Brittany+Smeal

Brittany Smeal February 8,2012 EDC 203

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 * Primary Site**: [|www.pbskids.org]
 * URL**:



Game: Bear's Skateboard Park

 * Level**: Primary (K-3)
 * Summary of Site**: When a child first logs onto pbskids.org, he/she is greeted with bright colors that fill the screen. Everything on the screen is an icon that can be clicked on. When he/she runs the mouse over the spin wheel of characters, it is moves around and highlights what the child is currently selecting.The site was designed with young children in mind. There are very few words on the home page. This means that navigation is not dependent on reading abilities. Since the site highlights what the mouse is on, the children are able to see just what they are clicking. Additionally, most of the icons have some type of animation linked to it to make them wiggle or grow when a child is working on the site. When the child clicks on the character they would like to play with, they are taken to a page designed to fit the theme of the character. In other words, the Clifford page looks much different from Barney or Arthur. All of the pages are equally engaging with bright colors, animations, and music. Each page also includes its own games and activities.
 * Summary of Game**: Bear's Skateboard Park works on spelling and the sounds of words. The object of the game is to steer Bear to collect all of the letters he needs to form a word. The word is given and remains on the bottom of the screen. There are many letters on the path, including the letters needed to form the word. After the child collects the letters, it goes down to fit in the word. Once the word is formed, the letters are reread to the student and then the whole word. After making five words, the game progresses to the next level which is four letter words. While this game is fast-paced, there is no definite end to the game.
 * Evaluation:** Overall, the website was age appropriate and designed with the interests of children in mind. PBSkids.org was consciously designed to be interactive, colorful, and lively so children would want to spent time playing on the site. The page I explored in particular, Word World, had a unique way of helping students learn the spelling of basic words since letters made up the shape of the objects. World World was a great way for children to link words with pictures without any effort. I chose Bear's Skateboard Park because it was easy to navigate Bear, simply by moving the mouse up and down, through the park and it provided a fun spelling activity. It turned spelling into a game that was fun for children as they searched for the different letters along the path. Finally, the game did not simply collect the letter and move on to the next word. It took the time to read back each letter to the child and then the entire word. This also helps the child in reading and writing.
 * Color:** The colors were bright and engaging. The background color was a bright blue and the only white that was found on the site was for the clouds. This made the site seem very child-like and less formal than many web pages. The colors were used to bring the website to life. Colors were used in Bear's Skateboard Park to make the letters pop off the pathway. The colorful font also made the game more entertaining.
 * Repetition:** Music is constantly playing in the background of the game. The word is said in the beginning of each round and then is repeated once all the letters are found to form the word. Finally, the general way the game is played is a constant pattern. First, the word is said for the student. After the student collects the letters, each letter is said aloud and then the word is repeated one more time. Then, the next word is announced and the pattern is repeated again.
 * Talking Text:** The instructions for this game are stated out-loud for the students to hear. A voice over says the word in the beginning and at the end of the game to promote word recognition. To encourage spelling, the program also says each letter of the word out-loud to the student.
 * Visual Cues:** Once a child finds a letter they need to create the word, it moves down into a box that has a shadow of these letters. This allows the students to check which letters they have and which letters they still need to collect. After they have completed the words and the voice over has finished, the letters form into a picture of the word signaling that that word is done and it is time to start the next.
 * Mistakes:** When a child rolls over an incorrect letter, the skateboard tips slightly and a voice over says "oops!" There is no limit to how many times students can select the wrong letter. The game will continue to produce a path of letters until they have collected all the letters they need.
 * Rating:**N/A
 * Highlighted Cues:** N/A
 * Navigation:** The game itself does not require the students to navigate between pages. They only use the mouse to move Bear along the path. To navigate through the Word World page, there is always a map that is clearly labeled in the lower right hand corner for the students to get to the Word World homepage. To exit all the way out to the PBSkids.org homepage, there is a green circle in the upper left corner that the students simply have to click on.
 * Click back and back:**N/A
 * Click and Drag:** N/A
 * Click forward:** N/A
 * Teacher Rating:** 9

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 * Primary Site:** www.scholastic.com
 * URL**:

**Game: Clifford's Letter Round Up**

 * Level:** Primary (K-2)
 * Summary of Site:** This site was colorful and had separate pages set up for the different Scholastic Book characters such as Mrs. Frizzle and the Magic School Bus and Clifford. While the site has separate links for parents and teachers, there is a way to set the site up for children so they can easily access the games that are intended for them without trying to read through the lesson plans submitted for teachers. The Scholastic site is filled with animation that makes the webpage look engaging for children. There is also music playing in the background which give the site a fun and entertaining feel to it.
 * Summary of Game:** A cow verbally gives the students instructions on how to play the game. The object of the game is to match the letters on the cows with the letter that appears on the fence. Once the student has matched all five letters, they win the game and are given the option to play again.
 * Evaluation:** The game is colorful and fast-paced. The speed of the game keeps children interested in playing and they can feel successful very quickly. The animation ans bright colors make the site and the game very appealing to children. The instructions are simple to follow and the cow repeats the directions for each round. Since the site includes characters from Scholastic books, the children would get the feeling like they are playing with their favorite story book characters. The site is easy to navigate and appealing to young children. I think this game would be very useful in helping children recognize letters when they first start learning the alphabet.

game. The background music is purely instrumental.
 * Color:** The colors used in the background and in the icons of the site are very bright and geared toward children. The animated bubbles and bright blue background make the site more visually appealing to children.
 * Repetition:** The cow would repeat instructions before every new letter. This repetition helps the students stay on task and clear on the objective of the game.
 * Talking Text:** The cow tells students the instructions and which letter should be found as they move along in the
 * Visual Cues:** N/A
 * Mistakes:** If a child chooses the wrong letter, nothing happens. The letter remains on the cow and the cow that gives instructions tells the student that the letter they clicked was not the correct letter, but to try again.
 * Rating:** N/A
 * Highlighted Cues:** N/A
 * Navigation:** To begin the game, there is a cow with the word "go" in green on his side. The child needs to click on the cow to begin the game, however no other navigation is necessary throughout the game.
 * Click back:**N/A
 * Click and drag:** N/A
 * Click forward:** N/A
 * Teacher Rating:** 8

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 * Primary Site**: Game Goo
 * URL:**

**Game: Paw Park Alphabet Bears**

 * Level:** Primary (K-3)
 * Summary Site:** The site is an educational tool for children to learn language arts skills like poetry, alphabetizing, and opposites. The site is color coordinated to indicate the levels of the games. There is a link for parents and teachers to gain lesson plans and activities that can be printed out. The site is colorful with blues and purples and animated with little creatures that many children would find amusing. There is also background music that makes the site seems entertaining and informal. The games cover a variety of language art topics in a manner that does not make the child feel like they are learning. The site is also very credible since it is put out by Houghton Mifflin Company, a company that publishes several textbooks for grades K-12.
 * Summary of the Game:** In this game, five bears line up and then the students are required to alphabetize the bears onto the seats of the roller coaster. Words are written on the shirts of the bears with the first letter highlighted in a different color and a picture that correlates with the word. To place the bears in the appropriate order, the students must click and drag them into the appropriate order onto seats of a roller coaster. If a student places the pointer of the mouse over the bear, a voice reads the word outloud. The student is given three times before the computer places them in the right order to show the student. After placing five rounds of bears in the right order, the student moves up to the next level.
 * Evaluation:**This is a fun site because it is different from many other sites that correspond with specific characters and themes. The use of colors and a voice to read aloud makes the website easy for children to navigate. The large amount of animation also makes the website very engaging for children. This site provides fun and different games for children to use while practicing their language art skills. I like that for each game the children are not only given directions, but also a demonstration of how to play the game, so that the children are clear on the instructions.
 * Color:** Color is used on the home page of the site to indicate the level of difficulty that the game is ranked at. In Paw Park Alphabet Bears, color is used in the word of the teddy's shirts to highlight the first letter of the word. Overall, bight colors are used to make the site seem fun and geared toward a child audience.
 * Repetition:** The voice over will repeat the words on the shirts of the teddy bears as many times as the child would like. Also, the background music plays continually throughout the game.
 * Talking Text:** A voice over reads the words listed on the bear's shirts out-loud to the students. When a child gets an answer wrong, the voice over says "oops, try again!"
 * Visual Cues:** N/A
 * Mistakes:**Students can make three mistakes until the game will show them the correct order. The first time a mistake is made, the voice over will say "oops, try again" and replace the bear to its original position. After three incorrect answers, the game will place the bears in the correct seats of the roller coaster and read the words aloud for the student to hear.
 * Rating:** N/A
 * Highlighted Cues:** N/A
 * Navigation:** While navigation is not required for the game, if the child were playing the game and wanted to return to the home page, he/she would simply have to click "quit" in the upper right hand corner and they would be redirected to the home page.
 * Click back:** N/A
 * Click and Drag:** Students use the click and drag method to place the bears in the correct order on the roller coaster.
 * Click forward:** N/A
 * Teacher Rating:** 8