Mark Schlichting facts for kids

Mark Schlichting (born March 17, 1948) is a creative person who writes books and designs computer programs for kids. He's famous for making the Living Books series at a company called Broderbund. This series included early computer games like Harry and the Haunted House (1994). These were some of the first interactive books on CD-ROM for children.

Mark Schlichting was also the Design and Art Director for the very first interactive Living Book. This was an adaptation of Mercer Mayer’s Just Grandma and Me. It was so new and exciting that it became one of the first software programs approved as a school textbook. Even Apple CEO John Sculley used it to show off new technology!

Creating Living Books at Broderbund

Mark Schlichting started working at Broderbund as a freelance animator. He had a great idea: what if children's books could come alive on a computer? He imagined digital books where kids could click on pictures and make things happen. These "hot spots" would be interactive.

Soon, he led a new team called Living Books. Their first projects were turning popular books into interactive software. These included Mercer Mayer’s Just Grandma and Me and Marc Brown’s Arthur’s Teacher Trouble. Mark Schlichting also created his own original Living Books game, Harry and the Haunted House.

These computer programs were like reading a real book, but with cool computer features. You could even read them in different languages! These interactive, animated digital books were the first of their kind. They offered two ways to play:

• Read-through: You could turn the digital pages and a narrator would read the story aloud.
• Interactive: You could click on almost anything on each page. This would start fun animations, often with music, sound effects, or characters talking.

NoodleWorks Interactive: New Adventures

In 2000, Mark Schlichting started his own company called NoodleWorks Interactive. This company focuses on designing interactive experiences for kids. They also help other companies with their designs.

Under Mark Schlichting's guidance, NoodleWorks Interactive has worked with many well-known children's companies. These include LeapFrog, Fisher/Price, and Electronic Arts (EA). They create fun and educational projects.

In November 2011, Schlichting released an iPad app for kids called Noodle Words. In this app, children can pick a word from a box. When they tap it, animated bee characters show what the word means. Noodle Words won several big awards, including:

• The KAPi Award for Best Educational Product of The Year.
• The Parent's Choice Gold Award.
• A KAPi Pioneer Legend Award for Mark Schlichting himself.
• The Children's Technology Review Editor's Choice Award.

Wanderful Apps: Books on Touchscreens

In 2012, Mark Schlichting became the Chief Creative Officer at Wanderful interactive storybooks. Here, he teamed up with Mickey W. Mantle, a former colleague from Broderbund and Living Books. Their goal was to turn many of the old Living Books CD-ROM titles into apps for touchscreen devices like tablets.

Wanderful released app versions of several classic Living Books titles. These included The Tortoise and the Hare, Arthur's Teacher Trouble, Little Monster at School, and Ruff's Bone. They also released an app for Schlichting's own children's book, Harry and the Haunted House.

Mark Schlichting's Books and Software

Mark Schlichting is the author and illustrator of Harry and the Haunted House. This story has been released in different ways:

• As a regular children's book.
• As a Living Books interactive CD-ROM.
• As an app in 2012 from Wanderful interactive storybooks.

For the iOS app version of Harry and the Haunted House, Schlichting worked with Wanderful. They made sure the app used the new touch-screen features. This meant that almost anything on a page that looked like you could tap it would "come to life." Tapping would start an animation, a sound, or another interactive surprise. You could even tap on individual words in the text! The Wanderful book app is available in English or Spanish, and you can buy a French version too.

In October 2016, Mark Schlichting released a new non-fiction book. It's called Understanding Kids, Play, and Interactive Design: How to Create Games Children Love. This book explores how kids play and how to design fun, interactive experiences for them.