Help with Chinese homework — even if you can't read a word of it.
Your child reads Chinese books aloud, practises characters and spelling lists, and works through worksheets. AI listens, marks and explains — and reports back to you in English.
Windows · Android · iOS · macOS — your family library, synced.
You want to help your child. You just don't read Chinese.
The homework comes home in characters you can't read. The spelling list means nothing to you. When your child reads aloud, you have no idea whether that sounded right. Zen Reader is the answer.
"I can't tell if they read it correctly."
AI listens to every character — and the tones — and scores the page.
"I can't test them on this week's 听写 list."
The app runs the test, marks a photo of their writing, and shows you the result.
"I can't explain a worksheet I can't read."
AI guides them through it with hints — you decide how much it may reveal.
"I don't know if they're actually improving."
Every result, trend and reading level, in plain English, on your phone.
You stay the parent — choosing the books, the word lists and the spelling lists. Zen Reader does the Chinese.
Reading, characters, spelling and worksheets — in one place
Everything your child's Chinese homework asks of them, with AI doing the listening, marking and explaining.
Read books aloud, get AI feedback
Your child reads a Chinese book aloud. Zen Reader follows along, marks every character, checks Mandarin tones, and gives a warm per-line report — always encouraging, never a red pen.
Practise characters & sight words — then test
Turn a character or sight-word list into flash cards and a friendly card game, then take a test that listens and scores each word. A family leaderboard makes revision something the kids ask for.
Practise spelling lists — then get tested
Scan the school's 听写 sheet and it becomes weekly lists. Your child practises by writing, saying or taking a dictation test — and AI marks a photo of their handwriting for you.
AI help with Chinese worksheets
Snap a photo of a Chinese worksheet and Zen Reader guides your child through it — hints rather than answers, with exactly how much it reveals set by you.
Ask the AI anything about the app
Jas, the in-app assistant, answers your questions in plain English — how to add a book, set a spelling list, or read your child's report. No manual, no support ticket.
Parents see everything — and set the work
You add the books, word lists and spelling lists your child uses — then see every result: scores, tone notes, trends and badges. Zen Reader tells you when they've read something and takes you straight to the report, and gentle daily reminders keep the habit going.
It reads along in clear Mandarin
Stuck on a word — or a whole page? Zen Reader reads it aloud and highlights each character karaoke-style, so your child hears exactly how it should sound, as often as they like. Nobody has to read Chinese to them.
Every book graded to a level
Zen Reader reads a book's characters and grades it to an HSK level automatically — so you can finally answer the question you couldn't: is this one the right level for my child, or too hard?
One family, every child
Each child signs in as themselves, so every score, badge and trend is theirs alone. Invite the other parent, choose who manages what, and keep your family's reading private to the family.
Bring your own books
Import a PDF or scan a paper book with your camera. Zen Reader reads each page and adds pinyin and an English translation, building your family's own library out of the books you already own.
Practice mode saves nothing
Your child can stumble, repeat and try again with no score kept and no record of it — practice is theirs alone. Scoring mode is one tap away for when they want it to count. No neon streaks, no pressure; homework is stressful enough.
Private, synced & yours
Your family's library and history stay private and securely synced across phone, tablet and computer — and reading captured away from a connection syncs as soon as you're back. The app speaks 12 languages, and a PIN or fingerprint lock keeps little hands out of settings.
How it works
You set the work. Your child does it. AI handles the Chinese in between.
You add the work
Import a book as a PDF or scan it with your camera, and scan or type the week's word list and spelling list. Zen Reader reads each page and adds pinyin and a translation for you.
Your child practises and tests
They read aloud, run flash cards, practise spelling and get help on worksheets. AI listens, marks and explains — patiently, as many times as they need.
You see how it went
Per-character reports, tone tips, spelling marks, reading levels and progress trends — in English, on your phone, for each child.
One library, every device
Zen Reader runs on the devices your family already uses, and keeps your library in sync.
Windows and Mac are ready to download now; iPhone, iPad and Android are rolling out through Apple's and Google's testing programmes ahead of the app-store launch — join the free preview →
Runs on Windows 10 (1809+), Android 6, iOS/iPadOS 12.2 and macOS 12 or newer. See full system requirements →
Give your child the help you can't
Chinese reading, characters, spelling lists and worksheets — with AI doing the listening and marking, and you seeing every result. Try it free for a month — no card, no commitment.