PlayPozz – try this parental control app, motivates kids to learn & earn play time on Android phone or tablet
by Paul Wilks
Mar 22, 2013 2:35 PM –
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PlayPozz is a new and innovative puzzle game for children that encourages them to improve their maths skills in exchange for access to their favourite apps and games. The premise is simple, in order to play their favourite titles, time needs to be paid for in ‘Pozzts’. These can be earned by completing mathematics sums and quizzes. Ultimately, the more Pozzts they earn, the more they can play their favourite games. If you have a child under 11 years old who is addicted to their tablet or phone, this could be a great way of boosting their arithmetic!
Price: Free 30 Day Trial, $6.99/mo. or $49.99/yr
Tested on: Nexus 4, Sprint Flash
Content Rating: Everyone
Pros & Cons:
Pros
- Motivates children to improve their math skills!
- Innovative learning that rewards children with access to something they like!
- Interactive and fun way of learning!
- Thwarts savvy kids from uninstalling (though a task killer app can subvert it)!
Cons
- Controls are not quite as responsive as they could be.
Features:
PlayPozz is a fun math-based puzzle game that presents a series of sums and questions for young children to work out. Once you have set up accounts for both yourself as parent and the learner, there are 6 headings to try: Compare, Add and Divide- which are free, plus Count, Subtract and Multiply for subscribers. Children are then tested to answer simple sums in order to earn the in-game currency ‘Pozzts’. Their tally is recorded in the top left of the screen so they can see how many points they have accumulated.
Children are motivated to play the game- even if they don’t like math- because the game blocks access to certain apps and games (which you, as parent decide upon in the sign up process). So, if your child wants to play their favourite mobile game, they will have to ensure they have enough Pozzts to do so. The currency breakdown works so that 25 Pozzts allow 10 minutes of gameplay.
In a nutshell then:
HOW IT WORKS:
- Kids earn credits called Pozzts for learning in the PlayPozz classroom.
- They trade Pozzts for time to use apps installed on your device: 25 Pozzts = 10 minutes.
- But no Pozzts means no time, so if kids run out, more must be earned.
The game includes a friendly voice assistant that tells the child how many Pozzts they have earned, in addition to encouraging phrases and sayings to motivate them even more.
I think the game is a great idea and certainly innovative, even if the range of tests available is quite limited. The game is free to try but you only get access to three types of puzzles. Other puzzle types require a subscription which annually costs around $50, which is quite expensive so you might have to think carefully whether the app will not only motivate your child but whether this solution is worth its cost.
For testing purposes, I tried the game out on my 7 year old and she really enjoyed it. I found the game worked well although the screen reaction was a little sluggish when you do the Division sums. This aside it performed well, although I’d expect something slicker if I was paying $50 for an annual subscription. Hopefully it will continue to be developed and improved over time.
Watch on Mobile
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PlayPozz – Interface when you try and play your fav game
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PlayPozz – Puzzle samples (1)
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PlayPozz – Puzzle samples (2)
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PlayPozz – Puzzle samples (3)
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PlayPozz – Puzzle samples (4)
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PlayPozz – Puzzle samples (5)
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PlayPozz – Puzzle samples (6)
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PlayPozz – Puzzle samples (7)
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PlayPozz – Use accelerometer
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PlayPozz – Classroom options
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PlayPozz – Welcome screen
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PlayPozz – Create passcode
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PlayPozz – Collect Pozzts
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PlayPozz – Timmy is fictional
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PlayPozz – Security question… logging in initially does take a while
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PlayPozz – Email
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PlayPozz – Admin rights
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PlayPozz – Subscriptions
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PlayPozz – Installing
Usefulness:
If you want to motivate your child and improve their math at the same time, this is a new and innovative method to kill two birds with one stone.
Ease of Use:
It does take a lot of setting up, for what it is; passcodes for you and child, plus each learner you set up, plus security questions, plus your email address… it takes a few minutes initially to get this set up before you have even tried the app out. Unfortunately, there is no way of giving the app a go beforehand, which might put people off as the information required is quite intrusive.
Frequently Used:
This will depend very much on you and your child; how much they play games, etc. It is something that can be used/played regularly however.
Interface:
The interface is functional rather than something which would constitute eye candy. On one hand this probably works to make the application simple to use for children. Alternatively, as an adult you kind of wish the interface was smoother and with more flourish. As I mentioned, the Division sums were a little unresponsive at times, but I’m certain this is something that could be resolved easily.