Playing Forward’s Maxi the Taxi Dog App

This post is brought to you by Playing Forward. All opinions are my own. I am all for my kids playing outside and getting their proverbial hands dirty, but I am also a major supporter of controlled screen time. We live in a technology-heavy world, and I want my kids to understand it, know how to use and be able to someday grow up and contribute to it. That is why, when I find education fun apps for my kids, I like to share them with you. Today I am excited to tell you all about Playing Forward’s Maxi the Taxi Dog app available for Android and iOS devices.

Once the game is installed, you will open the app and find Tupa and Maxi in the museum. Click on Tupa to get started. You can choose to have them read you the story, or you can read it yourself, depending on the setting you choose. You will have to click on the “read” box on each new page for the story to read. You can touch the screen to change perspectives (point of views) and move the phone around to see different things on the screen. Swipe from right to left to move forward in the story, and swipe left to right to go back.

My kids love Maxi the Taxi Dog, reading the story, catching the butterflies and exploring the rooms/scenes in the game. For only a couple of bucks, you can add a great education app to your device that your kids will enjoy reading (or listening to) over and over.

ABOUT MAXI THE TAXI DOG APP

Maxi the Taxi Dog is a character-driven app that can be experienced in two ways: as a ‘bedtime story’ that can be read along with in 3D, and as a much more active ‘exploration’ in augmented reality, encouraging the reader to move around and experience the story from multiple perspectives. Maxi the Taxi Dog, the children’s classic first published by Penguin over 25 years ago, is
magically brought to life for a new generation. The app features Maxi, Jim and their new friend Tupa going to the Cooper Hewitt Museum in order to help Tupa overcome his fear of the dark, with Maxi also learning a few new tricks along the way.

This game will help kids find ways to overcome their fears as well as follow Maxi and learn to make new friends. Ignite your child’s imagination with this fun new AR game that lets them go on great adventures from the comfort of the living room (or car, or game or store or wherever you are).  As a mother, I appreciate having value, learning, and fun to the games they are playing instead of having them all be “just fun”. Playing Forward does an incredible job of making sure all of those things are met so the kids are educated while having a great time.

 

ABOUT PLAYING FORWARD

Playing Forward has now launched three character-driven apps based on books: a Penguin Publishing classic (“MAXI THE TAXI DOG”), a story from Stan Lee’s Kids Universe series (“DEX T-REX”), and Lizzy’s World featuring the STEAM-powered character from a new independent book series (“IT’S JUST SO…”). John Attard and Victor Talbot founded Playing Forward after years of entertainment industry successes — including an Academy Award for Visual Effects. They have worked on 100+ films, television and digital series, Broadway and Off-Broadway shows and more. In addition to the VX Oscar for Ridley Scott’s Gladiator, notable projects include work on Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Disney); The Jungle Book (Disney); Superman vs. Batman (Warner Bros.); Guardians of the Galaxy 2 (Marvel); and Avengers 3 (Marvel).

Playing Forward apps are specifically designed to support kids’ social-emotional development through entertaining storytelling, movie-quality visual effects, and the use of Augmented Reality.  According to studies, social-emotional development is key to success in school and in life. Playing Forward’s name comes from the fact that the company is “playing it forward” to give every child the very best shot at a happy childhood and a successful adulthood. Playing Forward based its app designs on extensive research in the field of social-emotional learning and beta-tested its apps with over 300 children in 18 classrooms across the United States and Canada.

PLAYING FORWARD STEAM-POWERED WEEKEND GIVEAWAY

To celebrate the launch of these apps, Playing Forward is running a contest with the Grand Prize being a whirlwind STEAM-powered weekend of play and exploration in Manhattan. The Grand Prize includes air transportation, a two-night hotel stay, a Visa gift card to cover meals, various museum tickets for a family of fou. rIt will also include personalized experiences at two of Manhattan’s most unique museums – the Natural History Museum and the Children’s Museum of the Arts. The contest’s runner-up will win an iPad. ENTER TO WIN HERE. Just fill out the small form and you are good to go! Good Luck.