Tag Archives: design

Do you remember when Niantic’s Pokémon GO was released in summer 2016 and how a craze with kids and families ensued? Are you excited for Harry Potter: Wizards Unite to be released sometime later this year and expect it to be a similar hit? Perhaps you’ve heard of Google Expeditions, which integrates VR and AR into classroom lessons? Or Nintendo Labo’s VR Kit, which has already sold out online, in just one week after its release? And what about all…

The National STEM Video Game Challenge has motivated interest in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) in nearly 20,000 middle and high school students since launching in 2011 by harnessing their natural passion for playing video games and inspiring them to design games of their own. Presented by the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop and E-Line Media with founding sponsor the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the STEM Challenge has named 113 youth winners – including 40% female –…

The 2017 Interaction Design and Children (IDC) conference took place at Stanford University in California this past June. The conference brought together an amazing community of researchers, designers, educators, and industry specialists who are interested in designing (primarily technology and new media experiences) for and with children. Before the conference began, various groups of people put on one-day IDC workshops focusing on topics spanning from joint media engagement to making to co-design. My co-organizers Dr. Julie A. Kientz (University of Washington), Dr.…

As a member of the Support Team for the National STEM Video Game Challenge, I often receive many emails from students looking for guidance, such as a recent request from Yoel in Dallas who was looking for tips for young game designers thinking about entering a game for the 2016 cycle. Based upon my experience as a professional game designer and a screener for many of the STEM Challenge game submissions, I thought I’d share my personal recommendations with all…

For several years now, children’s literature has been venturing step by step into the digital field, with all the creative force and originality that the domain has shown itself capable of. Beyond the simple digitalization of content in PDF or E-pub format, many producers (Nosy Crow, Tank & Bear, Camera Lucida, Atomic Antelope, and Moobot Studio, to name just a few) are embarking today into digital storytelling and using it to its full potential. The development of immersive environments, auditory…

Family Time with Apps: A Guide to Using Apps with Your Kids is a free interactive guide for parents and caregivers. The book, which is available for free in the iBook store, features comic strips that parents and children can enjoy together, as well as tips on selecting apps that can help turn screen time into family time. We are thrilled to have Stuart Dredge, a journalist and children’s app reviewer, share his thoughts on how the right apps can…

INplay is Canada’s premiere kids content conference that focuses on interactive media created for kids from Pre-School through to Tween. From the video game business to the broadcast industry, from toys to toons, the INplay conference brings together leaders in the kids space to learn, network and be inspired by the future of kids interactive digital media. For more information, please visit the official site.

On a bright sunny morning after a February snowstorm, kids and their parents were lined up outside the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in Manhattan. But they weren’t there solely to see the many museum treasures. They were there to attend a workshop to make video games that they will enter into the National STEM Video Game Challenge. The excitement was palpable as the kids funneled into a room outfitted with laptops. “Do you have an idea for a…

A school is more than just a building. It’s an ecosystem, as delicate and as in need of balance as the ecosystems of the natural world. They way that a school is designed dictates the success of its mission to educate children and prepare them to become active and engaged citizens. To this end, teachers, administrators, architects, parents, concerned community members, and students themselves are innovating classroom design to create healthier environments conducive to effective learning. The American Institute of…

The nation’s largest independent game festival comes to New York to celebrate the importance of indie games in the artistic community and invites artists, designers, and players to a weekend of panels, discussions, and game-design workshops. Co-hosted by the Museum of the Moving Image, IndieCade East will feature a weekend-long game jam for aspiring designers, industry panels, and an evening of game-play for visitors. Learn more.