Coming soon · for children aged 5 to 8
Dilu speaks your language, so your child can learn English.
Diluආයුබෝවන්! · வணக்கம்! · Hello!
Opens your email app with a short message.
What Dilu offers
Dilu speaks your language
Instructions in Sinhala, Tamil or English. What your child learns is always English.
Short, active lessons
Two 3–5 minute lessons a day: listen, tap, speak and move.
No ads, no tracking
Your child can never buy anything, and the first version collects no data.
Works offline
Once it is installed, lessons play without the internet.
How it works
How a day with Dilu works
Two short lessons of 3 to 5 minutes each, then off to play.
මේ අඹ. ඉංග්රීසියෙන්: mango!
இது மாம்பழம். ஆங்கிலத்தில்: mango!
Dilu explains in your language
Every instruction, hint and bit of praise is spoken in Sinhala, Tamil or English. You choose the language when you set up the app.
OliBanana!
Your child plays in English
Lessons of 3 to 5 minutes, with pictures, listening games, chants, actions and stories. Every English word is heard clearly, many times.
DiluAll done for today! Go and find something red in your house!
Then Dilu says goodbye
After the day's lessons, Dilu gives an off-screen task, like "Find something red in your house!", and play stops until tomorrow. You can change the daily limit.
Screen time
Turn screen time into English time
Children love bright characters, songs and stories. Dilu keeps all of that, and asks your child to join in.
What children love, and what Dilu adds
Cartoon friends
With Dilu: Friends who talk to your child, in English
Songs
With Dilu: Chants with a gap to sing the word back
Stories
With Dilu: Stories that pause for your child's line
Short videos
With Dilu: Short lessons that end with goodbye
The same 4½ minutes, two ways
A lesson moves from hearing a word to saying it.
- Hear it
- Find it
- Act it out
- Say it
A video that just plays
Your child watches. Nothing asks for an answer, and the next video starts by itself.
A lesson with Dilu
9 times your child answers
Your child hears each word, finds it, moves and says it, then Dilu says goodbye.
See the lesson step by step
| Step | Time | What your child does |
|---|---|---|
| Hello30 s | 30 s | Dilu says hello. Your child taps two words from earlier lessons. |
| A friend arrives15 s | 15 s | Nava runs in: A mango, please! |
| New words45 s | 45 s | Hears mango, banana and pineapple, each twice, with its action. |
| Listen and find45 s | 45 s | Hears a word and taps its picture, three times. |
| Move40 s | 40 s | Chants a line of the market song, with the mango action. |
| Odd one out30 s | 30 s | Taps the red ball hiding among the fruit. |
| Say it30 s | 30 s | Says mango with Dilu. Every try is praised. |
| Easy win15 s | 15 s | One sure answer, then a mango sticker. |
| Goodbye15 s | 15 s | Dilu says goodbye. |
One unit, one week
- The new words come back
- The story
Day 1
- Meet
- Play
The new words come backDay 2
- Chant or action
- Letters
The new words come backDay 3
- Story
- Say it
The new words come backThe storyThe storyDay 4
- Show what you know
- Review
The new words come backThe storyDays 5 to 7
Catch up on a missed day, or go out and play.
- 4different days for every new word
- about 15times your child meets each new word
- 3times your child hears the unit's story
From Dilu's lesson design: one unit a week, two short lessons a day.
What we know
- In September 2026, Sri Lanka's Health Ministry reported that 64% of preschool children spend more than 30 minutes a day on screens. (Health Ministry, 2026)
- When the next video started by itself, preschoolers watched for longer and found it harder to stop. (Hiniker et al., 2018)
- Children learn more from apps that keep them actively thinking, connect to their own lives and bring in other people. (Hirsh-Pasek et al., 2015)
- Five-year-olds who copied a word's gesture remembered the English word better. (Tellier, 2008)
- For children aged 6 and over, paediatricians advise consistent limits on screen time and on the kinds of media. (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2016)
The first course
What your child learns
Hello, English! has six units on topics children meet in Grade 1 oral English at school.
Unit 1: Greetings
Say hello and goodbye, and ask a name.
Unit 2: Colours
Name colours: red, blue, yellow, green.
Unit 3: Numbers 1 to 10
Count from one to ten, and answer How many?
Unit 4: My family
Name the family: mother, father, sister, brother.
Unit 5: At the market
Name fruit, and shop with please and thank you.
Unit 6: Animals and actions
Name animals, then jump and clap!
Plus first letter sounds with Tharu: s, a, t, i, p, n
The friends
Dilu speaks your language. Everyone else speaks English.
Six friends each lead one kind of game, and they only ever speak English.
Meet Dilu, your child's host
Dilu explains every step in your language, helps after a mistake and cheers every try. Nothing your child says is recorded.
Nava
New words
Shows each new word with a picture and says it clearly.
Oli
Listening games
Says a word slowly; your child finds the right picture.
Kavi
Chants and songs
Short chants and songs, with the words lighting up.
Yalu
Actions
Jump! Clap! Run! Sit! Your child moves, away from the screen.
Tharu
Letters
First letter sounds and tracing: s, a, t, i, p, n.
Pani
Stories
Short picture stories, read aloud and heard again and again.
Rewards
Stickers, sparks and a parrot that grows
Every word becomes a sticker, and finished lessons hatch a little parrot that says the words back.
A sticker for every word
From egg to parrot
Built to be kind
- It grows only when lessons are finished, never from time spent.
- It never gets hungry, sad or lost, and nothing is ever taken away.
- It can't be bought or sped up with money.
- It never sends your child notifications.
For parents
You don't need to speak English to help
Dilu does the English. Here is what you control, and what we promise.
Sing the colour chant at bath time, and pause so your child can say red.
A grown-up gate
Settings, links and the parent corner sit behind a quick grown-up check, spoken in your language.
The parent corner
See this week's words with English audio, and a game idea in your language to play together.
You set the daily limit
Choose how many lessons a day. When they are done, Dilu says goodbye and play stops until tomorrow.
Kind to mistakes
No lives, timers or red crosses. After a miss, Dilu gives a hint, then shows the answer.
The microphone, explained
It only checks that your child spoke. Nothing is recorded or sent, and the app works without it.
Delete it any time
Progress stays on your phone. Delete one child's data, or everything, in the parent corner.
Dilu is made by Prabhava Labs.
Questions
Questions parents ask
Everything parents usually ask, in one place.
What age is it for?
Children aged 5 to 8. It is not designed for children under 4.
Which languages does Dilu speak?
Sinhala, Tamil or English. You choose when you set up the app, and you can change it later. What your child learns is always English.
Does my child need to read?
No. Dilu speaks every instruction, and children answer by tapping pictures, moving and speaking. Text on screen is there for parents reading along.
How long will my child play each day?
By default, two short lessons a day, of 3 to 5 minutes each. Then Dilu says goodbye, gives an off-screen task, and play stops until tomorrow. You can change the limit.
Does it need the internet?
No. The lessons are inside the app, so once it is installed, your child can play without the internet.
Are there ads, and do you collect data?
There are no ads, ever. The first version has no account and collects no personal data: everything stays on your phone, and you can delete it at any time.
What does the microphone do?
When your child says a word out loud, the phone checks only that they spoke, and Dilu praises the try. Nothing is recorded, saved or sent, and the app works fully without the microphone.
Does Dilu cost anything?
Your family can start with lessons included in the app. The full course will be part of a simple family plan, and we'll share the details before it launches. Only a parent can turn a plan on, behind the parent gate, so your child can never buy anything. There are no ads, ever.
When can we get Dilu?
Dilu is coming soon to the App Store and Google Play, for families in Sri Lanka first. Email us and we'll tell you when it's ready.
Which phones and tablets does it work on?
Android phones, iPhones and iPads. It may run on Android tablets, but it is not designed for them yet.
Dilu is getting ready
Dilu: English for Kids is coming soon to the App Store and Google Play in Sri Lanka. Send us an email and we'll tell you when it's ready.
Or write to us: dilu@prabhavalabs.com
We use your email only to reply to you. Please don't send your child's name or photo.