Loóna: Sleep Stories

Some kids may find these centering sleepscapes helpful for transitioning to bedtime, though using the audio features right before sleep would be best. The main content in Loóna: calm, relax and slee‪p are the sleepscapes. These are like guided meditative sessions in which users follow directions to slowly add color and enhancements to a 3D image as they listen to a story. The coloring aspect resembles the calming, purposeful concentration involved in using a coloring book. If kids get into it, the sleepscapes can be quite soothing, as they require just the right amount of concentration. Although this is a purposeful design element, some kids may find it frustrating that there's an eight-hour wait before they can access a new sleepscape and that they can't choose which new sleepscape to do. And, though the activity is calming, some kids may be better off not staring at screens right before going to sleep.

Though sleepscapes are clearly designed specifically for inducing a sleep state, the other content could be used at other times of day for general calming. The audio stories and music aren't particularly unique, but Loóna: calm, relax and slee‪p has a decently sized collection of both, from a variety of themes. So, especially if your kid is having a lot of trouble transitioning away from screens, an app like this might help that process along.