Games and education have always worked in tandem; engaging a child’s imagination takes information from rote memorization into comprehension and integration. Fun helps children learn. There is a trend, however, in the current digital market to create games that are geared more towards grabbing attention than cultivating learning. There’s even a name for it: edu-tainment.
That’s not what you will find at Pubbly.
Pubbly is built from scratch by — and in some ways for — educators. The company occupies a unique position, standing on timeless educational foundations while engaging and delighting the modern child. Susan Darwin, Pubbly’s Creative Director, says, “We knew what we wanted the [platform] to do from the beginning. We also knew the dangers of over-entertaining, and that the pages needed to come alive.”
This is the fifth article in a six-part series exploring Pubbly’s game-changing platform, with its educational programs for all ages. Pubbly offers a unique and safe environment for young learners, their caregivers, and educators to reignite a love of learning.
Curated Educational Programs for Kids
Pubbly infuses the best practices of classroom instruction into their educational programs for kids. Since gaming is a part of the modern child’s world, Pubbly adapts that experience into a safe and educationally motivated environment for children to enjoy. Likewise, Pubbly’s curated programs are perfect for caregivers and teachers looking to support their children in moving through educational lanes of learning and advancement. And rather than picking a game on an open platform that is heavily advertised or overly stimulating, a parent can utilize Pubbly to safely teach and delight their child.
Whether you begin by selecting a story or choose the programs section, a wide array of educational assets are immediately available — quizzes, games, guided reading, and more — all in one place for easy access. Pubbly’s stories and games are a joyful way to further a child’s developing skills, expanding their learning horizons and building their learning confidence.
Educational Programs and So Much More!
When you access the “programs and more” tab on the Pubbly site or app, you’ll find…
- Everyday Learning Fun: This expansive collection comprises four sections — a Welcome series followed by reading, math, and science themes — separated into levels of learning by color instead of age or grade to avoid stigmas. Every series has a pre-read, tips on sounding words out, audio-supported stories, animated “show you know” quizzes, and games associated with the book. Everything you need is in one place!
- Helping Hand Readers: Developed for children gaining their footing in reading comprehension, these stories allow kids to click on each word for a read-aloud, and feature comprehension quizzes on every page for children to show that they know what the words mean. (For example, a prompt in Jack and the Beanstalk asks the reader to “Tap the word that tells what Jack plants.” The answer is the word “Seeds.”) Animations play when the question is successfully answered.
- Graphic Novels: In this section you can find all of Pubbly’s assisted reading graphic novels with additional teacher resources. Graphic novels are enticing to the modern reader, piquing interest with engaging stories while simultaneously exposing them to bodies of work they’ll meet later in their academic career.
- Math Readers: This innovative series simplifies math concepts with picture books and real-life examples of math applications to increase accessibility for young learners. Pubbly’s Math Readers use short stories to help children see that math is all around them, reinforcing the concepts with interactive games.
Extended Support Materials to Grow Your Child’s Horizon
One of the keys in education is having multiple ways to communicate with a learner. Susan Pinker, writing for Psychology Today, explains, “Variety and contrast, not predictability, are what drive long-term retention, according to studies from the Bjork Learning and Memory Lab at UCLA. Trying to learn new material at one sitting, or by repetition, just doesn't work. New information should be spaced out, with other material and activities thrown in to create contrasts. That's how our brains handle new information in the real world.”
Many parents may be surprised how far small reinforcements or additional perspectives can go towards bolstering the confidence and curiosity of a developing learner. In Pubbly’s Everyday Learning Fun program, for example, there are printables like teacher cards and diplomas, worksheets, and other teacher resources available to share with curious readers. Additionally, each of the books from the program comes with family time cards in both English and Spanish.
For the Graphic Novels program, each book has a downloadable PDF teacher/parent resource that includes a before-reading section, background information, author information, comprehension questions, vocabulary support, and an after-reading section. These scaffolded resources can expand a child’s cognition and contextualization of the novel as well as give them practice with this sort of classroom learning – without the pressure of classroom performance.
For the Graphic Novels program, each book has a downloadable PDF teacher/parent resource that includes a before-reading section, background information, author information, comprehension questions, vocabulary support, and an after-reading section. These scaffolded resources can expand a child’s cognition and contextualization of the novel as well as give them practice with this sort of classroom learning – without the pressure of classroom performance. Pubbly not only advances a young reader’s development, but enables a child to cultivate their ability and skill-set to learn in a safe and supportive environment.
Read and Learn with Pubbly Today
Pubbly is dedicated to having a portion of our animated books, educational programs, and games FREE and open to early learners everywhere. Sign up now to view on desktop or download our Pubbly Player on iOS, Kindle, or Android. Our last article in the series will give Pubbly users insight on the creative minds behind the platform and give them multiple ways to find the educational content they’re looking for.
1. Susan Pinker, Psychology Today, December 2010
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-village-effect/201012/constructing-the-layers-learning
