WordWorld Marks One Year Anniversary and National Literacy Month With Global Distribution

WordWorld Marks One Year Anniversary and National Literacy Month With Global Distribution

Award-Winning Children's Literacy Tool Now Serves Children in 20 Countries Around the World

NEW YORK, Aug. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- The newest innovative tool in children's literacy, WordWorld, which utilizes a patent-pending methodology to aid word recognition, marks a ground-breaking first year and launch of its second season this September, National Literacy Month. Since its 2007 launch, the WordWorld TV property has experienced significant distribution, including a 97 percent carriage rate on PBS in the United States. On September 1, 2008, WordWorld will expand its broadcast distribution to 19 additional countries, including China, Korea, Malaysia, and Hong Kong. WordWorld has received strong critical reviews, consumer recognition, and awards across all categories: an Emmy Award, Parents' Choice Gold Awards, Creative Child Awards, and an Interactive Media Award.

30 million Americans in the U.S. are functionally illiterate and their children are two times more likely than average to grow up illiterate(1). The need for additional tools to help children learn to read is more crucial than ever. WordWorld, which includes a TV property, educational toys, and interactive products, bridges the critical learning gap between knowing the ABC's and learning to read among children ages three to five. Utilizing the patent-pending method of morphing letters into the objects that they represent, WordWorld helps children make the connection between letters, words, and meaning.

"We couldn't be more excited about the impact WordWorld is making both in the U.S. and around the globe. We've received overwhelming support from children, their parents and educators," says Emmy-winning Creator and CEO Don Moody. "We offer a completely new way to help children learn to read that we believe will help tackle the growing illiteracy problem."

WordWorld has been carefully crafted in response to the National Reading Panel report, which set the standards for early literacy instruction. The WordWorld platform has been developed in collaboration with top literacy experts from around the country. The curriculum specifically targets areas identified as most critical for supporting reading success.

-- Conceptions of print/print awareness

-- Knowledge about letter symbols, and the sounds they represent (letter recognition/phonemic awareness)

-- Comprehension and vocabulary
-- Social and emotional aspects of becoming literate

"WordWorld has dramatically changed the face of emergent literacy. With its innovative approach, it has erased the lines between literacy learning and sheer entertainment," says Dr. Barbara Swaby, Professor of Education and Director of the Graduate Reading Program and the Graduate Reading Clinic at University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. "Young children become lost in the wonder of the characters and the show that the process of learning becomes unnoticed and effortless."

To experience WordWorld, visit pbskids.org/wordworld which offers games, video, and parents and educator resources.

About Word World, LLC

Word World, LLC, created by Don Moody, is a multi-platform media franchise with a focus on helping develop literacy skills among three- to five-year- olds. Through a first-of-its-kind, patent-pending learning tool, all "WordWorld" products embed words into images to enhance word recognition. Word World, LLC is part of the Ready-To-Learn Partnership (RTLP), a public-private consortium awarded a five-year multimillion dollar grant by the US Department of Education. Members of the consortium include Chicago PBS member station WTTW and the Michael Cohen Group, an international research firm responsible for formative and summative testing of the show. For more information please visit the company's website at www.WordWorld.com/presskit.

According to the National Assessment of Education Progress, 1

The contents of this press release were developed under a Cooperative Agreement from the U.S. Department of Education. However, these contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.

Source: Word World, LLC

CONTACT: Libby Taggart of Fleishman-Hillard, +1-212-453-2129,
elizabeth.taggart@fleishman.com, for Word World, LLC

Web site: http://www.wordworld.com/presskit
http://pbskids.org/wordworld

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