Lexis — an immersive language learning app

Demo
Overview
Product Spec
Wireframes
Schema

Demo

Watch my demo video for a quick 2-minute intro of what Lexis is all about, or see below for walkthrough GIFs of individual features!

Lexis-Demo.mov

Feature Walkthroughs

Home feed	Vocabulary

Flashcards	Word search puzzle

Profile + settings	Login & signup

Overview

Description

It can be difficult to find the motivation or time to learn a new language — so what if you could learn new words while reading regular internet content? Lexis is a language learning app designed to be immersive and fun. Users can see translated words embedded within internet content for in-context learning and practice in a fun way through flashcards & word search puzzles.

App Evaluation

Category: Education
Mobile: Allows language learning on the go + games and quizzes are very suited for mobile
Story: Users can simultaneously learn their target language and get more information / current news on topics that they're interested in. Games allow them to practice their vocabulary in a more "traditional" language learning context.
Market: Anybody who wants to practice their target language could potentially use this app. One challenge would be to ensure the difficulty is appropriate for the level of the learner (but this is probably beyond the scope of my FBU project).
Habit: Could display stats + push notifications about their vocabulary learning to keep users coming back. The content being curated to the user's interests would also help them use the app more.
Scope: V1 would fetch content from an outside source and translate random words within it into the target language, plus show the translations + meaning of the words. V2 would incorporate a vocabulary view where users can see words that they've previously seen, and games / flashcards for additional practice. V3 would allow users to choose the type of content that they want to see. V4 would allow users to upload their own content.

Product Spec

1. User Stories (Required and Optional)

Required Must-have Stories

User can see content with random translated words
User can see a feed with content
User can see the meaning of translated words
User can select and update their target language
User can see a list of vocabulary that they've encountered
User can sign up for a new account
User can log in

Optional Nice-to-have Stories

User can upload their own content to have translated
User can save content to re-visit later
User can star / otherwise mark difficult words for extra practice
User can receive push notifications to encourage them to come back to the app
User can take notes within the app about content / vocabulary
User can see curated content by category / topic
User can add friends and see statistics about their friends' language learning
User can share content from within the app with friends
User can practice their vocabulary through games or flashcards
User can see statistics about their language learning (# of words learned, time spent, etc.)
User can see example sentences in target language + English for translated words

2. Screen Archetypes

Login screen
- User can log in
Registration screen
- User can sign up for a new account
Feed
- User can see content with random translated words
- User can see the meaning of translated words
Vocabulary
- User can see a list of vocabulary that they've encountered
Games
- User can practice their vocabulary through games or flashcards
Profile
- User can see statistics about their language learning (# of words learned, time spent...)
Settings
- User can select and update their target language

3. Navigation

Tab Navigation (Tab to Screen)

Home feed
Practice
Profile

Flow Navigation (Screen to Screen)

Home feed => Games
Registration screen / log in screen => Home feed
Games => Flashcards => Writing quiz
Profile => Settings => Vocabulary

Wireframes

Link to Figma wireframes

Home Tab

Practice Tab

Profile Tab

Schema

Models

Word

Property	Type	Description
objectId	String	unique id for each word (default field)
english	String	English meaning of word
target	String	translation of word in target language
isStarred	Boolean	whether the word is starred
createdAt	DateTime	date when word is created (default field)
updatedAt	DateTime	date when word is last updated (default field)

Article

Property	Type	Description
objectId	String	unique id for each article (default field)
source	String	API where the content is fetched from (e.g. New York Times)
indices	Array	array of indices of words that are translated
title	String	title of the article
body	String	body text of the article
difficulty	Number	difficulty level of the article (?)
isSaved	Boolean	whether the article is saved
createdAt	DateTime	date when article is created (default field)
updatedAt	DateTime	date when article is last updated (default field)

User

Property	Type	Description
objectId	String	unique id for each user (default field)
username	String	username (default field)
password	String	password (default field)
targetLanguage	String	language code for user's target language

Networking

List of network requests by screen

Sign up screen
- (Create/POST) Create new User object
Log in screen
- (Read/GET) Query User object
Home (feed) screen
- (Read/GET) Query all articles
Article screen
- (Read/GET) Query article with given objectId (or will it already be stored locally?)
- (Create/POST) Add word to Parse database when tapped
- (Read/GET) Query all words that belong to this article (will be storing locally until tapped?)
- (Update/PUT) Update whether a word is starred
- (Update/PUT) Update whether an article is saved
Practice screen
- (Read/GET) Query all words (or only starred words)
- (Update/PUT) Update whether a word is starred
Profile screen
- (Read/GET) Query information about current user
- (Update/PUT) Update user target language
Vocabulary screen
- (Read/GET) Query all words (or only starred words)
- (Update/PUT) Update whether a word is starred

Existing API endpoints

Google Cloud Translation API

HTTP Verb	Endpoint	Description	Parameters
POST	/	translate input text	q - input text (string) target - target language (string) source - source language (string) key - API key (string)
POST	/detect	detect language of input text	q - input text (string) key - API key (string)
GET	/languages	return a list of languages supported for translation	key - API key (string)

New York Times APIs

Docs - https://developer.nytimes.com/apis

Most Popular API

Base URL - https://api.nytimes.com/svc/mostpopular/v2

HTTP Verb	Endpoint	Description	Parameters
GET	/viewed/{period}.json	returns an array of the most viewed articles on NYTimes.com for specified period of time (1 day, 7 days, or 30 days)	api-key - API key (string)

nadintamer/Lexis