Blog Archives: 2017

Three years ago we launched ABCmouse for Libraries, an Age of Learning Education Access Initiative that provides ABCmouse.com Early Learning Academy to public libraries at no cost. Since then, public libraries across the country have enthusiastically embraced ABCmouse. We are excited to share that ABCmouse is now available in more than 7,000 libraries—close to 50% of all public library branches in the U.S.

The Glendale Central Library was anything but quiet during the “Machine Learning and How It Relates to Education” panel at the second annual Glendale Tech Week, a city-sponsored event that brings together top talent from tech companies in and around Glendale. The discussion, moderated by our SVP of Strategy Sunil Gunderia, provided a fascinating look at how machine learning and big data are impacting millions of students around the world and creating new professional opportunities.

Over the last several months we’ve been busy creating a series of new ABCmouse mobile apps that complement our main ABCmouse.com® Early Learning Academy app! This growing constellation of engaging educational content currently includes six apps that offer downloadable ABCmouse content for offline use, making ABCmouse even easier for families to access—no matter where they go. These apps, available at no additional cost to all ABCmouse subscribers, are particularly valuable when Wi-Fi or mobile Internet access is unavailable, such as on a plane, in a car, or in a restaurant.

More than one million children from birth to age 8 currently live in public housing in the U.S. These children typically have less access to quality education and learning resources, resulting in an achievement gap that begins when they enter kindergarten unprepared to learn and widens as they progress to 3rd grade. Research shows that more than 80 percent of children from low-income families are not proficient readers by the end of 3rd grade. To help address this gap, Age of Learning recently joined the Leadership Cohort of the Book-Rich Environments Initiative.

We are pleased to announce that Southern California Edison (SCE) has invested in the Bring Learning to All initiative to provide local families with checkout access to ABCmouse through the County of Los Angeles Public Library. Bring Learning to All is a nationwide program that brings together public libraries, funders, and in-kind contributions from Age of Learning to make ABCmouse available to families who may not otherwise have access to high-quality learning resources in their homes.

Since 2014, ABCmouse for Libraries has provided our award-winning ABCmouse.com® Early Learning Academy to public library patrons at no cost for in-library use. ABCmouse is now available in more than 6,000 public library branches nationwide—over 40% of all branches in the U.S and almost 80% of branches in California. Last year alone there were more than 1,000,000 ABCmouse for Libraries child user sessions across the country. The Bring Learning to All initiative expands these efforts by partnering with libraries to provide ABCmouse to their patrons on a checkout basis for use at home, with the goal of improving school readiness and reading proficiency.

The transition from 2nd to 3rd grade is a critical time in a child’s educational journey. So today we are excited to announce the launch of a comprehensive 2nd grade curriculum to expand our award–winning ABCmouse.com Early Learning Academy for children ages 2–8. The expanded curriculum is designed to address the learning needs and interests of 2nd grade students with the goal of preparing them for the transition to 3rd grade.

Our 2nd grade curriculum, includes more than 1,500 new learning activities on two new levels in the Step–by–Step Learning Path, providing lessons in five key academic subjects: English language arts, math, social studies, science, and health. Children using ABCmouse at home, in classrooms, in libraries, and in other community institutions will all have access to the 2nd grade curriculum.