MarcoPolo Weather

MarcoPolo Weather is a digital sandbox tool that emphasizes exploration and open play. Kids tap a play button to enter the main screen, which includes an avatar and animated animals in an outdoor forest scene. Kids can select one of the nine weather conditions or tap to adjust the temperature and/or wind speed. They can drag interactive objects onto the scene, including clothing and accessories, two other avatars, fruits, flowers, vegetables, a tent, snowballs, and more. They can also change the display from day to night.

Through free play and exploration, kids can manipulate temperature and wind conditions and create weather scenes with nine different weather conditions: sunny, partly cloudy, cloudy, rain, thunderstorm, snow, blizzard, tornado, and hurricane. Each condition includes a narrated description and allows kids to observe how the condition affects their avatar and the environment. For example, when kids choose the tornado, they learn its pronunciation and its definition. A siren goes off, the avatar jumps into an underground safety area, and as the tornado sweeps across the screen, leaves blow around and the ground gets torn up. A parent section includes a description of the app and settings, as well as extension activities related to weather.

Colorful characters, fun sound effects, and lots of interactivity will engage and delight young learners. Kids can learn how weather conditions affect the environment while building key science vocabulary. There's tons to explore and lots to learn, and there's a great mix of explicit instruction and kid-directed exploration. More features to track students' progress -- or even just systematically review what they've learned -- would improve an already-great experience. Overall, MarcoPolo Weather is a fun, fascinating way for kids to explore an important science topic.