Top 9 FableVision Moments of 2020

2020 has been a year of unprecedented change—but also a time of resiliency in the face of challenge. We have seen innovative educators, creatives, and more step up to the plate to keep the learning going for students of all ages, no matter where they are.

And there is no better way to wrap up our year than with the streaming of “Parade of the Wooden Soldiers” at this year’s virtual Holiday Pops Celebration. We’re so thankful for incredible partnerships and projects such as this, and for all those who helped us continue to find safe, fun, and exciting ways to connect this year, even where we’re physically apart.

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1. FableVision Games

Our highlight of 2020 is the launch of our new games platform, FableVision Games! Timely as ever, FableVision Games offers state-of-the-art, research-based games and educator tools, poised for this time of remote and blended classroom learning. Stay tuned for more games launching in 2021!

The FableVision Games lineup includes: 

Zoombinis: a relaunch of the classic, beloved ’90s game “Logical Journey of Zoombinis” created in partnership with TERC and the Learning Games Network. The game teaches Computational Thinking to grades 3-8.

Cyberchase Fractions Quest: an immersive game based on the popular, award-winning PBS KIDS series Cyberchase that combines a high-stakes adventure story with a research-based approach to fractions learning. Created in partnership with WNET and the Education Development Center (EDC) through Phase I and II support from the IES Department of Education’s SBIR program.

Civics! An American Musical: an online game for middle school students that promotes the importance of civics and teaches how to analyze primary sources. Created in partnership with Maryland Public Television, Maryland Humanities, and Tufts’ CIRCLE, as part of the Library of Congress’ Teaching with Primary Sources program.

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2. Design Principles

On our mission to tell “stories that matter, stories that move” and create positive media that moves the world to a better place, the studio authored our core design principles to share the pedagogy behind our approach. No matter the type of media—educational games, animation, museum interactives, websites, Augmented Reality experience—or the subject matter, our focus is always on the needs of our end-user, the context of their learning, and the impact of our product.

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FableVision President Gary Goldberger (left) and Communications Director Sarah Ditkoff (right) accept the KAPi Award for Keenville at the 2020 CES Convention in January.

3. Award Winners!

We pride ourselves on the quality, creativity, and educational value of our educational media and game-based projects. You don’t have to take our word for it, though! The awards we’ve won speak for themselves.

This year, we were honored to accept an award for Keenville, our literacy and math game-based assessment created in partnership with the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) and Georgia Center for Assessment. Keenville was recognized as a “Noteworthy School Product” in the 2020 Kids At Play Interactive (KAPi) Awards.

Galaxia, a bullying prevention game developed in partnership with the National Health Promotion Associates as a part of their Botvin LifeSkills Training middle school curriculum, was selected as an EdTech “Cool Tool” finalist for 2020.

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4. Amazing Partners

2020 was also a year of innovative collaborations towards a more educated and empathetic world. Here are just some of the incredible organizations we were proud to partner with this year.

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FableVision Executive Producer Peter Stidwill presents at the virtual Games for Change Festival.

5. Thought Leadership

The FableVision team’s insights shone this year as they shared their expertise and best practices at a number of industry conferences. 

Gary Goldberger, FableVision president and co-founder, spoke at the Unity for Humanity Summit about FableVision’s core design principles and how Unity creators can make accessible educational games.

Executive Producer Peter Stidwill joined three panel presentations in 2020. He presented at the SXSW EDU Conference and Festival and the Serious Play Conference on how games can teach and assess 21st Century skills. Peter also presented at the 2020 Games for Change Festival, where he shared his knowledge and best practices to make educational games more accessible. 

Creative Director, Leigh Hallisey, also attended the Library of Congress Consortium Meeting to present a poster session on our newly-launched U.S. history learning game Civics! An American Musical.

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6. Resources in the Era of Social Distancing

To support teachers, students, and families in this time of remote and blended learning, FableVision developed a myriad of robust resources to help people stay informed and to keep the learning going through this era of social distancing. 

As students and teachers around the world stayed at home to reduce risk, FableVision compiled a list of our favorite distance learning games, animation, and other resources to make finding engaging, quality digital learning tools easier.

To build awareness during Mental Health Awareness Month and beyond, we curated a list of FableVision-developed resources that facilitate open and honest conversations about mental health, self-love, and healthy coping skills.

For summer 2020, FableVision invited everyone to join us for a social distanced and educational virtual summer picnic, complete with educational games, animation, and more to help students have fun and keep their minds sharp throughout the season.

We teamed with the Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation (CISCRP) to produce a series of videos educating people on how clinical trials produce new treatments and vaccines.

To support educators and students as they returned to their school routines in the fall, FableVision joined over 70 federally-funded researchers and developers to produce a series of educational technology guides and resources covering a range of topics.

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7. FableVision In the News

In 2020, we were also thrilled and honored to see our work in the news, at festivals, and beyond where it can reach more audiences!  

The Animation World Network highlighted The Paper Girls Show, our new animated series created in partnership with Global Tinker that empowers young girls to play, imagine, make, and learn with STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics).  

Don’t Mix Us Up, our witty and catchy animated music video series was featured at the Bay Area International Children’s Film Festival, where attendees were able to learn all about the dangers of confusing look-alike objects. 

And last but not least, over 3,500 Lubbock County second-graders read FableVision founder Peter H. Reynolds’ book The World Collector as a part of the United We Read initiative! The festivities also featured a special video message from Peter Reynolds, encouraging their reading efforts.

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8. Seasonal Banners

Spring banner designed by FableVision production artist Julie Oliveira

Summer banner designed by FableVision director of art & animation Bob Flynn

Fall banner designed by FableVision lead artist Christina Kelly

Winter banner designed by FableVision production artist Julie Oliveira

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9. Our Incredible Team

The FableVision team celebrates the KAPi Award for Keenville in January 2020.

What a year. We count ourselves lucky to have an amazing staff that not only rolled with the punches but excelled with grace, grit, and a sense of humor. From our virtual offices to yours—the future looks bright from here. Stay safe. See you in 2021!

Summer Learning, Summer Fun with Cyberchase Fractions Quest

This post was originally written by Bob Krech and posted on our partner THIRTEEN/WNET's blog. Click here to view.

Bob Krech is a writer and consultant on elementary math. A former elementary teacher, supervisor, and curriculum developer, he has written more than thirty books for teachers and parents and is a recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching. He is the math advisor for the award-winning PBS children’s television series, Cyberchase.

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Summer is here! Time to get outside, get active, and have some fun! Time to keep learning too. Of course, this summer is going to be different for kids and families in quite a few ways. With new social distancing requirements in place due to COVID, there will be fewer in-person summer camps, classes, or educational events to attend. These are activities some students traditionally look forward to when school is out. They’re exciting, stimulating experiences that keep kids thinking, learning, and engaged during the summer months. 

In fact, for students who are not engaged in summer learning, studies have shown that there is a very real phenomenon known as the “summer slide” where kids, because they are not reviewing or using material they have learned, will regress. If you don’t use it, you lose it, so to speak. This can be particularly true with concepts that are difficult for young learners, like fractions. A solid understanding of fractions underpins most all of the math students will encounter as they enter upper elementary grades and middle school, so it’s important to have a strong understanding. Students need to keep reviewing these concepts and skills to establish and maintain a solid foundation, but who wants to sit down and do another workbook? Not to worry. Cyberchase to the rescue!

THIRTEEN and FableVision have just released a free beta preview of a new online game to help families stave off the “summer slide.” Cyberchase Fractions Quest combines screen time, fun time, and learning time in an exciting online adventure. Set in the world of the popular PBS KIDS animated series in which three diverse kids use brain power, science, and math to save the day, the game introduces, explores, and reviews important fraction concepts for grades 3 and 4. Playing keeps kids learning while having fun. Each section of the game features a different fraction concept; fair shares, unit fractions, non-unit fractions, equivalent fractions, and estimation with fractions. It brings players into cyberworlds like underwater Aquariyum and skate-boarding Radopolis as they practice fractions in unique problem-solving scenarios in three contexts; area (shapes), sets (groups) and on a number line. Students learn how to create, interpret, manipulate, and write about fractions. They get involved with fractions from every angle and thus develop a thorough understanding.

Fractions Quest is easy to access and begin playing right away. It’s intuitive, motivating, and makes you think rather than just complete tasks in a rote manner. Each section of the game begins with a helpful tutorial that teaches players about the fraction concept as well as the mechanics of the game. Players travel in their cybercoupes across cyberspace as they thwart the villainous Hacker’s plans and rescue their Cyberchase pals. Review and support scaffolding are built into each part of the game, so the action and learning are very individualized for each player. It’s fun, exciting, and an in-depth learning experience in an area where most all kids need at least some practice, helping kids stay in tune with fractions and be ready for school when it rolls around again.

One of the big ideas students learn through Fractions Quest is that the actual size or quantity of a fraction depends on the whole it is a fraction of. For example, ¼ of the water in a lake is a lot more than ¼ of the water in a bathtub. To emphasize this idea at home, gather some different sized round fruits, such as an orange, a cherry, a grape, and a melon. Talk about fourths as you cut an orange into four equal pieces. Now cut a cherry into four equal pieces. Put ¼ of the cherry next to ¼ of the orange and ask your child which is more and why. Help your students create other fractions using the fruits. Creating, discussing, manipulating, and comparing these physical examples is really helpful to developing this understanding. This helps greatly later as students think about fractions of numbers and how ¼ of 100 (25) is going to be larger than ¼ of 20 (5) just like ¼ of the orange was more than ¼ of the cherry.

So, here it is. The special free beta release of Cyberchase Fractions Quest to help families keep that learning going when it’s needed most. Enjoy! https://www.fablevisiongames.com/fractions-quest

A New Conference Celebrating Libraries and the Power of Playful Learning

Next month, FableVision and American University Game Lab are taking our love of games to a new level by co-hosting the Libraries, Games and Play Conference in Washington, DC. Join us and our sister companies FableVision Learning and The Reynolds Center for Teaching, Learning and Creativity in exploring innovative uses of educational technology and showcasing the cutting-edge edtech that will help teachers keep students excited about learning.  As longtime supporters of using games in educational spaces, FableVision is proud to co-host this event and share best practices in integrating technology into learning spaces, such as libraries, where technology is often overlooked.

The Idea

Conference organizer J Collins says it perfectly when they talk about how libraries hold communities together. “We need to celebrate the successes that they have had with games and we need to have a serious conversation about how we can better support and recognize their work.”

To make this conference as accessible as possible and give equal opportunity to all attendees, conference admission is free and a travel stipend was offered for those who might not have the funds to travel. However, because not all libraries can spare their hardest workers for a full weekend, the conference will be interactive and shareable. Collins also shared their personal experiences with librarians, and how important librarians are to the communities they serve. "I knew that I wanted to organize this conference after hearing a story from my friend about her work as a public librarian,” Collins said. “She teaches children and adults with games every week. She grew up playing games. And yet she's never made it out to a games conference. Why? For her to leave her post at the library means that ESL classes don't happen, afterschool youth won't find their special friend there, the AC unit might break and spray water onto the books again, and on and on.”

Highlighted Events

Don’t miss out on the showcase, which will include The Reynolds Center and FableVision Learning’s Fab@School Maker Studio educational technology aimed at fostering more engineering and design skills in the classroom. It helps create practical and affordable makerspaces, using material like cardstock, paper, and inexpensive digital fabricators.

This conference will  bring together leaders and innovators with the teachers and librarians who can use their technology in educational spaces.

Another exciting, must-see event offered at the conference is a closing keynote speech from FableVision and The Reynolds Center co-founder and CEO Paul Reynolds! Paul will speak about libraries’ growing importance in a networked, digital age, as well as the role of creativity in the future of the planet, creative influences from his childhood, and the mission of educators to make young innovators—all topics near and dear to the heart of FableVision.

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Conference Details

What: Libraries, Games, and Play Conference
When: April 6, 2019
Where: American University in Washington, DC
Cost: Free!

The deadline for both registration and travel stipend applications is March 15. We hope you’ll take the opportunity to attend this one-of-a-kind conference and learn more about the importance of libraries, game-based learning, and the integration of the two.

Click here to apply for a travel stipend.
Click here to register.

We hope to see you there!

September FableFriday: Betsy Peisach, Vice President of Education at Maryland Public Television

Betsy Peisach, Vice President of Education at Maryland Public Television, caught the media bug early. “The majority of my career has been in the media industry driven by a passionate belief in using the power of media for good,” shares Betsy. “This passion took root in 1970 with the debut of Sesame Street and my little sister. Her toddler years included a healthy dose of public television including Sesame Street, Mr Roger’s Neighborhood, and The Electric Company. We watched the shows together, I sang songs with her (those catchy tunes still ring in my head), and observed as she learned numbers and to count, sang all the letters of the alphabet, and eventually learned to read (by age four!).”

With such a strong influence at an early age, Betsy took what she saw and turned it into a career that spans the evolution of incredible products, tools, and resources in the public television space. “I witnessed first-hand how media can truly be a powerful tool in helping children learn and that became my compass.”

Several decades later, Betsy’s still using that compass to steer big projects making a big difference. From the early days of Lure of the Labyrinth, an online game geared towards improving math and literacy among middle-school students, to our latest project putting a musical spin on the Library of Congress’ primary sources, Betsy has helped forge a lasting partnership with FableVision Studios that continues to impact learners today.

In this month’s FableFriday, read on to see the strides Betsy has made to harness the power of public media, the innovative products we’re building together, and the ultimate media toolkit curated by Betsy!

Your commitment to education is nothing short of extraordinary! Tell us a little bit about your roles as MPT’s Managing Director of Education Marketing and Outreach, and your current position as Vice President of MPT’s Education division.
I joined MPT in 2000 on the heels of the education division winning a $10 million dollar grant from the U.S. Department of Education. At that time, technology was beginning to burgeon and our charge was to harness the new digital capabilities for learning. It was a wonderfully exciting time to be in the field, filled with opportunity to produce innovative learning media in engaging new ways to help teachers teach and students learn. We built a robust website called Thinkport that today continues to serve early childhood, K-12 teachers, students, and parents with interactive media and online professional development courses. Our goal is to support teaching and learning with effective technology integration, high-quality digital resources, and to share best practices.

Betsy and her team with FableVision President Gary Goldberger at ISTE 2017

As a statewide public media broadcaster, my role was to bring these rich resources into the classrooms and homes of the early childhood and K-12 education communities.  It is always insightful and rewarding to participate at local and national education events to share what’s new, what’s possible, and to get a pulse on what’s happening in the field.

Through the years at MPT,  I’ve had the privilege of working with an extraordinary team of talented professionals —educators, producers, content experts, writers. Together, we developed a large catalog of truly cutting-edge interactive media and strong supporting professional development for educators (we won a Webby, Emmy, and other industry awards).  My roles morphed and grew in many gratifying ways. Whether marketing, producing, project managing, strategic planning or raising funds; what I fundamentally enjoy the most are: the energy of the collaborative creative process, fostering relationships into meaningful partnerships, working with educators, and knowing that you can make a difference.

Before joining MPT, you worked for the United Broadcasting Company, a national broadcaster of major market radio and cable stations. How does your expertise in radio, television, and film inform your approach to digital education?  
Whether you are working in education, or entertainment, the key is to know your audience.  Do your research and develop products and services that are relevant and valued.    

 MPT has a long history of collaboration with FableVision. Together, we’ve created an array of innovative, accessible websites. What has your experience been like working with the FableVision team?
In a nutshell, and to borrow a movie line, ”You had me at hello.” When I met Gary Goldberger, FableVision’s president and co-founder, it was like we were old friends from the onset. Our like-minded enthusiasm for creating high-quality educational media brought together our respective teams and complementary expertise. There is always a lot of respect and laughs in our often lengthy working sessions. Many of the projects we’ve worked on together have challenged us in a positive way, requiring fresh thinking and innovative tech development. We’ve been working with the FableVision team for over ten years, and I hope to continue our relationship far into the future. FableVision always hits a homerun.

Alongside MIT Education Arcade, MPT and the FableVision team crafted Lure of the Labyrinth, an online game geared towards improving math and literacy among middle-school students. What was the thought process behind the game, and what do you think makes it such a lasting, effective learning tool?
Lure of the Labyrinth was a labor of love. It was developed with a grant awarded to MPT in 2007 from the U.S. Department of Education to explore “serious games” and demonstrate how games can help kids learn. An amazing team came together including Scot Osterweil, who led the application of learning and game theory as creative director of the MIT Education Arcade. FableVision created an engaging storyline and a menagerie of mythical monsters in a crazy labyrinth environment for ultimate middle school appeal. Finally, MPT layered the classroom instruction and brought together teacher teams for testing and evaluation. 

So why do I think it is such a lasting effective learning tool? Because of its strong pedagogy, appealing story, and most importantly, it’s fun! The game works very well in today’s climate, emphasizing problem solving and critical thinking. Kids work hard to play the puzzles and  move through the game while building pre-Algebra math skills.  It’s that feeling of accomplishment that makes it so rewarding.  Fun fact: Lure of the Labyrinth has an international following with players in Australia and Canada, as well as the U.S.

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 Speaking of super cool collaborations, you recently teamed up with FableVision, Maryland Humanities, and CIRCLE at Tufts University's Tisch College of Civic Life, and won the Teaching with Primary Sources (TPS) Regional Grant from the Library of Congress! What is TPS and the new project all about? What impact do you hope to achieve?
Civics: An American Musical is sure to be a fantastic project! Inspired by Lin-Manuel Miranda’s renowned musical Hamilton, our project will engage middle schoolers with primary sources from the Library of Congress as they imagine, formulate, and debut their own great American Musical. Components will include an online role-playing game blended with hands-on classroom projects and built-in professional development tools.

The goal of the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources program is to enhance educators’ ability to embed digitized primary sources from the Library’s immense archive into inquiry-based instruction. We will provide teachers with professional learning to understand this process and to effectively use this new tool with their students. Our goal is to create a playful environment in which to build student literacy and critical thinking skills, while making history/civics relatable to the students.

With this great collaborative partnership, I’m certain that a valuable new learning resource will debut in 2020.

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Betsy’s Media Favorites:
MPT/PBS show: I do love my PBS and MPT programs. I am looking forward to the next season of Poldark and Victoria, as well as Call the Midwife, Antiques Roadshow (plus MPT’s local version, Chesapeake Collectables) and any and all documentaries. Hamilton’s America is a must see.
Bingable television series: I am anxiously awaiting the next season of the The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Ozark.
Oscar-worthy film: How does one choose? There’s a quirky film by Wes Anderson called Moonrise Kingdom that I’ve watched a dozen times. I always enjoy watching musicals with my children – The Sound of Music and the like.
Riveting podcast: NPR podcasts, especially The TED Radio Hour and This American Life.
Great reads: Goodnight Moon, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, are my most frequent reads (my daughter had a baby this past year!) Looking forward to adding Peter H. Reynolds’ The Dot to my list. When I’m not reading to my granddaughter, I enjoy historical fiction.
Hamilton song: The Room Where it Happened

July FableFriday: Bill Tally, PhD, Senior Researcher and Designer, Education Development Center (EDC)

For over 30 years, Bill Tally, Senior Researcher and Designer at the Education Development Center (EDC), has been using his expertise in education, interdisciplinary learning, and formative research to advance the role of digital tools in education. With a PhD in sociology from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, as well as an extensive history of collaboration with institutions and esteemed educators such as the Library of Congress, National Geographic, The New York Times, MIT, and the Smithsonian, Bill is no stranger to the world of digital storytelling and has helped steer the merger of technology and academia on many projects. 

Bill is currently collaborating with Fablevision Studios and Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) to create a revolutionary literacy game that transcends former digital boundaries in its incorporation of Augmented Reality (AR). The Phase I project will investigate how an AR/gaming approach can combat the summer slide and impact engagement for low-income third and fourth graders, and serves as a testament to the innovative, forward-thinking team behind it. 

“At a time when kids casually carry the equivalent of a supercomputer around in their pocket and can do their homework in the Cloud, there’s no magic bullet when it comes to deepening learning for all kids,” shares Bill. “Deploying tech tools in ways that actually make a difference for learners and teachers still requires the collaborative work of great curriculum designers, creative storytellers, artists, programmers, and cognitive and developmental researchers.” 

Get a behind-the-scenes look at Bill, the extraordinary team he works with, and his passion for pairing education with technology! 

Tell us a little bit about your role at Education Development Center (EDC) / the Center for Children and Technology (CCT) and the work you do. 
EDC is a not-for-profit R&D firm dedicated to improving education and health across the country and the globe. I’m part of a group of researchers, educators, and media designers in our New York City office. The Center for Children and Technology works to understand how digital media can play positive roles in kids’ lives and learning, both within and outside of the classroom. 

Seymour Papert with LEGO Mindstorms Robotics Kit
Photo credit: MIT Media Lab

You’ve spent your career studying how digital tools and media can improve learning experiences. What initially drew you to this field, and how has it changed over the years?
What drew me to educational media research — way back in 1983! — was the chance to join a remarkable group of developmental psychologists, teachers, and media designers who had assembled at Bank Street College, a progressive school of education in NYC and home to one of the first ever educational media R&D labs. This group not only focused on the computer’s potential to improve learning and schooling, but they were innovatively asking how education can change computing — how the developmental needs of children and the needs of educators can shape the new technologies being developed. It was an exciting place to land. In my first week, I was showing fifth graders rough cuts of a science adventure show to see how they grasped the storyline and concepts, and sitting in on game design sessions with scientists and programmers. 

What I’ve noticed is that in 1983, the Apple II’s blocky green pixel resolution was the cutting edge of educational innovation; yet at the same time, Seymour Papert’s Mindstorms was getting teachers across the country excited about teaching youngsters to program computers in an intuitive, playful way. Today, our games, simulations, and teaching tools have far greater verisimilitude, responsiveness, and power (hail VR and AR!), but the project of helping kids become computational thinkers hasn’t advanced very far; it’s still an exciting frontier. 

What makes game-based learning media unique, and why do you think it is so effective at engaging with young people?
There are many kinds of games, and they work as learning media in different ways, but there are some common elements across them. At their best, games are patient, generous teachers. You can try over and over and they will not get bored or frustrated with you. They put you and your actions at the center — things only happen based on choices you make. They give you feedback that you can use to get better. In addition, many of the most engaging games are narrative structures that invite you to imaginatively enter a world of “as if” and “what if," which our narratively-wired brains find deeply compelling. And of course, games are deeply social, so we love using them to relate to, and compare ourselves to, our peers and friends. 

What are your top tips for practical ways that media developers can incorporate research into their tools and products?
Many developers do the things that are most important — they playtest prototypes with kids to understand what is and isn’t working, and team up with teachers or parents to pilot test a game or product to see how it does or doesn’t fit in the classroom or home. But good research helps in other ways. In the planning phase, we often: 

Photo credit: Zoom In!, EDC

• Help developers zero in on the most important content to aim at by interviewing kids and teachers and scanning assessment data. In this way, we can determine the concepts and skills that kids struggle most to learn and teachers struggle most to teach. 
• Also useful is creating a logic model, a sketch that makes the team’s hypotheses about learning clear at the outset — for example, how this particular game mechanic should support the acquisition of this particular skill or concept, and why. 
• During development, it’s important to test prototypes with a range of users — not just upper middle class kids who like school— and to look beyond appeal and usability to effectiveness: What are the cognitive moves users are making as they use the different parts of the prototype? Which features are helping them build a better understanding, and which are getting in the way? What tweaks are needed? 
• Finally, it’s important for stakeholders to know if the tool or product actually works to “move the needle” of learning.

Zoom In! is a free educator resource provided by EDC

EDC has worked with the likes of Library of Congress, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, The New York Times, National Geographic, and WNET, among many others. What are some universal truths you’ve observed while working with these big movers and shakers? 
An old story comes to mind: an educational guru touring a school asks each teacher she meets what he teaches, and the answer comes back, variously: “I teach history,” “I teach biology,” “I teach statistics.” “No, you don’t,” comes the reply, “You teach children.” 

While a little smug, this observation has an undeniable truth: it’s not all about the content. Each of the amazing organizations you mention began with an abundance of incredibly rich educational content — archives of primary source documents, decades of news stories and images, thousands of beautifully made television programs, games, and interactives — but has had to work hard to figure out how to configure this content for kids and teachers in ways that support effective teaching and learning. Often, this means investing in training and professional development for parents and teachers so they learn how to play, teach, and talk with kids differently through media. It turns out that digitizing and indexing rich content, streaming it to desktop and mobile devices, etc., is the easy part; helping adult teachers and caregivers use rich media to enhance kids’ learning and growth — that’s where the action is. 

After successfully completing Phase I and receiving the Phase II SBIR grant for Cyberchase Fractions Quest game, how has the prototype shown promise for improving student learning of fractions? 

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Fractions Quest lets eight and nine-year-olds play with mathematical concepts in a game world populated by Cyberchase characters and storylines they like. Our early studies have shown that the game mechanics help them grasp concepts that kids and teachers find particularly challenging— like fractions on the number line. 

What excites you the most about working with Augmented Reality technology for the upcoming Mix Libris literacy game developed by FableVision and Reading Is Fundamental?
AR, like VR, is a largely unexplored medium when it comes to education. What’s exciting to me is the chance to build and test an educational application for struggling readers in the company of some of the most creative designers, artists, programmers, and child literacy advocates in the field. 

How can schools do more to incorporate digital tools into the classroom?
The most important thing schools can do is give teachers the time and support they need to try out new tools, practice weaving them into teaching, and evaluate the results. Lots of worthwhile learning tools never get much traction in schools because teachers are not supported in running meaningful classroom pilots to discover their potential. 

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More About Bill: 

Favorite podcast: A Very Fatal Murder, Onion Public Radio
A good read: The Secret History of Wonder Woman by Jill Lepore
Best digital learning tool: Zoom In, a free US history and writing platform for middle and high schoolers that we made! 
Nostalgic piece of children’s media: Alistair Sim’s “awakening” as Scrooge
Passion: Playing jazz piano and crooning tunes from the American Songbook
The best library to do work: Whatever local library I’m near. (Thank you, Andrew Carnegie!)