does have glitches, but they are worth putting up with for the value Readeo provides our family.
WHAT DO YOU THINK? Join the discussion in the comment section below.
Find out how to register or become a subscriber here.
