Mobile App Encourages Healthy Eating
PBS KIDS GO
PBS and WGBH have announced the first app from the PBS KIDS GO! series ARTHUR – D.W.’s Unicorn Adventure for iPhone and iPod touch, available now on the App Store.
Funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and produced by WGBH, D.W.’s Unicorn Adventure encourages nutritious snacking for kids ages 4-6, and ARTHUR fans of all ages.
In the app, players have the opportunity to help Arthur’s little sister D.W. save a lost unicorn using the power of healthy foods. It was announced Thursday, March 29.
[ Also Read: What First Lady Michelle Obama Likes to Eat ]“PBS is committed to helping kids learn and grow through healthy food choices,” said Lesli Rotenberg, senior VP, Children’s Media, PBS. “D.W.’s Unicorn Adventure App is the latest addition to our resources across platforms – from online games, to on-air programming, to offline activities – that help families lead healthy and active lives.”
“D.W.’s Unicorn Adventure combines highly engaging mobile game play with a simple yet critical nutritional message: healthy snacks give you the energy to complete your grandest adventures – including those involving unicorns!” added Christine Zanchi, executive producer, Interactive, Children’s Media, WGBH.
In D.W.’s Unicorn Adventure App, D.W. must help a lost unicorn make his way from Elwood City to Unicornia. To do this, players gallop, jump, and super-jump through three fantastical worlds – Forest, Castle, and Clouds – with 12 levels of increasing difficulty.
To fuel the adventure, players need to eat a rainbow of energy-packed snacks. Players are encouraged to eat all the colors of the rainbow by collecting 12 kinds of fruits and veggies: strawberries and apples; oranges and carrots; bananas and pineapples; bell peppers and broccoli; blueberries and plums; and grapes and eggplant.
The game also teaches kids foods to avoid. For example, players need to stay away from junk food, so that they will not lose energy and can continue to advance in the game. The six kinds of junk food that will hinder performance include: sodas, chips, cookies, donuts, french fries, and candy bars.
Funded by CPB, D.W.’s Unicorn Adventure App is available for $1.99 from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore.
ARTHUR, a kids animated series on television, chronicles the adventures of Arthur, an eight-year old aardvark, his family (including his little sister, DW) and his friends through engaging, emotional stories that explore issues from a kid’s point of view.
