Here at LearningWorks for Kids, we believe families need to make the most out of their tech time. That’s why we’ve developed a ratings system that balances pedagogy and play, learning and enjoyability, helping you, the parent, understand which games and apps offer fun, valuable experiences best-suited to your child’s unique needs.
Our Learning Quotient rates media based upon two standards — the potential for the development of critical thinking and academic skills, and the overall quality of the product. We call these two factors the Brain Grade and Fun Score.
Brain Grade
This rating examines the range of thinking and academic skills helped, and how readily those skills can be applied to real-world growth. We’ve come up with a simple acronym to sum up this concept, which describes the potential for games and apps to PASS (Practice, Acquire, Synthesize and Support) particular skills.
- Practice – instills the basic tenets of a skill through guided rehearsal.
- Acquire – actively helps users gain mastery of a skill.
- Support – structured to effectively assist with and encourage improved use of a skill.
- Synthesize – applies and adapts a skill to many demands and environments.
Other important rating factors include whether or not a product holds significance for Alternative Learners, directly addressing the needs of those dealing with challenges like ADHD or autism spectrum disorders, or if independent research suggests use of a product can provide a measurable improvement in skills (i.e. CogMed Working Memory).
Fun Score
The Fun Score is a bit more up front, but the rating criteria breaks down slightly differently for video game PlayBooks and Apps+ media guides. Our game reviews look more closely at things like graphics, depth of challenge and gameplay mechanics, while our app guides examine factors like usability, intuitiveness and user-interface models.
To learn more about our in-depth ratings rubric, please contact us.
