iOS Game for Teaching Kids Based on Interactive Objects Search

The work is dedicated to the development of mobile (iOS) game for children in order to teach them to recognize the most frequent types of objects, as well as to memorize pronunciation, spelling of names and basic facts about these objects. The paper describes a solution that allows the user (child) to study information about the objects surrounding him using a mobile device, interacting directly with real physical objects, and not with their digital representation. This iOS game uses the device’s camera and neural network model, so that the child can recognize the objects to which the mobile device is directed. This approach allows to make the game more interactive, lively, and also helps to simplify the formation of the child’s outlook on the surrounding objects. Based on the analysis of popular types of mobile games for kids’ development, as well as the capabilities of neural networks for object recognition, a mobile application with four game modes for different age categories of children was developed. The first two modes are aimed at the youngest group of children (1 - 3 years) and helps in studying the pronunciation and the appearance of objects. The third mode is aimed at obtaining additional information about objects, as well as on the child’s ability to find the desired object by its description. The fourth mode is available for the older age group and helps children learn to read and guess the names of objects. The paper contains 43 pages, 3 chapters, 12 illustrations, 2 tables, 30 bibliography items, 4 appendices Keywords: mobile game, education, сhild development, object recognition.