Have you noticed families wandering around glued to an iPad? There’s a chance they’re not ignoring the art, but actually engaging with the AGO’s new award-winning Time Tremors app. Introduced last spring on a member’s family weekend, the app has become available full time since fall 2013. Based on a popular CBC kids show of the same name, the app lets kids hunt, collect and trade a range of mysterious interactive relics. It’s designed around the AGO’s permanent collection and takes participants through several galleries, finding works along specific fun themes like adventure or animals. The idea, explains Lorrie Ann Smith (Manager, Young Audience Engagement and Learning), is to help families engage in a non-threatening way with the art, give parents a painless way to get their kids interested in the gallery, and even just get gallery newbies more familiar with what the institution might have to offer.
Participants can download the app on their own devices or can sign out one from the WFLC desk on the lower level. There will be a bit more of a publicity push over March Break and Family Sundays to get more people aware of this great resource. Volunteers are invited to try it out to see what it’s all about – who knows? You may learn something new! For a more detailed explanation, see http://www.ago.net/time-tremors-treasure-hunt.
Here are additinal links about Time Tremors winning an iKids and an iEmmy award:
http://kidscreen.com/2014/02/13/ikids-honors-years-best-digital-products-at-annual-awards-cermony/