Posts Tagged ‘Awards’

An Award for My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle, Teacher for a Day

Posted by ruckusholly on March 8th, 2012

Mom's Choice Award

My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle, Teacher for a Day continues to surprise and amaze us.

Last month we were thrilled to learn that it achieved a huge milestone when it reached one million user sessions. That means that one million of you, or your child, have opened up the My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle, Teacher for a Day app, produced with our partner, Hasbro.

And now we are proud to announce that our very own My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle, Teacher for a Day has won a Gold Mom’s Choice Award® for Best In Family-Friendly Products (or Services)!  It joins three of our other apps in receiving this prestigious award – Chuck & Friends: Friend for the Long Haul, A Present for Milo and Spot the Dot.

The Mom’s Choice Awards® (MCA) is an awards program that recognizes authors, inventors, companies, parents and others for their efforts in creating quality family-friendly media, products and services.  Parents, educators, librarians and retailers rely on MCA evaluations when selecting quality materials forchildren and families.  The Mom’s Choice Awards® seal helps families and educators navigate the vast array of products and services and make informed decisions.

We knew that we had a terrific app with My Little Pony, but it’s nice to know that everyone else agrees. Available for any I.O.S device, a child can learn and play at the same time while enjoying a brand they know and love.  They can tap and tilt the screen in fun activities that move the action forward—learning new words, playing activities and watching videos.  The app is an engaging way to learn to read, packed full with rich, educational entertainment for beginning readers.

So, head over to the iTunes store to pick up a copy of our award-winning My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle, Teacher for a Day and wish everyone included in its creation and development a heart felt congratulations in the comments below.

Buy an App, Help Save Lives

Posted by ruckusholly on November 15th, 2011

A few years ago, our CEO, Rick Richter, worked on a book at Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers with Marlo Thomas titled Thanks and Giving.  It was a collection of stories, poems, and written music about helping others and appreciating what we have. He never forgot this project, and it gives our current partnership even more meaning.

We are working with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®, the hospital that Marlo Thomas’ father founded, this holiday season on the St. Jude Thanks and Giving campaign, a holiday program that asks shoppers to “Give thanks for the healthy kids in your life, and give to those who are not,” while shopping this holiday season.

Between now and December 31, we will donate 100% ($1.39) of the net proceeds of our classic Read-Play-and-Record Along Rabbit Ears interactive storybooks to the St. Jude cause. Buying an app will give you, the consumer, a dual purpose. For example, when you pick up a copy of The Velveteen Rabbit told by Meryl Streep, not only will you be providing quality story-telling to your child, but you will also be supporting the lifesaving work of finding cures and saving children with deadly diseases. Plus, for a limited time, all of our Rabbit Ears apps will be priced at $1.99.  Not only are our apps on sale, but you can feel good about making a donation to this important charity, knowing that $1.39 of each download goes to help save a child’s life.

The apps that are on sale include: Pecos Bill told by Robin Williams, The Velveteen Rabbit  and The Night Before Christmas told by Meryl Streep, John Henry told by Denzel Washington, Tom Thumb told by John Cleese, Goldilocks told by Meg Ryan, Johnny Appleseed told by Garrison Keillor, The Steadfast Tin Soldier told by Jeremy Irons and Three Little Bears told by Holly Hunter.  In addition we are releasing two NEW stories during this time period, as well, both launching today: Thumbelina told by Kelly McGillis and Paul Bunyan told by Jonathan Winters.

We are so honored to be amongst a prestigious group of partners teaming up with St. Jude during this fabulous, important campaign (check out the list here), and we hope that you head to  iTunes today to purchase our interactive storybooks.  To learn more about the St. Jude Thanks and Giving campaign or to make a donation, go to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital web site.

 

Join Our Twitter Party to Discuss the App Divide/Screen Time Use By Our Kids on November 17th at 9pm EST

Posted by ruckusholly on November 1st, 2011

App DivideLike many of you, we read the NY Times piece, amongst many others, titled “Screen Time Higher Than Ever for Children Study Finds”, with great interest last week. It talked about the results of a study conducted by Common Sense Media that came up with new findings regarding children and their use of screen time including:

- Children under 8 are spending more time than ever in front of screens

- For the first time, there is an emerging “app gap” in which affluent children are likely to use mobile educational games while those in low-income families are the most likely to have televisions in their bedrooms.

- Almost half the families with incomes above $75,000 had downloaded apps specifically for their young children, compared with one in eight of the families earning less than $30,000. More than a third of those low-income parents said they did not know what an “app” — short for application — was.

- Half of children in the study under 8 had access to a mobile device like a smartphone, a video iPod, or an iPad or other tablet.

- The report found that despite more than a decade of warnings from the American Academy of Pediatrics that screen time offers no benefits for children under 2.

As an app developer and lover of books, Ruckus Media has definite opinions about some of these results and we are sure you do, too, so we thought we’d spend this month’s Twitter Party discussing the results and sharing our thoughts with each other.

Come hang out with us on Thursday, November 17th from 9-10pm EST at hashtag #RuckusAppDivide on Twitter (or on TweetGrid, TweetDeck or TweetChat, whichever platform you prefer.  @momtodanielle, thechattymomma, @davidbfox and @huppiemama will be on board to moderate the discussion, and as usual, we’ll great giveaways including plenty of Ruckus apps.  You must RSVP on Twitvite to be in the running for the prizes.

If you’re not already following us, we’re on Twitter at @RuckusMedia.  RSVP for the Twitter party here and while you are at it, please join us on Facebook  for the latest and greatest on Ruckus. Be sure to check out our videos on You Tube, sign up for our RSS feed and pick up our apps on iTunes.

Six Degrees of Separation: Coldplay and David Carter

Posted by ruckusholly on September 23rd, 2011

 

Coldplay: Mylo Xyloto image

Mylo Xyloto pop-up by David Carter

We have a connection to one of the world’s best bands: Coldplay.  We are officially trendy!

You’re probably wondering – how is an family entertainment company like us connected to a cool band like Coldplay?

Let us explain: The band has a new album, Mylo Xyloto, which releases later next month.  The album will be released in several formats. A 180-gram vinyl edition will include a 12″ by 36″ poster, while a special “Pop-Up” album version will come with a hardback book containing graffiti art designs from our very own David A. Carter, none other than the brilliant author/illustrator behind our award-winning Spot the Dot app.

It’s six degrees of separation (actually a few less than that) but we are SO proud of David. We sat down with him as soon as we heard to get the official scoop on the pop-up and his work with Coldplay.

Ruckus: David, first of all, congratulations on your award-winning app, Spot the Dot!  How have you been since its release and are you proud of its success? 

David: Yes, it’s all very exciting and I am busy working on new ideas.

 

Ruckus: Please tell us how your involvement with Coldplay came about?

David: About three years ago, I received a call from the band’s agent. He told me that Chris Martin would like to talk with me about doing a pop-up for their upcoming album. That was Viva la Vida and the pop-up didn’t work out but we kept talking.  Now we have this pop-up which is part of deluxe book and vinyl LP that they are calling the Mylo Xyloto Pop-Up Album.

 

Ruckus: Have you worked with musicians before?

David: This is the first time I have worked with musicians of this caliber.

 

Ruckus: Tell us about the collaboration.

David: It all started with work on the Viva la Vida album and most of my creative conversations were with Chris. I found Chris to be a big picture person and a true creative as well as being very down to earth and a really nice guy. We then worked on what was to be the next album, that album didn’t happen, but that is where the idea of a pop-up in book/LP came about. I then started working with Phil Harvey, the fifth member of the band, and we did a very limited edition pop-up for Coldplay’s single Christmas Lights. This spring the band asked me to do some preliminary work on the Mylo Xyloto project and once the band approved the early work, they shared with me the graffiti art the band had created. The band actually painted a 30′ x 9′ concrete wall. I revised the pop-up and incorporated art from the graffiti wall and then added the logos created the band’s graphic designers. I sent the art for the pop-up to the printer in early September and the Mylo Xyloto Pop-Up album will be available this fall. It is currently being hand assembled at the printers.

 

Ruckus: What inspired this piece of art for Mylo Xyloto?

David: Mylo Xyloto is a concept album featuring the character Mylo. The idea is set in a repressive culture where music, art and color are not allowed. Mylo becomes an outlaw tagger who’s tags are three dimensional. The pop-up is inspired by the idea of Mylo’s colorful three dimensional tags.

 

Ruckus: Where is it available?

David: At this time the Pop-Up Album is available for pre-order at Coldplay’s website. I am not certain how it will be sold once the Pop-Up Album is finished, most likely through the standard online sites and I assume at bookstores and record stores.

 

Ruckus: Will you be doing more work with Coldplay?

David: I hope so!


The First Ever “My Little Pony” Interactive Storybook is Live Today!

Posted by ruckusholly on September 21st, 2011

My Little Pony appToday is a HUGE day for all of us at Ruckus Media!  We are thrilled to announce the launch of My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle Teacher for a Day,  an interactive storybook for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, now available through the iTunes App Store. Hasbro’s first mobile application for the popular toy franchise and television show is a richly educational entertainment, designed for independent or family reading.  You can read the entire press release here.

This is the second Hasbro interactive storybook that we’ve created; the first was Chuck & Friends: Friends for the Long Haul.  My Little Pony features include an interactive storybook, designed to help develop vocabulary, reading and motor skills; stimulating in-app activity moments; flexible formats; touch-driven animations within the story add another layer of excitement; a “Read Me” option; “Meet the Ponies” features provide background info on each of the story’s characters; read along, play along, and record your voice feature; words illuminate when story is read for basic word recognition; activities teach letter recognition, picture/word association and basic problem solving; and randomization of activity content and difficulty level provides new experiences for repeated play. All this in one app!

To kick off the launch of My Little Pony, we have plenty going on!  For one thing, if you buy the app now, you can get it for 99 cents!  So head over to iTunes and get a copy for your kids, nieces and nephews, friends kids, everyone you know!
My Little Pony appAlso,we’re hosting a fun-filled Twitter party, with prizes from our friends at Hasbro.  Come hang out with us on Tuesday, September 27th from 9-10pm EST at hashtag #RuckusMLP on Twitter (or on TweetGrid, TweetDeck or TweetChat, whichever platform you prefer) for a discussion on friendship and everything that you love about the My Little Pony brand.

We’ll have great giveaways provided by our friends – My Little Pony branded, of course!  We’ll also have plenty of My Little Pony apps on hand to give away, as well.  And for the grand prize, a girl’s bike by our good friends at Shwinn Bikes. You must RSVP on Twitvite to be in the running for the prizes.

If you’re not already following us, we’re on Twitter at @RuckusMedia.  RSVP for the Twitter party here and while you are at it, please join us on Facebook  for the latest and greatest on Ruckus. Be sure to check out our videos on You Tube, sign up for our RSS feed and pick up our apps on iTunes.

See you in Equestira, the kingdom of Princess Celestia and all of the Pegasus, Earth and Unicorn ponies!

Get Ready to Join Our My Little Pony Twitter Party on Tuesday, September 27th at 9pm

Posted by ruckusholly on September 19th, 2011

My Little Pony App

We are getting ready to launch our newest app,  My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle: Teacher for a Day.  The big launch day on iTunes is this Thursday and we could not be more excited!

“My Little Pony: Twilight Sparkle: Teacher for a Day” is for a new generation of My Little Pony fans. They’ll join Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity and Spike as they embark on a exciting adventure to learn the history of Equestira, the kingdom of Princess Celestia and all of the Pegasus, Earth and Unicorn ponies. It features story-driven activities that guide Twilight Sparkle and Spiky, culminating in the Grand Galloping Gala.

In My Little Pony style, the focus is on friendship and loyalty.  All of the ponies in the story work together to make the party great, all in the spirit of friendship.

Come hang out with us on Tuesday, September 27th from 9-10pm EST at hashtag #RuckusMLP on Twitter (or on TweetGrid, TweetDeck or TweetChat, whichever platform you prefer) for a discussion on friendship and everything that you love about the My Little Pony brand.  We’ll be joined by our fabulous moderators: @mommymentor @thechattymomma @amotherhoodblog @coolkidsmommy who all know a thing or two the topic.

We’ll have great giveaways provided by our friends at Playskool.  We’ll also have plenty of My Little Pony apps on hand to give away, as well.  And for the grand prize, a girl’s bike by our good friends at Shwinn Bikes. You must RSVP on Twitvite to be in the running for the prizes.

If you’re not already following us, we’re on Twitter at @RuckusMedia.  RSVP for the Twitter party here and while you are at it, please join us on Facebook  for the latest and greatest on Ruckus. Be sure to check out our videos on You Tube, sign up for our RSS feed and pick up our apps on iTunes.

Disclosure: Prizes will be provided by our friends at Hasbro and Schwinn Bikes.  We are grateful to both companies.

On the Blogs

Posted by ruckusholly on September 19th, 2011

We are so lucky to be immersed in a fabulous world of bloggers who support us, write about us and share our love for literacy, parenting, technology and everything else that we at Ruckus live for.  We want to take a quick moment today and thank everyone who has ever mentioned in a post, review, article, tweet, Facebook mention or iTunes review.  We wouldn’t be here without you!  Here are a few examples of recent app reviews:

Chuck & FriendsOver at Midwestern Moms, they called Chuck & Friends ”one of the most interactive reading applications for a child” that they’ve ever encountered.

Leila at Don’t Speak Whinese said that her kids enjoyed our apps on a camping trip, that “it was a brilliant option to have on the go or when their patience was being tested while fishing!”  The interactive aspect of the Chuck app helped her kids learn words.

The Dadvocate Project  said that Chuck ”is a great game for ages 1.5 to five years old. As I mentioned at the beginning I want games that can span a decent age range and this game certainly qualifies. Another aspect of a good game is one that my kids want to play again.”

A writer at Modern Home Modern Baby said the graphics in Spot the Dot “are good and simple without being simplistic. The concept of concentrating to accomplish a goal is great. And the ability to capture the player’s attention makes this app one to try in my opinion.”

This is just a snippet of the blogging love we have shared over the last year since Ruckus Media was born.  We look forward to sharing more of our apps, growth and prospects right here on this blog, Twitter and Facebook.

 

 

May We Present the Winners of the Parent’s Choice Awards: Chuck & Friends and Spot the Dot

Posted by ruckusholly on September 14th, 2011

parents choice awardWe are so excited to announce that two more of our apps have been designated 2011 Parents’ Choice Award winners: Chuck and Friends and Spot the Dot.  They both won Parents’ Choice Recommended Awards.  Back in April, we were also granted this special prize for A Present for Milo and Velveteen Rabbit, and we are so happy to be a part of this prestigious group again.  This is the first award for each.

Since its launch in June, Chuck and Friends has garnered a lot of attention both from traditional media and bloggers.  Created with our friends at Hasbro, this interactive reading adventure is ideal for young truck-lovers, digital natives, fans of HUB TV and Hasbro toys.  It introduces a new type of interactive story-telling that increases literacy skills, fine motor skills, language skills, spelling, problem solving and more, all while children are playing and having a good time.  We could not be prouder of the newest member of the Ruckus library!

On another note, we are so happy to also announce that Chuck and Friends has been selected as an Editor’s Choice by Children’s Technology Review  calling it, “an excellent reading comprehension app for older readers.” The app scored a 92%/4.6 star review with a perfect score. in education.  We had to let you know.

Our other Parents Choice recipient, Spot the Dot, was created by pop-up master and best-selling children’s author, David A. Carter.  He adapted his creative genius to his very first app, and we could not be more thrilled to be on the receiving end.  This eye-popping, interactive app invites toddlers and preschoolers to learn colors as they “spot the dot” in fun, engaging and highly varied interactive playspaces.  Spot has also been lauded by journalists and is widely spoken about on social media.  We are so proud of this app, one of our own originals!

Established in 1978, Parents’ Choice Foundation is the nation’s oldest nonprofit consumer guide to quality children’s media. Parents’ Choice serves as a trusted and independent source for educators and librarians, journalists, as well as families searching for children’s media and toys.  The PCA committees look for products that entertain and teach with flair, stimulate imagination and inspire creativity. Judges are interested in how a product helps a child grow: socially, intellectually, emotionally, ethically, and physically.