Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1499169
NEWS 16 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 14 MAY 2023 → direct discretionary portfolio management *Oer is valid for a limited time only. T&Cs apply. and receive a top-up of up to €200* Apply now medirect.com.mt 2557 4400 MeDirect Bank (Malta) plc, company registration number C34125, is licensed to undertake the business of banking in terms of the Banking Act (Cap. 371) and investment services under the Investment Services Act (Cap. 370). An investment service that acts in your best interest at all times. MATTHEW VELLA FRANCESCA Muscat has put her finger on an acute language problem on the Maltese islands. Despite frequent polling that shows that bilingual Malta is a predominantly Maltese-speak- ing society – well over 85% by most data – young children are assailed by English-only enter- tainment online and on TV. The attention-stealing screen is not Maltese. "Maltese digital touch points are limited. This is a comment we hear from many parents, teachers and currently even the President of Malta, who is push- ing for a wider promotion of the language," says Francesca Mus- cat, the founder of IslandBebe. com, a digital parenting hub that offers content for parents in Malta. "We felt it was time to do something about it." Muscat's idea is the education- al app Nina U Ninu, a digital touchpoint for children in Mal- tese, with creative games that visually match the standards of similar games and apps they are used to. "We want to give all children – who hear Maltese at home, who don't hear Maltese, and expat children – a place to have fun, learn and immerse themselves in the language without realis- ing they are. We needed to find a natural way for children to en- gage with the Maltese language using a platform they know and like." Muscat knows that children have multiple moments in their life where they are interacting with a screen, most of it in Eng- lish. "They're tech-savvy and used to screen entertainment from Netflix and Disney Plus. But screen time can be educa- tional too, with good content that is age appropriate." Muscat saw how easy it was to get her child onto educational screen time, but only in English. "Nina U Ninu is a fun way for children to immerse themselves in the Maltese languages with- out necessarily realising they are learning Maltese. New games will be rolled out frequently so stay tuned to find out what else the app has in store for your child," Muscat says. The digital mobile and tablet app has a library of games for children aged 2-5 years, that are fun, have a high standard in terms of visuals, and allows chil- dren to learn numbers, letters of the alphabet and animal names in a fun, colourful and inter- active manner. "Your children will immerse themselves into a world of hearing Maltese, seeing Maltese and learning Maltese without having to try," Muscat says of the app, now available on for Apple and Google Store devices. Since starting up Island Bébé over two years ago, Muscat's website has grown organically from first creating articles for parents, to offering them re- sources such as a dynamic play- ground and childcare map that allows parents to find the closest childcare or playground to them. "We hope to make their life a little bit easy through the arti- cles, content and resources avail- able to our growing customer base with over 10,000 monthly views," Muscat says. "Every generation has challeng- es, and every parent has chal- lenges – they're unique to each family. I would say the balance of speed of life, balancing work – in a family where both work full- time – with children extra-cur- riculum, spending time with kids... requires parents to have good communication, teamwork and structure. Manageable, but it can be overwhelming!" mvella@mediatoday.com.mt Maltese language kids' games app is a winner