UAE Ramadan initiative gives life to story-telling through augmented reality

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Dubai - Aims to convey positive messages of friendship, confidence, hard work and happiness for children.

By Nandini Sircar

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Published: Sat 16 May 2020, 2:48 AM

Last updated: Sun 17 May 2020, 8:12 AM

The Ministry of Education is launching a new learning initiative which relies on augmented reality (AR) to present a new style of storytelling.

The Special Ramadan Edition of "UAE Storytime" will start on Monday. Live streaming of the session will be open for children not only in the country but for kids across the globe.

With an aim to bring "reading to life", tools like visualisation, annotation and storytelling will enable young readers understand moral messages through interactive learning.

The initiative aims to convey positive messages of friendship, confidence, hard work and happiness for children aged 4 to 11 years. But anyone of any age is free to join it.

Scheduled on May 18, 19, 20, and 30, at 9pm on weekdays and 2pm on Saturday, these story telling sessions will be held in English.

Meanwhile, the ministry has also posted a video on its website to enable potential users to see how augmented reality works.

The simple instruction explains that users need to have a device like a laptop, computer or tablet in order to get started. They would require an additional mobile phone to scan the QR code following which it would automatically lead the users to the UAE Storytime website.

For centuries, the Middle East region has been the source of legends, fables and tales of the adventures of kings and warriors. Hakawati was one of the most riveting leisure activities for people and their neighbourhoods in a bygone era when cinema or television did not exist.

But in the new age, breathing life into these tales, using artificial intelligence (AI) this initiative once again encourages children to "stay home and read together".

nandini@khaleejtimes.com


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