PBS KIDS has been designing non-commercial websites and interactive games for kids for over 10 years. Making an interactive product that appeals, engages and is usable by a child is not as simple as using Comic Sans and replacing an “S” with a “Z”. Children's abilities change rapidly and producers need to ensure that products are developmentally accessible. This session will focus on designing for two audiences: pre-readers (3-5) and readers (6-8), through case-studies revealing how and why design choices were made based on experience, user testing and informed guesses.
Chris Bishop is the Creative Director of PBS KIDS Interactive, where he has designed websites and games for kids ages 2-8 since 2000. Bishop also paints Pretty Girls and Robots and (occasionally) draws the comic strip “HER! (GIRL VS PIG).” He is an Eagle Scout.
Dan Willis is a user experience consultant for Sapient Government Services where his clients have included the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security. He has been launching robust Web sites since the mid 1990s. Willis was washingtonpost.com’s first User Experience Director and had the same title at PBS.org. He has designed and coded major Web sites; designed, facilitated, and analyzed usability testing; and managed design, IA, and Web analytics resources. He is the creator of UX Crank (www.uxcrank.com), a highly opinionated resource for UX professionals. He presented at the last two South by Southwest Interactive Festivals, a couple of the Interaction Design Association's annual conferences, and several Information Architecture Summits.
Rick Pinchera is a Senior Interactive Designer at WGBH in Boston. He has over 11 years of experience creating new media for many of PBS Kids' premiere shows, such as Curious George, Martha Speaks and Arthur. With a skill set that includes game design, illustration, animation and character design, he contributes to a team that is dedicated to producing fun and educational content for kids.
Silvia Lovato manages the PBS KIDS GO! Web site, PBS’s Web destination for elementary school kids. She's been at PBS since 2000, working with media producers on interactive, educational content for children. Silvia started her career in online news in the mid-nineties and came to PBS after completing an MA program in Communication, Culture and Technology at Georgetown University. She's originally from Brazil and is interested in how public media can help curate local voices and how educational resources and ideas can be shared across borders.
