We are happy to accept purchase orders! To get started, fill out the form and we will send you a quote to your email. Make sure you select the plan and duration that you want.
For parents and families, there are 2 plans to choose from, Free and Premium.
The Premium plans for families and educators offer the same level of access with special pricing available for educators and librarians. Family and Educator plans are available our website and through the app, which is free to download in the App Store and in the Google Play Store.
For schools, there are 3 plans to choose from:
All Teachers gives access to all teachers within a school.
All Teachers and Students gives access to all teachers and students within a school.
All Teachers, Students, and Families gives access to all teachers and students within a school, plus access for families!
School plans are available through our website. Purchase orders are accepted. Please request a School Plan quote if necessary.
Free Novel Effect offers soundscapes for children’s picture books curated for teachers, librarians, kids and families. Each month, enjoy unlimited access to “free reads” and limited access to the soundscapes for other select books.
“Free reads” are always available to enjoy as much as you like. Look for the infinity symbol on the book’s cover in-app or search “free” in the app’s search bar.
For parents or individual educators, a Novel Effect Premium subscription offers unlimited access to our growing library of soundscapes for popular picture books, hundreds of in-app ebooks, and exclusive content.
The Teacher + Students Plan offers unlimited access to all Premium features and content for one teacher and up to 30 students in a safe and secure environment.
Whole School plans that include access for all teachers and students are also available.
Devices authorized by the teacher, or classroom account lead, as a classroom or student device are logged in anonymously – no personally identifiable information is collected. For maintenance and operational purposes some anonymized usage statistics are kept by Novel Effect, no data is shared with 3rd party providers.
On the student’s Chromebook with the Novel Effect app installed and open tap ENTER LINK CODE below the Google and Facebook icons on the account prompt screen and choose one of the options below
Type or paste the SMART LINK URL found in the Teacher account
Type or paste the CHROMEBOOK LINK CODE found in the Teacher account
Then, tap CONTINUE
Students do not need to create usernames or passwords for access on a Teacher + Students Plan. Student accounts may be logged out automatically, and will need the Classroom Pass to login again. By default access is limited to 30 student accounts. QR Code scanning is not supported on Chromebook devices.
Yes! In fact, special pricing for teachers, librarians, and other individual educators includes summer months for free plus 20% off compared to our regular annual plans.
For school quotes: Fill out the school quote request form. Then send us a copy of the approved purchase order and we will set up access while payments work their way through your system.
There are multiple affordable options to subscribe to Novel Effect which gives you unlimited access to our entire library.
An individual educator plan includes 20% off the regular Premium plan making it about $3.33 per month.
Novel Effect school plans are priced within many principals’ discretionary funding limit:
$799 for all teachers at one school
$799 + $2 per student for all teachers & students at one school*†
$799 + $3 per student for all teachers, students, and family access in one school*†
We’ve created the resources available on this page for your use to request funding for a Novel Effect subscription. If any of these plans are outside your budget or you need additional help to secure the funds, please don’t hesitate to reach out or email us at support@noveleffect.com.
*Student plans are only needed if you want students to read from their own devices. Otherwise, an individual educator plan or all teacher school plan is sufficient.
†Devices authorized by the teacher as a student or classroom device are logged in anonymously and no personally identifiable information is collected. Learn more about Novel Effect’s Classroom Plan privacy policy.
ask your principal (email)
Novel Effect subscriptions are priced within many of your principal’s discretionary budget which makes securing the funds much easier. Just copy the text below and paste it into an email.
Dear Principal ,
I encourage you to swing by my classroom during story time when we read aloud one of the picture books from our library. You’ll see the children on the edge of their seats, giggling uncontrollably, because we are using a mobile app called Novel Effect. Novel Effect uses voice-recognition to follow along with interactive music, sound effects, and character voices as we read aloud from our favorite stories. Kids are more engaged and enjoy reading more because of the immersive experience. So if you hear the kids rambling about jungles dancing, dragons roaring or kittens meowing, you’ll know why.
One teacher says her students call them “magical books” when they read aloud with Novel Effect. See short video here.
Others say…
“In a world where a teacher must compete with video games… this is a game changer.”
“I’ve never seen my students more engaged. A great way to encourage a love of reading”
“The librarian is hiding books in her desk so she can read them [with Novel Effect] to kids first.”
Unlimited access to the app is quite affordable at $39.99/year per teacher or $799 for every teacher at our school (for the full year).
I would love to show you Novel Effect in action. Can I set up a 15-minute meeting with you to demo and discuss funding?
Thank you, Your Name
P.S.: If you find yourself doing read-alouds, I highly recommend you download the app (see below) to check it out. You’ll love it!
Download Novel Effect by clicking on one of the buttons here…
Ask your PTO (email)
Novel Effect subscriptions are priced within many of your school’s discretionary budget which makes securing the funds much easier. Just copy the text below and paste it into an email.
Dear ,
I have discovered something magical. It’s called Novel Effect and I need your help bringing it into our school to use with our students. Novel Effect is an award-winning app that uses voice-recognition to follow along with interactive music and sound effects as a teacher (or parent) reads aloud from a children’s book — books that we already have on our bookshelf, our library, and in our curriculum.
A school subscription is only $799/year and that will give every single teacher at our school his/her own Novel Effect login! (Individual teacher subscriptions are $39.99, so this would be such a tremendous gift to us all!) The best part is that every student at every grade level and in every class will benefit from the most engaging, immersive, magical read aloud stories they’ve ever experienced!
If this is something you would be willing to consider purchasing this for us, please visit Novel Effect’s website to see School Plan subscription options. There are also options to gift a single subscription to a deserving teacher.
(They also have free and paid unlimited plans for parents if you want to create magical moments with your child at home when you snuggle-up with a great book. Be forewarned, they will ask to read more and more!)
Thank you, Your Name
P.S.: You can check out Novel Effect yourself by clicking on one of the buttons below…
Write a grant (template)
If you weren’t able to get the funding from your principal, PTA, etc., there are grant options out there. Here is a template with the answers to most of questions that you’ll have to answer in a grant submission.
This grant will be used to purchase subscriptions to Novel Effect which is an iOS and Android app that adds interactive music, sound effects, and character voices to the books we already read aloud in our classrooms.
Project Description:
Novel Effect delivers interactive music, sound effects, and character voices that are perfectly tuned to respond as we read aloud from our library books during regular read aloud time. As we read, Novel Effect gives students a more immersive experience so they’ll be on the edge of their seats with their focus on the teacher or librarian. And it offers story effects for the books we already use in our curriculum and have in our libraries.
NOTE:Novel Effect does not replace the books we use in our classroom. The app follows along using voice recognition and adds story effects as the teacher reads aloud from existing library books.
Situation and student outcomes:
Children are falling behind in reading but read alouds can help.
“Two thirds of American students can’t read at their grade level.” (Source: National Assessment of Educational Progress (2019).
“Reading aloud to a child is the single most important activity….for eventual success in reading. And if children develop a love of reading early on, they are much more likely to become lifelong readers.” (Source: Becoming a Nation of Readers. 1985)
“Only 50% of children have read alouds more than 5 days a week” (The Rise of Read-Aloud from scholastic.com) which has been exacerbated by the pandemic and the inequality of our children who have been overly burdened in families with lower income.
In order for our teachers to overcome these challenges through reading aloud, they must…
Keep students engaged during read alouds
Inspire children to love to read
Reduce screen time
Novel Effect has been shown to increase a child’s love of reading. In fact, according to Novel Effect’s subscriber survey, teachers say…
Books are more engaging (89%)
Kids are more confident reading (83%)
Kids ask to read more often (81%)
When a teacher reads aloud to a student or classroom with Novel Effect, there are many benefits identified including…
Promotes literacy and engagement
Supports imagery and visualization
Provides multi-sensory experience
Motivates reluctant and shy readers and encourages public speaking
Supports fluency and accuracy with beginning readers and English Language Learners
Promotes a multi-modal approach to storytime for children enrolled in special education programs
How does this address equity and inclusion?
According to The Rise of Read-Aloud from scholastic.com, “reading aloud peaks at age five. While a majority of families read aloud 5–7 days a week before a child enters kindergarten (55%), this percentage begins to decline dramatically with each additional year of age. Lower-income families with children ages eight and under read aloud less frequently; 39% among families with household incomes less than $35,000 and 62% among families with incomes of $100,000 or more. Lower-income families with kids ages five and under are also less likely, at 46% compared to about seven in 10, to have received information on the importance of reading aloud from birth when their children were babies.”
What are others saying about this “project”?
“Today we used Novel Effect…I’ve never seen my students more engaged! If you have not checked out Novel Effect yet, you definitely need to!” – Teacher on Instagram
“This is the perfect app to bring each story to life and to keep learners engaged. My students are absolutely amazed every time I utilize @novel_effect.” – Teacher
“Whether you are reading aloud to your class, a parent reading to his/her child, or a student reading aloud to his or herself or a small group, Novel Effect is a clever tool that follows your lead and makes reading (and listening) that much more fun.” – Dr. Bruce Ellis, Take Reading to the Next Level with Novel Effect from TCEA technotes
Does the solution collect student-specific, personally identifiable information?
No. Devices authorized by the teacher, or classroom account lead, as a classroom or student device are logged in anonymously – no personally identifiable information is collected. For maintenance and operational purposes some anonymized usage statistics are kept by Novel Effect. No usage-statistic data is shared with 3rd party providers.
Learn more about Novel Effect’s Classroom Privacy Policy for Novel Effect Classroom subscribers.
Project timeline:
Novel Effect is an app that can be downloaded to an iOS (iPhone or iPad) or Android device. Once registered, there is limited to no time needed to learn how to use the app. We grab an existing book from our library, search for the same book in the Novel Effect app, press Get Started button and the app will start listening for the teacher to read the book aloud. The teacher will immediately see the children’s enjoyment of the book and engagement increase exponentially.
How will success be measured?
Reading assessments should improve over time.
How much does the project cost? Are there different options?
$799 to give all teachers unlimited access (at one school)
$799 + $2 per student to give all teachers + students unlimited access (at one school)
$799 + $3 per student to give all teachers, students, and families unlimited access (in one school)
Novel Effect takes all forms of payment including purchase orders, checks or credit card, if preferred. School Plans are available and quote requests can be submitted at www.noveleffect.com.
Tell your colleagues (presentation)
Want your principal and colleagues to see the value of Novel Effect? Presenting at a conference? A professional development day? No need to create a presentation on your own. We’ve done it for you. Just download and present.
After you present the value of Novel Effect to your colleagues or principal, here is a handout that you can email or printout and share so they can get started.
If you and your students are enjoying Novel Effect in the classroom, tell your students’ parents about it with this sample email. Copy the text below and paste it into an email.
Dear Parents,
In case your child comes home rambling about jungles dancing, dragons roaring, or kittens meowing, please know that they’re probably talking about our read alouds. We’ve been using a new mobile app called Novel Effect which uses voice-recognition to follow along with interactive music, sound effects, and character voices as we read aloud from our favorite stories. Kids are more engaged and enjoy reading more because of the immersive experience. I highly recommend you download the app (see below) to use during your normal reading routine at home. You’ll love it!
Please note that I am not getting anything to send this to you. I am just a fan of Novel Effect and believe it will help your child enjoy reading even more.
Happy Reading, Your Name
Download Novel Effect by clicking on one of the buttons below…
When you purchase an 18-month School Plan you can choose from the following small-but-mighty Bluetooth speakers from our partners at Bitty Boomers. Please let our School Success team know which speaker you would prefer when you submit your quote. (Estimated Retail Value of speakers is $240).
Hit the road running with summer read-alouds
Join our waitlist to be the first to access our highly-anticipatedsummerreading program, exclusive offers, challenges, and giveaways! Sign up early for a chance to win fabulous books our librarians dug up with book activities designed by educators for use at home.
Novel Effect school plans
We have plans to fit classrooms, schools, and districts of all sizes.
Choose from the options below or fill out the quote form for school or district options. Check out funding resources if you’d like an email template to send to your principal or PTO, or you can use your Scholastic Fair Dollars.
The subscriptions are managed as one school so each teacher doesn’t have to keep track of their individual subscriptions. You can add and subtract teachers as you please in one portal.
It covers as many teachers in your school as you have or will have, including librarians and substitutes (no additional purchases).
If you have 10+ teachers, librarians, substitutes, and anyone else who will be doing read-alouds in your school, the price to you is better than individual subscriptions. Purchase orders accepted.
Sound Effects
ELEMENTS OF A Soundscape
Interactive Music
Nearly all our music is original and composed to lift up the themes and scenes of a story.
Sound Effects
Each soundscape includes dozens of sound effects to fully immerse you in the story.
Character Voices
Dialog designed to feels authentic to the original characters and moves the story forward.
You, Reading Aloud
When you read aloud, the interactive audio elements react to your voice.
Each Novel Effect soundscape contains dozens of sound effects to fully immerse little learners in a story. Sometimes these sounds are made electronically using synthesizers. Other times soundscape designers spend time in nature or around town with a portable field recorder and microphones, trying to capture that perfect recording of a train whistle, babbling brook, or lone wildlife. Other times, we record noise-making props in our recording studios. But in many cases, simply capturing real sounds is not enough. Sometimes, the book demands that we find creative ways to make the sounds of creatures that don’t exist (or at least haven’t existed for millions of years).
Each Novel Effect soundscape contains dozens of sound effects to fully immerse little learners in a story. Sometimes these sounds are made electronically using synthesizers. Other times soundscape designers spend time in nature or around town with a portable field recorder and microphones, trying to capture that perfect recording of a train whistle, babbling brook, or lone wildlife. Other times, we record noise-making props in our recording studios. But in many cases, simply capturing real sounds is not enough. Sometimes, the book demands that we find creative ways to make the sounds of creatures that don’t exist (or at least haven’t existed for millions of years).
Create a reader for life
We all want to give our children the tools to succeed in life. That starts with creating a lifelong passion for reading
“it is difficult to overstate the importance of getting children off to an early successful start in reading.”
Anne Cunningham, Novel Effect Board of Advisors University of California, Berkeley Director of the Joint Doctoral Program in Special Education
Character Voices
In order to bring the characters on the page to life, we work with professional writers to develop dialog that feels authentic to the characters and moves the story forward. We then record actors, singers, and children performing the lines.
The Final Product
Our team of soundscape designers custom designs each experience to be compatible with any reading cadence the text of the book might suggest. We design background music that is able to be easily read over, and subtly contours the emotion of the story. Then, we look for opportunities in a book’s text or illustrations for bold, sound effects that surprise and delight with magical sounds that jump out of the speaker just as the reader catches their breath.
Which book should our soundscape designers tackle next? Message us at support@noveleffect.com or on Twitter, Instagram, or TikTok
Our Creative Vision
We believe that every Novel Effect soundscape should delight listeners with bold creative choices that allow each story to be felt more deeply. A soundscape designer’s mission is to complement and add to the emotions that the author and illustrator have already created with their art. Every story we choose has a light, and we do everything we can to help it shine.
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Bringing It All Together
In video games, when a character jumps, we hear a jump sound. When they enter a new environment, we hear new music and environmental ambiance. This is called interactive audio because the player controls the inputs that make various sounds play and evolve. Instead of inputs from a controller, Novel Effect uses speech recognition to listen for your place in the book, and play the appropriate interactive sounds.
For example, the music in Novel Effect isn’t just a single linear piece of music, nor is it a “loop”. We borrow techniques pioneered by video game makers to design the music as a collection of carefully designed modular “music cues” that are designed to work together and play at just the right moments in the story.
Our team of soundscape designers specially designs each experience to be compatible with any reading cadence the text of the book might suggest. We design background music that is able to be easily read over, and subtly contours the emotion of the story. Then, we look for opportunities in the text for bold, “foreground” sound effects that surprise and delight the reader and their audience. In order to provide the best experience, we favor a “call & response” experience, where the magical sounds jump out of the speaker just as the reader catches their breath at the end of a sentence, paragraph, or page.
READING CHANGES LIVES
We believe in the power of a well told story
We believe that if you read together, you learn, play, and grow together. That every child is full of potential and more well-read children in the world will create a better future.
We believe that if you read together, you learn, play, and grow together. That every child is full of potential and more well-read children in the world will create a better future.
English Language Arts
Social Emotional Learning
Math
STEAM
The Arts
Domestic Arts
Become a story time legend
Share engaging, fun, and magical story times with your little ones!
Choose a subscription for yourself or to gift to a friend
As you emphasize the rhythm and melody of language with music and sounds.
Build reading and listening skills
When perfectly timed sound effects emphasize elements of the story and illustrations at just the right moment.
Delight kids of all ages
As playful character voices and dialogue adds context in fun, unexpected ways.
Strengthen fluency naturally
As you emphasize the rhythm and melody of language with music and sounds.
Build reading and listening skills
When perfectly timed sound effects bring the story to life at just the right moment.
Delight kids of all ages
As playful character voices and dialogue adds context in fun, unexpected ways.
How it works
Interactive Music
With the freedom to choose print books or ebooks from our growing library anytime, anywhere.
Read aloud
When Novel Effect follows along music and sound effects play and respond automatically.
Bring the story to life
Celebrate the picture book, captivate listeners, and always have fun with Novel Effect at story time.
The science of music & reading
With added music and sounds, increase understanding of the plot and mood while keeping readers engaged.
Music & Ambience
With the freedom to choose print books or ebooks from our growing library anytime, anywhere.
Sounds & Effects
When Novel Effect follows along using your microphone sounds and music play and respond automatically.
Character Voices & Dialogue
Celebrate the picture book, captivate your little listeners, and always have fun when you add a storyscape at story time.
Music and sounds that engage
We’re obsessed with music and audio design. Custom-made to honor the spirit of the original story. When the rhythm and melody of language become a part of a child’s life, learning to read will be as natural as learning to walk and talk.
Utilize devices as a screen-free tool to elevate and augment reading out loud
The experience adapts to every voice and enhances illustrated or spoken content
Free to use with books families and teachers already know, love, and own
Designed to enhance personal and peer-to-peer connections and interactions
Transforms beloved children’s books into a shared immersive experience that promotes literacy, language development, and engagement with the story—and the storyteller
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School Pass Overview
Premium Membership
Give your whole school or district unlimited access to our entire content library. Availabile across mobile devices anytime, anywhere.
Engagement Resources
Novel Effect provides customizable and easy-to-use materials to promote and drive ongoing literacy engagement in class and at home.
Content for Learning
Easily navigate our growing library of content in the Novel Effect app, expertly curated for students to spark interest and build reading confidence.
Ready to make reading magical?
Enjoy unlimited storyscapes, all available ebooks, and more with Novel Effect Premium plans for educators.
TEACHERS & LIBRARIANS
Unlimited access for all teachers and school staff. Plus 30% off Premium subscriptions for families at home.
ADMINISTRATORS
Add up to 30 linked student accounts per teacher. Use on school devices or share access with families at home.
