About this project
We all want the best for our children, we strive to make them the best that they can be, considerate, generous, confident, content in themselves, all in the knowledge that a good education can be central to longer term happiness.
As a father of three children I am no different, and on a rainy day, on the wind-swept island of Arranmore, Ireland, I had a vision that could transform the learning journey of children forever.
With your help we can turn this dream into reality.
What is Pora Ora?
Pora Ora is a series of online virtual worlds designed to make learning fun for children. Imagine a game that wraps all the learning of a traditional tuition site into a beautiful quest driven social game where children can share the experiences with their friends.
Pora Ora is comprised of two themed worlds, Samura valley (Japanese themed) and Urba Roma(historical roman) which are packed with games, quests and puzzles based around mathematics, language and literacy, ICT, geography and problem solving that make learning stimulating and fun.
"I came across this site today and was blown away. I have recommended it to the Primary school". Jen Garcia, Academia Britanica Cuscatleca, El Salvador
Pora Ora uses the tools of the modern age to instill a love of learning in children, allowing them to progress at their own pace and practice until mastery without pressure or fear of failure. Motivational rewards ensure that the child keeps engaging with the educational content – these rewards take a variety of forms from in game currency (roobles) to opportunities to unlock new worlds or collect new pets (Pora Pals). The old ways are not always the best – in fact there is a substantial body of research demonstrating the benefits of game based learning.
Furthermore, Pora Ora supports teachers and parents in promoting the child’s learning by providing progress reports identifying the child’s strongest and weakest areas. This feature allows parents to actively engage in their child's learning.
@gregyounguk: very impressed with Pora Ora (kids virtual world...WOW meets Club Penguin with an education twist)
Upon entering Pora Ora for the first time, children can select and fashion their avatar. They are also given a Pora Pal - their very own virtual pet. Children need to keep their Pora Pal happy and healthy by acquiring knowledge and engaging with the educational games, quests and puzzles of Pora Ora.
Kids are given the opportunity to use their fantastic imaginations and creativity by decorating their Pora Pads (homes), buying clothes, magic potions, and more! Competitions to design new Pora Pals keep their creative juices flowing, and budding entrepreneurs can nurture their talents by growing produce in their garden and selling it at the market. Children can manage and spend their money, but most importantly they learn that they have to earn their roobles.
"Just thought I’d check in to say the girls
LOVE your website & their friends now all want to join Computer Club!" Kay
Chaventre, St Catherine's Prep School.
Pora Ora is a highly moderated, child friendly, educational MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role playing game). Children have to carry out an eSafety quest before they can utilize any of the social features. Parents have the ability to step up or relax the safety settings, meaning that as children mature, their parents can alter the settings accordingly. The interactive element of the game not only lets children meet new friends, but it also provides an outlet for peer to peer help in the game, really cementing what they have learned.
Sounds like we got it all sussed out? Wrong! We really do need your help. Pora Ora Beta is being enjoyed by thousands of children around the world but we need additional funding to help us complete development. Your pledges can make this happen.
"I've been going around the site and it is awesome for the kids. Too bad we didn't have this when I was younger." Greg Lemoine, Colegio Internacional, Venezuela.
Why should you support Pora Ora?
Pora Ora Beta is a taste of what we can achieve with your help. Our team are motivated and committed to changing the way children learn. We have spent a great deal of time and energy developing this game, making sure that with every advance we make, it measures up to our high standards. It's been years in the making and we are very proud of what we have accomplished so far. Our team is the perfect mix of creatives, game developers, designers, animators, parents and educators, but we need your help in completing the development of Pora Ora.
We believe that our goal of making learning more exciting and engaging is worth fighting for. We have managed to stand on our own two feet so far, and have a clear strategy of where we want to get to. We need your help to turn our goals into reality (well virtual reality). This is your opportunity to play a part in revolutionizing learning for children the world over. Don’t do this for us – pledge for the benefit of your children, your nieces and nephews, your future children, your grandchildren.
So what will we do with the money raised on Kickstarter?
- Complete Egyptian World which is currently under development. This means brand new educational games, characters, features and quests.
- Complete the 8 Pora Pals in development, (including one designed by one of our users – a 10 year old boy from London) . These furry friends have been extremely popular and they are an essential element in keeping children engaging with the educational content.
- Create a Pora Pal app. With our Pora Pal app, kids will be able to care for their virtual pet on the move. We want to develop 'bump' technology so that you can transfer your Pora Pal into your smart phone or tablet from your computer. The app will allow children to play educational games on the go to keep their ‘wisdom points’ high and their Pora Pal happy.
- Create a parent portal app (premium feature). Parental engagement improves a child’s learning, so we want to empower parents to follow progress reports and offer in game rewards on the go.
- Complete our language and literacy curriculum coverage.
Stretch Goals
If we exceed our funding goals by 100% we will commit to building the following in Pora Ora.
- Creative tools that allow children to create their own worlds. We want children to channel their creativity and have their very own virtual world. Here they can share their new world with their friends and let their imagination run riot!
- Create a coding game in Pora Ora, letting little game developers in the making learn and understand the basics. Children would be able to co-operate and test each other’s coding skills and eventually compete against the Pora Ora robots!
We are truly passionate about what we have to offer, and hope that we have inspired you enough to pledge, if you would like any more information please do not hesitate to get in touch. We understand that some of you may be a little too old for Pora Ora so all pledgers will be given the opportunity to bestow their membership rewards to a very lucky child.
You can follow us on Twitter @poraora on facebook or why not have peak at our Pinterest page? Happy pledging!
Here are examples of some of our swag.
"I've been using Pora Ora for the past 2 weeks with my students. They LOVE it. I really do appreciate the opportunity for my students to use this free site. The graphics are great, the students really enjoy seeing each other as they roam about. I know a site like this takes a lot of teamwork, and I can tell you have people there that are working from a child's perspective. Keep up the fine work." Bob McCarthy, Immaculate Conception School, New York, USA
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Funding period
- (32 days)