By Seray Ibrahim – UCL Knowledge Lab
Earlier today, the UK Department for Education published a press release that listed the iRead Project’s Navigo reading game app as one of six apps judged to be effective in supporting children’s literacy and language skills in the home.
In 2019, the DfE launched the Hungry Little Minds Campaign competition to find the best educational apps for parents to engage young children in learning at home. Connected with data that shows three quarters of children aged five and under have used smartphone or tablet apps at least once in the last six months to learn, the goal of the DfE’s campaign is to enable parents to make informed decisions about the use of technologies in the home.
The Navigo game was assessed against a set of educational criteria relating to app design and functionality, content and engagement, amongst other criteria. More information and support on ideas and activities for children aged 0 – 5 years can be found within the Hungry Little Minds Campaign webpage.
The Navigo game app was developed and built by fishinabottle in collaboration with the iRead consortium partners. The game focuses on developing skills that underpin reading, including phonics, letters and sounds. Our whole team are delighted that the Navigo game app has been approved and rated as providing valuable opportunities to support children’s early literacy development.
Try it for yourselves by participating in our online pilot study and downloading the Navigo game app here.