Tiny Tongues

Why I built this

I’m teaching my daughter to speak Cantonese, and if you’re a Cantonese speaker in North America, you know it’s really hard to find good Cantonese content for kids. A lot of the language-learning apps I did find were paid or too advanced for her. So Tiny Tongues was born - a simple, adorable flashcard app that helps kids (and grown-ups) learn Cantonese words. I’ve also used it to expand my own vocabulary (can you say squirrel in Cantonese?), so I can confidently say it’s useful for all ages.

What it does

• Tap through a range of categories including: Animals, Vehicles, Colors, and Shapes, with more decks planned.
• Tap a card to hear the word - great for kids who are pre-reading or just starting to talk.
• Large, high-contrast cards designed for small hands and short attention spans.
• No accounts, no ads, no data collection. It’s just a flashcard app.
• Bonus: I added support for Mandarin, French (for my nephew in Canada), and English (because why not).

Screenshots

How I built it

This was my first real iOS app, so I learned A LOT and had a lot of fun. I wrote up the design process (and frustrations) in The story behind Tiny Tongues.

Where it’s at

It’s stable enough for daily use in our house, but still rough around the edges - I’m actively adding decks and fixing bugs, and feedback of any kind is very welcome.