--- description: Find out why Amira and the StoryCraft is one of the best inventions of 2021 title: Amira and the StoryCraft: The 100 Best Inventions of 2021 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc555b4c235ddca35/698a1ebad075334e7fe6c2a5/best-inventions-2021-reading-with-amira-02.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Nov 10, 2021 # The AI Tutor Amira and the StoryCraft by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  Research shows that the best remedy for reading disorders is early intervention. Unfortunately, there are not nearly enough teachers and tutors for one-on-one instruction. [Amira and the StoryCraft](http://amiralearning.com/reading-game "undefined") was developed to help. Using speech-recognition software, the app ($7.99) listens to students read aloud, pausing when a child stalls or makes a mistake on a word. Then, the app teaches them how the word is pronounced. A Carnegie Mellon University study found that students using the software for 20 minutes posted twice the gains as those using traditional methods. —_Chad de Guzman_ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6112661/amira-and-the-storycraft/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6112661/amira-and-the-storycraft/"},"headline":"The AI Tutor","datePublished":"2021-11-10T11:08:06.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-02T23:55:14.954Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6112661/amira-and-the-storycraft/","keywords":["list","franchise","best inventions","Best Inventions 2021"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc555b4c235ddca35/698a1ebad075334e7fe6c2a5/best-inventions-2021-reading-with-amira-02.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc555b4c235ddca35/698a1ebad075334e7fe6c2a5/best-inventions-2021-reading-with-amira-02.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2021/6112661/amira-and-the-storycraft/","name":"The AI Tutor"}}]}] ```