playosmo

[playosmo]

Designing Tangible ABCs: Fröbel’s Sticks and Rings for the 21st Century

New From Osmo: 

The Little Genius Starter Kit ABC’s game adapted Froebel's "sticks and rings" manipulatives to a tangible digital context targeted for this age. Presented this year at #IDC2019. 

Learn more about the Osmo Little Genius Starter Kit: Playosmo.com 

Read the paper: https://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=3323123

Get in touch with the authors: 

Dr. Heidy Maldonado, Ariel Zekelman heidy@tangibleplay.com,ariel@tangibleplay.com

[playosmo]

Where to find Osmo at ISTE ‘19

If you’re going to #ISTE19, don’t miss out some of the amazing presentations all involving Osmo in the classroom. 

Be sure to also stop by our booth (no.1860) to play and learn more about how #playosmo is incorporated in schools! Meet & Greet with Osmonauts, win special giveaways, and see Osmo’s newest game in action! 

Discover Osmo in action at the following locations: 

Creative Learners - iPad and Art

Saturday, June 22, 12:30–3:30 pm

Presenters: Gail Berthiaume  

Early Tech for Children Ages 3-7

Saturday, June 22, 12:30–3:30 pm

Presenters: Sarah Allen, Jennifer Bowden (Goddard), Gail Lovely 

KinderNuggets Learn Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality and Coding

Sunday June 23, 11:30-1:30

Presenters: Kaitlyn Stenson from Neenah School District

Early Learning Playground: Explore, Discuss and Play!

Monday, June 24, 8:00–11:30 am

Come code with us! (with the Mobile Learning Network Playground)

Monday, June 24th, 1:45-2:30, table 6

Presenters: Sharon Carino from Gloucester County Public Schools

Coding with Kinders: Exploring Tech in a PK-2 World 

Tuesday June 25th, 10am - 12pmPresenters: Joe Carney, Kenton Engels, Hilary Iehl, Brian Unruh, Luke Wagner (From Cedar Falls Community School District) 

Creativity Playground for the Arts and Technology PLN 

Tuesday June 25th, 2pm - 5:30pm

Presenters: Cathy Houchin, Rita Mortenson (From Watertown School District & Verona Area High School)

Lastly, Osmo is a Proud Sponsor of the ISTE Global Collaboration Network (Great Global Scavenger Hunt)More than 200 participants. 

See you there! 

https://twitter.com/PlayOsmo/status/1140661742579539976

[playosmo]

A new chapter for Osmo

The world’s fastest growing learning platform joins forces with America’s favorite hands-on playful learning brand to create global titan of engaged and personalized learning. To request a media kit, please email media@playosmo.com.

Friends,

5 years ago, Osmo set out to change the way kids play and learn with tablets. Many of you have been with us since the very beginning. Osmo is growing quickly and enjoyed by over one million children in homes and is embraced by ⅓ of U.S. elementary classrooms.

And today, we’re so thrilled to announce that Osmo is joining forces with Byju’s to help us carry forward our mission for kids around the world.

The coming together of the companies is rooted in a shared love of learning and play. It will enable us to develop new learning experiences for your kids - rather quickly.

About Byju’s 

Founded in 2011 by rockstar Math Teacher Byju Raveendran to help children fall in love with learning.

Based in Bangalore, India with 3200 employees.

Already engaged over 30 million students for grades 4-12.

Byju’s curriculum makes learning contextual and visual with video-led personalized content.

We just want to say, Osmo wouldn’t be a brand without Osmonauts like you around the globe. Thank you to the teachers and families who have supported us.

An exciting adventure awaits as we look forward to the next step of our journey. To learn more about what’s ahead, take a look at these news articles:

To Support US Expansion, Byju’s Acquires Learning Games Startup Osmo for $120M

Byju’s buys Osmo for $120M to add blended learning to its $4B digital education business

Why India’s EdTech firm Byju’s paid 120 million for kids ar game maker Osmo 

Best,

Pramod and Jerome

Osmo Founders

P.S. Get in touch with us at Osmo@playosmo.com.

[playosmo]

Meet the women of Osmo!

Happy International Women’s Day! 

The women at Osmo bring multidisciplinary and diverse perspective -  representing engineering, graphic design, marketing, art & animation, sales, ops, customer experience, and more!  To boot, we come from more than a dozen different countries around the world! 

One thing we share however is a passion for leading the trail of education technology for kids around the world.

We are the women of Osmo - Learn more about us!

Currently living in sunny Los Angeles 🌴, Jasmine has many years of experience in the marketing world and heads our Osmo Social Club! In between working behind the scenes with our YouTube Osmonauts, blogger parents, and creative collaborations - you'll find her discovering art shows, coffee spots, and all things outdoors in the city of angels! ☀️

Kira started out in special education, moved to early childhood education, then discovered Osmo and the rest is history. 

Her favorite part about Osmo is witnessing the incredible ways educators use it in their classrooms. She loves the mountains and Mongolian BBQ and is happiest reading books surrounded by her loved ones. About International Women’s Day, Kira says: “Let's all do better at straightening each other's crowns without telling the world they were crooked! Empowered women empower women.” Well said, Kira!  

Ariel Zekelman received a BFA in Designed Objects from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2016. A month after graduation she launched her first product, Osmo Coding. Ever since then she’s been a staple in Osmo product design. When she’s not at her desk, you can find her in the back room somewhere between the laser cutter and the 3D printer.

Heidy Maldonado, PhD is our Data Scientist and Consumer Insights Lead, combining quantitative and qualitative research methods to understand our users' needs. She brings fifteen years of experience conducting research on how children adopt mobile technologies to learn and is a multi-award winning author of thirty academic papers and book chapters. She has created and taught courses at Stanford University, where she received her BS and MS in Computer Science as well as her PhD.

You’ll find Bailey Williams on-screen and behind-the-scenes for Osmo photo and video shoots! She likes trying new foods, watching movies, traveling, and playing cornhole! :) 

KT is on our sales team at Osmo and is often traveling for work and holiday. She is always up for learning a new activity and loves encouraging other women to get outdoors! Instagram - searchingforgigglesFacebook -  https://www.facebook.com/kristen.j.tyler

Erica brings an energetic spark to the OSMO family. Works with the educational department She previously worked in a classroom and as Early Care & Education Commissioner of San Jose. Erica loves traveling, meeting new people and adapting to new cultures.

Originally born in Poland, Since Asia was 2 years old her favorite activity was drawing, her hobby quickly turned into a dream, and after finishing Academy of Art University in San Francisco the dream became a job. Asia is an animator and illustrator, bringing characters to life in games at Osmo.   You can follow her day to day art on her instagram:https://www.instagram.com/joanimska/

Rachel Palangié, née Reynolds, has been a Senior Software Engineer at Osmo for the past 4 years and has worked on many of the games, including Detective, MindRacers, Coding Awbie and Numbers.  She's been programming games professionally for the past 15 years, starting her career at Wizards of the Coast implementing card rules for Magic: The Gathering Online and moving from there to positions at Cricket Moon Media, Zynga, EA, Breaktime Studios and KIXEYE before coming to Osmo. Rachel has a B.S. in Computer Engineering from Penn State and a Masters in Language Technology from Carnegie Mellon University.

When not at work,  Rachel spends most of her time taking care of her 1 1/2 year old son Theo and loves to read, solve puzzles, and knit (or crochet) whenever she gets a chance.

Originally from Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Eileen came to the US 4 years ago to pursue her career. She's now working at Osmo as a marketing manager, where she helps bringing Osmo and playful learning to more people around the world! Follow her secret doodling account: www.instagram.com/gozeebo (@gozeebo)

Annie heads up Osmo HR - always with a friendly smile! 

She is midwest native, mama, and always up for an impromptu dance party.  💃🏽

Kay is currently the product manager for e-commerce at Osmo - working for the world to bring Osmo magic home. She is passionate about making people’s lives by building great products and trying out every new flavor of ice cream.

Karen leads PR and community efforts at Osmo. She’s passionate about connecting with users, growing the Osmo community, and sharing our healthy, hands-on playful learning experiences. She is also co-producer of the film She Started It which inspires women to get involved with tech startups. Karen likes yoga, traveling, and film. Twitter: twitter.com/@okarenodell

[playosmo]

Osmo at FETC

Team Osmo has been busy at the Future of Education Technology Conference the last few days! We’re excited to be sharing about Osmo with others! 

Osmo is proud to be such an important player in the world of technology in education. Coding is a key part of that, which is why we have the Coding Family trio of games. Check it out on playosmo.com. 🍓🦔🐾🥧🎶

[playosmo]

🎄 Merry Christmas, Osmonauts!! 🎁

We wish you a wonderful and Osmo-ful Christmas! 🎄

[playosmo]

#OsmoonTour Roundup

Thank you thank you thank you to all who came to see us at the various malls we visited over the last couple of months! As we traveled down the U.S. coasts, we had so much fun getting to know more of the Osmo community, and how fun was it to meet other Osmonauts?

We loved seeing your photos when you tagged us on social media. Wasn’t that back wall with all the characters so fun? 🌈🚛

[playosmo]

Hour of Code at Amazon HQ

Osmo is so pleased to have joined Amazon Future Engineer Seattle Coder Dojo at the 6th annual Hour of Code™ event at Amazon.com's downtown Seattle meeting center.

Kids (K-12) had the opportunity to join us for presentations and tutorials on coding, as well as demonstrations by lots of tech companies.

Here are a few photos from everything our time in Seattle:

If you’d like to add to your Coding to your Osmonaut’s repertoire, check out our trio of coding games here.

[playosmo]

The season of giving is upon us! 🎁🎁 Now is the perfect time to complete your Osmo Play System. You can get 35% off Osmo favorites like Osmo Monster, Coding Jam, and Hot Wheels MindRacers, each game teaching different skills. 🤓📱

Osmonauts, be sure to check your email for a special offer or shop at playosmo.com. 🛍🛍

(Offer ends 11/26.)

[playosmo]

Happy Holidays from Osmo!

Looking for the perfect holiday gifts to put under the tree for your 4-12 year olds? Check out playosmo.com to choose from our suite of fun games that will challenge your kiddos’ minds and entertain them for hours!

[playosmo]

Osmo’s Black Friday Sale is here!

Now is the perfect time to complete your Osmo Play System or give the gift of Osmo to a friend!

[playosmo]

Happy 90th Birthday, Mickey Mouse!

Today, were’ wishing Mickey Mouse a very Happy 90th Birthday!! 🎂 We’re having our very own Osmo-fied Mickey celebration in Phoenix and Philadelphia today at our #OsmoonTour pop ups. If you’re planning to go, you’ll want to be sure you watch our stories right now for a fabulous giveaway. 🐭Learn more here.

As you know, a couple of months ago Osmo released the Osmo Super Studio games. We think of it as a cartoon revolution, where kids learn to draw and animate their very own Disney shows — starring all of their favorite characters! Our first release was all about Mickey and his friends; after all, that’s where it all started!

🐭 Fun facts about Mickey Mouse:  🐭

- Mickey was originally named Mortimer

- Mickey first appeared in the musical short “Steamboat Willie”

- Mickey first wore his iconic white gloves in “The Opry House” a musical short

- Minnie Mouse first appeared alongside Mickey in “Steamboat Willie”

- Mickey’s first spoken words were “Hot dogs!” 

- Mickey Mouse was the first cartoon character to earn a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

- Walt Disney voiced Mickey Mouse himself until Jimmy McDonald took over in 1947 and continued to do so for 30 years. From 1977 until 2009, Wayne Allwine voiced Mickey Mouse and funnily enough, his wife Russi Taylor was the actress who voiced Mickey’s main squeeze, Minnie. (source)

[playosmo]

🧛‍♂️☠️🦇 Halloween at Osmo Headquarters 🕸🎃👻

Yesterday, we had a Halloween celebration at the office. ☠️🦇 It was so fun to see how people dressed up, and even were inspired some of the Osmo characters. Do you recognize any?

Osmo Super Studio Disney Princess-inspired drawing of Belle.

Osmo Town characters and those who were inspired by them.

[playosmo]

Introducing Osmo Detective Agency 🕵️‍♀️🕵️‍♂️🔍🗺

Solve mysteries around the world with Detective Agency, a new search-and-find game from Osmo! 🕵️‍♀️🕵️‍♂️🔍🗺 ✅Learn about geography, landmarks, and cultures from around the world. ✅Explore 8 maps & hundreds of clues to help folks from Osmo Town solve mysteries! ✅Develop focus, observation skills, and attention to detail.

Head over to playosmo.com/detective-agency for all the details!

[playosmo]

Ambassador of the Week: Nikolaos Chatzopoulos

Ambassador Nik has covered a lot of territory when it comes to making sure people know about Osmo. He's blogged about it, tweeted about it, written articles about it, and we couldn't even count how many conference presentations he's done about it. Nik rivals even our own passion about the wonder of Osmo in a classroom and it's so obvious. Thank you, Ambassador Nik! We are so glad you're a part of our Osmo community!

                                                     📚📚📚

Mr. Chatzopoulos, in his own words:

“If you are looking for an awesome company to work with, look no further. Tangible Play is a company made up of energetic and enthusiastic people that are focussed on developing products of high educational value, that make learning fun and relevant.”

Connect with Mr. Chatzopoulos: http://techtrends4teachers.blogspot.com/

[playosmo]

Ambassador of the Week: Kristen Brooks

Ambassador Kristen has been with us since the very beginning and boy, do we love her! From the creative ways she uses Osmo with her students to the many, many, MANY teachers she's trained on how to use it, we have been so impressed. Kristen's passion for Osmo is truly contagious and we find ourselves infected by it with her every Osmo event and every Osmo tweet. Thank you Kristen, for sharing Osmo with those around you. Keep it up!

                                                      📚📚📚

Ms. Brooks, in her own words:

I wanted to become an OSMO ambassador because I wanted to help spread the news of this amazing student focused learning tool. I am a huge fan of the OSMO collaboration concept. From the moment I saw my students engaged, collaborating and laughing while learning my heart was full of joy!

What the Osmonauts in Ms. Brooks’s class are saying:

“I love making music with OSMO Coding Jam.”

“OSMO is my favorite place in the room.”

“Yes, we get to use the OSMO’s today”

Connect with Ms. Brooks: @kristenbrooks77 🐦

[playosmo]

Introducing Osmo Super Studio Disney Incredibles II

⚡️💥A part of the blockbuster film is now in your Osmonauts’ hands to make the story his or her own with the release #OsmoSuperStudio Disney*Pixar Incredibles II. Now you can go on a heroic adventure with the Incredible family! All the supers will help — Mr. Incredible, Elastigirl, Dash, Jack-Jack, and more! Your favorite Disney*Pixar stars are ready for action! ⚡️💥🖍 Head to PlayOsmo.com.