Layers

Layers — Translation & Study Tools for Students

Layers is a free floating toolbar that lives in your browser — giving students instant access to translation, a dictionary, notes, a timer, and drawing tools right on top of any page they're studying.

No new tab. No switching apps. Everything is one click away, always visible, always ready.

WHY IT'S FREE — AND ALWAYS WILL BE

Layers was built by Peter Hoang, a teacher in Japan. His family were refugees, and He built this for students who sit in classrooms where the lessons aren't in their language.. The students who need it most are the ones whose families can least afford to pay for it.

No ads. No account required. No data collection. No subscriptions. Free forever.

🎤 PUSH-TO-TALK TRANSLATION

Hold a button and speak in your language. Your words are translated and displayed instantly — in 46 languages. Perfect for students who want to ask a question in class but aren't confident in the lesson language.

🌐 DICTIONARY & TRANSLATION

Type or paste any word into the built-in dictionary to see a full definition — with pronunciation, part of speech, and an example sentence. Switch to translation mode to translate longer text into your language. Supports 46 languages including Japanese, Vietnamese, Chinese, Nepali, Filipino, Korean, Arabic, Hindi, and more.

📝 SCRATCH PAD

A notepad that stays open across every website and auto-saves every keystroke. Jot down vocabulary, key terms, or questions without ever losing your work — even if you close the page.

⏱ TIMER

A countdown timer and stopwatch students control themselves. Quick presets (30s, 1m, 3m, 5m, 10m) or any custom time. An alert sounds when it ends.

✏️ PAGE DRAWING

Draw and annotate directly over any webpage. Mark up an article, circle key terms, or highlight anything worth remembering. Pen, highlighter, arrows, and shapes — undo at any time.

🎯 FOCUS MODE

One click blocks 60+ common distracting websites — including YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Reddit — so students can concentrate.

NOTE: Teachers can also activate Focus Mode remotely for the whole class

🔗 CLASSROOM SYNC

Students enter a room code once to join their teacher's classroom — and auto-rejoin every future session. The teacher can push Focus Mode, lock internet access for the whole class, block websites, and send links — all from the Windows teacher app, in real time.

KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS

Alt+L — Show / hide the toolbar
Alt+T — Push-to-talk translation
Escape — Exit drawing mode

PERMISSIONS EXPLAINED

• Read and change data on websites — Required to show the toolbar and enable translation. We do not read, log, or transmit page content.
• Storage — Saves your language preferences and notepad locally. Nothing is sent to a server.
• Microphone (optional) — Only requested when you use push-to-talk. Audio is processed by Google and not stored by Layers.

Privacy policy: thelayersapp.com/privacy.html