Author: Chris Devine

Q4 Blog: Enhancing Education Through Bilingualism with Smile & Learn

 

“Smile and Learn is an educational tool that motivates and enhances student learning. Achieving research projects like the ones we carry out at Smile and Learn is not easy, which reaffirms the interest of the entities to support this evaluation of our digital material for inclusion in educational centers. The results obtained have been very positive for Smile and Learn and its main beneficiaries are, as is our objective, the children.”

 

AWE: “What are some new and engaging projects that Smile & Learn has been working on?

S&L: “Smile and Learn has been actively expanding its offerings with exciting new developments. We’ve introduced robotics and programming content, including both theoretical videos and practical activities, to engage students in key STEM areas. Our reading resources have been enhanced with materials aligned to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), featuring texts adapted to multiple levels of vocabulary and grammar so that all students, regardless of their proficiency, can enjoy the same stories. We’re also working on collaborative gameplay to foster teamwork and interaction. Additionally, we’re launching financial education resources to build essential life skills and expanding our socioemotional learning content. This now ranges from recognizing and managing emotions to developing conflict resolution strategies tailored to different developmental stages!” 

 

 

AWE: “How do kids utilize Smile & Learn in and out of the classroom and how has it benefited their education?”

S&L: “Inside the classroom, students benefit from engaging activities that align with curricula, including videos, games, and interactive exercises that reinforce subjects like math, science, and literacy. Teachers can utilize the platform to create personalized learning experiences, adapting content to each child’s needs and monitoring their progress. Outside the classroom, Smile & Learn extends the learning experience with activities that go beyond academics, focusing on personal growth. These include socioemotional learning resources to help children understand and manage emotions, as well as activities that develop logical and critical thinking skills. By exploring such a variety of topics, students are encouraged to discover more about their interests and strengths, fostering curiosity and self-awareness not just in the classroom but also with their families in their homes. The platform’s focus on holistic development ensures that children not only master academic skills but also gain tools to navigate the world around them, making learning meaningful and impactful both in school and at home. 

 

AWE: “How beneficial has it been in utilizing both English and Spanish versions of the content? How do public libraries benefit from utilizing Smile & Learn?”

S&L: “The dual-language feature of Smile & Learn, with content available in both English and Spanish, significantly enhances its educational value by fostering bilingualism and language development. Children benefit from being exposed to two languages simultaneously, improving their linguistic skills, cognitive flexibility, and cultural understanding. For non-native speakers, this feature provides an accessible way to learn English or Spanish in an engaging and interactive environment, while native speakers can deepen their skills or learn a second language effortlessly and can use the activities to develop their reading skills in their native language.” 

 

AWE: How can/do public libraries benefit from utilizing Smile & Learn in their learning spaces?”

S&L: “Public libraries benefit immensely from incorporating Smile & Learn into their offerings. The platform provides libraries with a comprehensive, diverse, and engaging resource that caters to children ages 3 to 12. It allows libraries to support their community by promoting literacy, language learning, and STEM skills through interactive activities, audiobooks, and videos. Libraries can also use Smile & Learn to host workshops or language-learning sessions, attract families looking for educational resources, and ensure equitable access to high-quality digital content.
Overall, Smile & Learn strengthens libraries’ roles as community hubs for education and cultural enrichment while empowering young learners to thrive in a bilingual and increasingly interconnected world.” 

 

Learn more about Smile and Learn HERE

Q3 2024 Blog: Making Math Fun with MathNook 

 

 

 

MathNook was formed by Jan and Tommy Hall. Jan has over 30 years of experience in the education field and Tommy is a programmer with a math degree who is also an avid gamer.

This combination makes MathNook stand out with their unique math games that not only are educational but are also very playable causing players to come back for more.

AWE: “What educational solutions does MathNook currently offer for young learners?”

MathNook: “Currently, MathNook.com has math games where students can practice skills from counting all the way up to beginning algebra. All of our games are free to play online without any membership or sign-up required. This free to play model allows institutions such as schools, libraries and homeschoolers to play our math games by just going to MathNook.com”

MathNook: “We are currently expanding our large inventory of exclusive online games as well as converting some of their more popular games to Spanish. MathNook is also bringing back some of the more popular Flash games by either rewriting them or running them via an emulator. Our Spanish games are used across the globe by many Spanish speaking countries. The Spanish versions allow students whose primary language is Spanish, keep up their math skills while in an English-speaking classroom. Comparisons between the English and Spanish versions can help students with math terminology.”

AWE: “Math can be a hard subject for some. How important is it to teach children math skills in a way where they can have fun and still retain the knowledge they are absorbing?”

MathNook: “Math games are a fun way to practice a skill whether the student is at school or at home. Math games can be used to reinforce a skill that has been recently or newly taught before the student begins independent practice and can allows the skill to be practiced throughout the year. If a skill is taught and after 6 weeks is not revisited, the skill is often forgotten. So, playing math games can prevent this from happening. Practicing at home with math games will continue to develop a student’s math skills and promote automaticity with math facts and math terminology. Automatic recall of math skills prevents multi-step math problems from becoming laborious and overwhelming which often causes students to give up. So not only are math games engaging but they also help with retention of a math skill as well as build a student’s confidence.”

About MathNook (http://www.mathnook.com)

MathNook offers free to play math games that practice skills ranging from counting numbers all the way up to quadratic equations. And there’s never any membership or sign-up required. MathNook’s goal is to help develop critical thinking and problem solving in order to improve math skills via our fun and exciting math games.

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         Why is it so important for kids to write?

 

Statistics show that reading helps develop your writing skills, but writing helps develop your cognitive growth, organizational abilities, and the power to influence others through persuasion. In short, writing powers the brain. We spoke with AWE partner, Scribblitt.com, about the importance of creative writing.

 

 

 

AWE: “The focus of literacy is often on reading. What benefits come from creative writing?”

 

Scribblitt: “Studies show that children who practice creative writing more often are generally better in other subjects too like math, science and languages. Creative writing encourages kids to practice using their imaginations, improving their ability to come up with alternatives, problem solving and analysis. Writing involves a lot of thought, planning, organization and use of language to get a point across. What great practice for kids at laying out their thoughts and trying to clearly convince someone of their point of view.”

 

AWE: “Given the focus on social-emotional learning in schools now, how can writing help?”

 

Scribblitt: “Children often have difficulty understanding and expressing how they feel. Through writing, children have a safe place to explore, and this can be a highly beneficial tool for expressing their feelings.”

 

AWE: “How does writing improve self-confidence?”

Scribblitt: “Writing gives children more opportunity to assert themselves and their opinions and develop their “voice”.  These developments can really strengthen their self-confidence. Further, publishing their stories develops a sense of pride, and the opportunity to have others read their books shows that their words matter.”

 

AWE: “Do we become less creative as we grow up?”

 

Scribblitt: “It’s true – creativity seems to diminish as we get older. The stories of fairytale princesses saving the day later turns into business prose and factual writing. It is so important to encourage children to write, to be creative, and to use their imagination. It is equally important to build their confidence in communicating their point of view, their thoughts, and their feelings. Then they can think about publishing their stories to read over and over again at a kid-friendly site like Scribblitt.com, and hold onto childhood just a little longer.”

 

 

 

 

Scribblitt.com offers writing, illustration and publishing tools for kids, and is free to join. Completed stories can be shared in the library, entered into writing contests or submitted to be a featured scribbler. You pay only for publishing. A hardcover book is $29.99 and a comic is $19.99 plus shipping. Email contact@scribblitt.com with questions

 

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