Have fun learning colors, shapes, and other groups of common objects!

The ability to form groups and categories is important for language learning and provides organization to a world that may otherwise seem confusing to a young child. As they develop, children learn "typical" or "more common" examples of category members (e.g., red apple) before they learn "less typical" or "less common" examples of category members (e.g., yellow apple).

Learn with Rufus: Groups and Categories aims to help children learn groups and categories such as colors, shapes, fruits, and other common objects. Children will learn a variety of typical and less typical examples to help them form broad categories and to increase generalization. The game is highly customizable to meet the needs of children with varying skills, ability levels, and learning styles.

This game was designed by Dr Holly Gastgeb, a clinical and developmental psychologist with over ten years of experience working with typically developing children and children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Her research has shown that children with ASD have difficulty forming categories from an early age. Since this ability is developed throughout childhood, the game is also beneficial for a wide range of children including those early achievers without any diagnosed learning difficulties.

Learn with Rufus: Groups and Categories is organized into two parts, a Learning phase, and a Game phase.

* Learning - The child is shown pictures of category members one at a time and given an audio prompt.

* Game - The child is shown 2 or 4 pictures of category members and given an audio prompt.

To keep children interested and motivated, the following features are included:

* Reward sets - Choose from nine different colorful child-friendly reward sets including animals, bugs, cars, cats, dinosaurs, and more.

* Toy break - The child will be given periodic breaks with a fun on-screen spinning top that draws on the screen while responding to both touch and tilt commands. This feature can be turned off if the child does not need breaks or finds them distracting.

* Positive reinforcement - Rufus will do a "happy dance" and give positive verbal reinforcement when the child answers correctly. When the child answers incorrectly, the correct answer will be restated.

* Music and sounds - Child-friendly music and sounds are included throughout the game. This feature can be turned off if the child is sensitive to or distracted by sounds and music.

* Text - For children who enjoy reading, the word that corresponds to each picture will be presented above the picture. This feature can be turned off if the words are distracting to the child.

Additional customizable features that are present include:

* Multiple category sets - Colors and shapes category sets are included. Periodically, new category sets will be made available either for free or for paid download.

* Level of difficulty - The level of difficulty can be adjusted to match the child's ability level.
Easy - All typical examples of category members
Medium - A mix of typical and less typical examples of category members
Hard - All less typical examples of category members

* Group Size - Choose from a group size of 2 or 4 for the Game phase depending on the child's ability level.

* Languages - Choose from English and Spanish.

For parents, educators, and therapists:

* Profiles per child - More than one child can play the game and all data will be stored under each child's name.

* Track data and statistics - At the end of the game, a graph of the child's data will be presented. Touch the graph to enlarge it, and then touch each data point to gather information about the child's performance.