Apps Factory

Apps Factory

An innovative smartphone game that helps Syrian children learn foundational Arabic and improves psychosocial well-being

Project Name

Feed the Monster

Location Implemented

Global

Technology Used

Software/Apps

Competition Entered

EduApp4Syria Prize

Reading Skill Targeted

Foundational, Reading

Status

Winner

Amount Award

$650,000 (innovative tender)

Collaborators/Partners

The project is a collaboration between three partner entities: Apps Factory will develop, publish, and roll out the app, collect usability data, implement modifications of the game, and support additional language versioning. The Center for Educational Technology brings longstanding experience and expertise in developing content, methods and techniques to teach Arabic language acquisition. The humanitarian organization, International Rescue Committee (IRC), guides the technical approach and design of the Social Emotional Learning (SEL) elements and content and will provide technical guidance as well as evaluation and testing of the application with Syrian refugee children.

The Challenge

Approximately 2.25 million Syrian children have lost their opportunities for schooling because of the ongoing conflict. Many Syrian children who attend school face difficulties in learning, because they have endured long-term stress, or because they are being taught in a language they do not master.

The Big Idea

Feed the Monster smartphone game guides children through learning the Arabic alphabet to vowels, words, and then reading short paragraphs drawn from the Syrian Arabic language arts curriculum. It improves the psycho-social wellbeing of children by introducing them to skills and techniques that help them manage their emotions through the use of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)) mini games.

Results

Feed the Monster is free to download on the App Store and Google Play

Featured Innovation

Feed the Monster (45+ languages) – Google

Kids learn reading and writing fundamentals while collecting and growing their pet monsters in this smartphone-based app, now available in more than 45 languages.

Blogs and Media

Blog // March 23, 2023
All Children Reading: A Grand Challenge for Development celebrates impact on increasing literacy for children worldwide
News Byte // December 20, 2022
ACR GCD featured in Global Book Alliance’s Partner Spotlight Series
Blog // November 17, 2022
Leading EdTech Innovators share accomplishments and big dreams for EdTech innovations
Blog // November 15, 2022
What works and doesn’t work to improve access, equity and inclusion for the 584 million children globally waiting to learn to read
News Byte // October 24, 2022
Highlighting international cooperation between ACR GCD and our partners on World Development Information Day
News Byte // October 5, 2022
Celebrating teachers and EdTech resources on World Teachers’ Day

View all news for this innovator

Research and Resources

Webinar Recording
Adapting Open Source Solutions to Unlock Literacy for More Children
Learn from the ACR GCD and Curious Learning how to select and adapt open source literacy apps to improve child literacy in low-resource contexts.
Solutions // Game App
EduApp4Syria GitHub Source Code
Use the open source code for the winning EduApp4Syria games, Antura and the Letters and Feed the Monster, to translate the apps into new languages.
Solutions // Game App
Feed the Monster (Arabic) – Google Play
Kids learn the reading and writing fundamentals of Arabic while collecting and growing their pet monsters as they advance through increasing skill levels of this smartphone-based app.
Solutions // Game App
Feed the Monster (Arabic) – App Store
Kids learn the reading and writing fundamentals of Arabic while collecting and growing their pet monsters as they advance through increasing skill levels of this smartphone-based app.
Solutions // Game App
Feed the Monster (45+ languages) – Google
Kids learn reading and writing fundamentals while collecting and growing their pet monsters in this smartphone-based app, now available in more than 45 languages.
Guide
Guide to Creating Localized Learning Apps
Curious Learning's guide for developing early educational content on mobile devices that can be localized or adapted to other languages and cultures.