Privacy Policy for SpellHive

Last updated: October 21, 2026

SpellHive ("the App," "we," "us") is a spelling practice app designed for children. It's available three ways, all sharing the same backend, so this policy covers all of them:

• an iOS app, set up by a parent at home;
• a web app at spellhive.com, used by teachers in a classroom and by families at home; and
• an Android app (from Google Play), used by parents and teachers.

Students can join a teacher's class, or practice on another device, by entering a code the adult gives them. This policy explains what information we collect, how it's used, and the choices parents and teachers have. It's written for the adults who set the App up — the primary audience of this policy — since the App is intended to be used by children under adult supervision.

Information We Collect

If you're a parent using the iOS app, we collect:

• A first name the parent or child enters during setup (used only to personalize the greeting on screen — we do not require or ask for a last name, email address, or any other identifying contact information).
• An avatar selection (an emoji chosen from a fixed set) and a grade level selection, both used to personalize the experience.
• Gameplay data: which words were practiced, whether they were spelled correctly, how long each attempt took, and which category/difficulty was used. This powers the adaptive difficulty and the Progress screen a parent can view.
• A randomly generated device identifier (an anonymous ID created by Firebase Authentication), by default, so no sign-up is required to use the App.
• Optionally, a real account: a parent can choose to sign in with Apple or Google so their data is backed up and available if they reinstall the App or switch devices. Doing so shares that account's name and email address with us, via Firebase Authentication — we never display it to your child, never use it for marketing, and it is kept separate from the gameplay/profile data described above rather than written into it.
• Custom word lists a parent chooses to add, by importing a spreadsheet file, typing or pasting a list directly, or scanning a paper list with the camera. If a parent scans a paper list, the App uses the device camera and on-device text recognition (Apple's Vision framework) to read the words on the page. The photo itself is processed entirely on the device, is never uploaded or stored anywhere — not by us, not by any third party — and is discarded as soon as the words are extracted. A parent reviews and edits the recognized words before anything is saved; only that reviewed text (the words themselves) is stored, the same way any other word list is.

If you're a teacher using the web app, we collect:

• Your name and email address, from the Google account you sign in with (teachers must sign in to use the web app).
• If you join a school using an invite code, your name and email are also stored as part of that school's staff roster, so the school's administrator(s) can manage their teachers. A school administrator can view every teacher's and student's activity within that school, and can also enter a school name, logo, and color theme, shown to that school's teachers and students.
• Classes and students you create: a student's first name, avatar, and grade level — the same kind of information a parent enters on iOS — plus any custom word lists you add, the same way as described above.

If you're a parent using the web app, we collect the same kinds of information as a parent on iOS (a child's first name, avatar, grade level, gameplay data and custom word lists), plus your Google account's name and email address if you sign in.

If you're a parent or teacher using the Android app, we collect:

• The same child, student, class, gameplay and word-list information described above for parents and teachers. Child and student profiles hold only a first name, an emoji avatar and a grade level.
• An anonymous Firebase Authentication identifier, by default. You can try the App as a guest without signing in; a guest account is limited (for example, one child and no custom word lists).
• Optionally, your Google account's name and email address, if you choose "Sign in with Google." On Android, sign-in uses Google's Android Credential Manager; SpellHive never sees your Google password. Only an adult signs in. Your email and name are stored with your SpellHive account record, not in any child's profile, and are never shown to a child.
• Word lists imported from a file (CSV, TXT, XLS or XLSX) that you choose with Android's file picker. The file is read on the device; only the words you save are stored. The file itself is not uploaded.
• The Android app does not offer camera scanning, school invite codes or school administration.

If your child joins a class or practices on another device using a code from their teacher or parent (on the web or Android app), no personal information is required. Their device gets an anonymous Firebase Authentication identifier, and entering the code links that device to the student or child record the adult already created — so their progress can be seen from any device that enters the same code (for example, a classroom computer and a home tablet).

We do not collect: precise or approximate location, contacts, health information, payment/financial information, browsing or search history, the advertising ID, or any government-issued identifiers. We do not retain photos, and the camera is only ever used in the one iOS parent-initiated scanning flow described above — never in the background, and never during normal gameplay. The App reads words aloud using recorded pronunciations downloaded from our servers or the device's own text-to-speech; the App never uses the microphone, and no audio of you or your child is recorded, transmitted, or stored.

A parent-only "Parent Zone" area, protected by a PIN the parent sets, lets a parent adjust settings like which word categories are available and how long a practice session is. On iOS that PIN is stored only on the device (in Apple's Keychain). On the web and Android apps, the PIN (and the Classroom Mode PIN) is stored only on the device, as a one-way hash in the app's local storage. It is never transmitted to us.

How We Use Information

We use the information above solely to operate the App: to run adaptive spelling sessions, to show a parent or teacher their child's or students' practice history and progress, to let an adult sign back in on another device, and to look at overall usage counts drawn from that same data (for example, how many practice rounds are played) so we can improve it. We do not use any analytics service for this. We do not use this information to build advertising profiles, and we do not sell, rent, or share it with data brokers.

Third-Party Services

The App uses Google Firebase for backend services:

• Firebase Authentication — anonymous by default on every platform; a parent on iOS may sign in with Apple or Google, and adults on the web and Android apps sign in with Google. We never use email/password accounts.
• Cloud Firestore to store the account, profile and gameplay data described above.
• Cloud Storage for Firebase to deliver recorded word pronunciations (read-only; nothing about you is uploaded).
• Cloud Functions for Firebase to carry out account deletion.
• Firebase App Check with Google Play Integrity (Android) — a future Android version may ask Google Play to confirm that requests come from a genuine copy of the App on a genuine device, to protect our backend from abuse. This check does not identify you or your child and is not used for tracking.

The App does not use Firebase Analytics or any other analytics, crash-reporting or advertising SDK, on any platform. It does not access the iOS Advertising Identifier (IDFA) or the Android advertising ID, and it uses no advertising or cross-app tracking SDKs. Data is sent to Firebase over encrypted connections (HTTPS/TLS). Google processes this data as our service provider, subject to Google's Privacy Policy and Firebase's data processing terms.

Children's Privacy

SpellHive is designed for use by children under adult supervision. Only an adult ever signs in with a real identity — a parent or teacher. A child's own profile is never tied to a personal email address or social account, on any platform: children use the App through an adult's account or an anonymous join code. We do not knowingly collect more information from a child than described above, we do not require children to disclose more information than is reasonably necessary to use the App's features, we show no ads, and we do not serve behavioral or interest-based advertising to children. Children cannot chat with, message or share content with other users.

A parent can review their child's progress in the App, correct the child's name, avatar or grade level at any time, remove the child from the account, and delete the whole account (see below). Deleting the account permanently erases every child's profile and practice history; to have a single child's practice history erased without deleting the account, email us. A teacher who creates student records is responsible for their class roster and can edit or remove any student.

If you are a parent and believe your child has provided us with information beyond what's described in this policy, please contact us and we will delete it.

Data Retention & Deletion

We keep account, profile and gameplay data while the account exists, so that progress and adaptive difficulty continue to work across sessions and devices. Uninstalling the App does not delete data already stored on our servers.

You can delete your account and all of its data at any time:

• In the Android app: open Account (in the family or teacher workspace menu; if the app is showing a child's practice screen, first unlock the Parent Zone with the Parent PIN), tick the confirmation box and tap Delete account. A signed-in account confirms with Google first.
• In the iOS app: Parent/Teacher Zone → My Account → Delete My Account & Data.
• Without the app (including web accounts): email spellhive@gmail.com from the address linked to your account (or describe your guest account) and ask us to delete it. We confirm the request and delete the data within 30 days. Details: spellhive.com/delete-account.html.

In-app deletion normally finishes within a few minutes (it retries automatically if interrupted). It permanently removes, for every device, the account and its sign-in, all children or classes and students with their practice progress, custom word lists, student join codes (devices using them lose access), and any school staff membership. To confirm that a deletion has finished, we keep a minimal record containing only the deleted account's internal ID, the deletion status, timestamps and a one-way hash of a random confirmation code — no name, email or practice data.

Data Security

Data is sent over encrypted connections and stored in Cloud Firestore, secured by server-side rules so it's only accessible to the parent or teacher account that created it, and to student devices that entered that student's code. The one exception: if a school opts into SpellHive's school features (web only), that school's administrator(s) can view roster and progress information for the teachers and students within their own school — never data belonging to a different school or family. SpellHive staff access account data only to operate and support the service.

Your Choices

• The Parent Zone lets you control which word categories your child practices and how long a session is.
• Signing in is optional for families on iOS, web and Android — SpellHive can be tried as a guest. On the web app, a teacher must sign in with Google to use the App; a student never signs in with a personal account.
• You may delete your account in the iOS or Android app, or request deletion of all stored data at any time by email (see above), including removing a teacher's account or a school from our records.
• Uninstalling the App stops all further data collection; previously stored data can still be deleted as described above.

Changes to This Policy

If we make material changes to this policy, we will update the date above. Continued use of the App after changes means you accept the updated policy.

Contact Us

Questions, data access, or deletion requests: spellhive@gmail.com