Words With Friends EDU

Words With Friends EDU builds off of the engaging gameplay of Words With Friends, with new educational features to help students learn high value academic words – words that are used frequently in required reading, textbook and assessments. For students, there are new vocabulary bonuses, badges, and avatars that make learning fun. For teachers, there’s a new suite of tools that track what students are learning as they play. Early results indicate the educational value of WWF EDU is strong, with students showing an increase in their use of academic words after playing just 6 games.

The new features include:

Power Words – Power Words are high value academic words that earn players bonus points each time they’re played. Players can use the Power Word List to search for Power Words to play and track which ones they've played in the past.

Power Word Bonus – When players play a Power Word, they can earn even more points by correctly answering the Power Word Bonus, which asks players to identify the sentence which uses the Power Word in the best context.

Definition Hint – Definition Hints give players the definition of the highest-scoring Power Word they can play on their current turn. An extra hint will reveal the actual Power Word that can be played, but each player can only use a total of five definition hints per game.

Avatars – Players are able to design their own avatars by mixing and matching a variety of faces, backgrounds and accessories.

Badges – Players can earn badges by accomplishing milestones related to learning and engagement. Each badge earned unlocks new avatar faces, backgrounds or accessories.

Statistics – Profiles include gameplay statistics, customized to the most relevant information for players.

Privacy – Words With Friends EDU is fully COPPA compliant. Students can only start games with other students in their class, and cannot be reached by strangers through the app.

First Time User Experience (FTUE) – A comprehensive FTUE teaches players all the fundamentals of the game so that teachers don’t have to.

The game is supported by tools and resources to help teachers and students get the most value out of Words With Friends EDU, including:

Teacher Dashboard – Teachers and parents can track students’ gameplay and learning through a dashboard displaying three types of reports – Shout Out reports that call out students’ learning and engagement milestones, Watch Out reports that draw teachers’ attention to signals that students aren’t learning or engaged, and Standards Reports that show students’ progress against Common Core Standards.

Classroom Management Tool – Teachers and parents are able to set up and manage membership in private “classrooms”. Players can only play against other players in their classroom.

Lesson Plans – We worked with WestEd to develop a suite of lesson plans to supplement the game and drive deeper learning and Common Core Standards alignment.

GlassLab White Paper – Students who play WWF EDU can experience statistically significant gains in use of academic words after 6 gameplay sessions. Read more here: https://wordswithfriendsedu.com/assets/WWF_EDU_Field_Study.pdf.

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