NEW YORK, NY — October 3, 2011 — Scholastic Media, a division of Scholastic Inc., (NASDAQ: SCHL), the global children’s publishing, education and media company, announced today the latest addition to its “Touch & Tilt™” line of storybook applications on the iTunes App Store with the release of The Magic School Bus®: Dinosaurs for the iPad. The app, based on the Scholastic book The Magic School Bus: In the Time of Dinosaurs, written by Joanna Cole and illustrated by Bruce Degen, is the second “Touch & Tilt” app for the global children’s science franchise which celebrates its 25th anniversary this month. The app is available for $7.99; a Lite version will also available.

"Our interactive media has always been about kids owning the experience, and Scholastic is delighted to release another Touch & Tilt app that truly gets children more deeply involved in their reading experience," said Deborah Forte, President of Scholastic Media, Executive Vice President of Scholastic Inc., and Executive Producer of the television series. "For over two decades The Magic School Bus has delighted and excited children about science – and now with this app, we can provide the opportunity to children to experience the science through exploration, interactivity and discovery."

Like others in the line, this Touch & Tilt app delivers an age appropriate, re-playable reading experience that brings the book to life and allows for even the youngest of children to read and play independently on the iPad – seamlessly combining how they naturally want to interact with the story with the unique capability of the platform. Many pages of The Magic School Bus: Dinosaurs adventure feature an interaction to extend the reading experience. Readers can go on dinosaur digs to uncover fossils, assemble dinosaur skeletons, collect dinosaur cards and access reports written by Ms. Frizzle’s class—each filled with intriguing science lessons. The app is designed for children 4 and up. Additional features include:

• Embodies the "open exploration" essence of The Magic School Bus brand, which encourages kids to "take chances, make mistakes…and get messy!"
  • The app takes readers on a wild ride with Ms. Frizzle’s class—a field trip back in the time of dinosaurs
• Touch & Tilt animated interactions make it easy for children to engage with the story:
  • Touch the words to hear the story and speech bubbles to hear what characters are saying
  • Tilt to see dinosaur digs and class reports for further exploration
• Narration & Music:
  • Features over 20 individual voices, as well as music and sound effects
• Dinosaur Digs and Collectible Cards:
  • Go on dinosaur digs to unearth dinosaur fossils and then build the dinosaur skeleton
  • Collect 16 different Dinosaur Cards that offer pictures and facts
• Game:
  • Feature one highly re-playable game with 7 different levels explores where dinosaurs lived around the world
• Includes over a hundred of facts about dinosaurs including when and where dinosaurs lived to their eating habits and physical characteristics
• Individual words are highlighted as they are read aloud, to aid reading skills. Options allow independent readers to turn off music and narration, access mini-games and go to specific sections of the story.

Each of Scholastic Media’s storybook apps is developed in-house, ensuring fidelity to the tone, look, and feel of beloved Scholastic brands such as The Magic School Bus, while guaranteeing that parents can trust the apps to be both educational and entertaining. The app is the fourth Touch & Tilt interactive storybook, joining Go, Clifford, Go and I Love You Through and Through and The Magic School Bus: Oceans. Scholastic Media also has six branded game apps available for iPhone and iPod touch based on the hit children’s properties Clifford The Big Red Dog®, I SPY™, The 39 Clues™, WordGirl® and Goosebumps™.

PRAISE FOR THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS: OCEANS APP

• "Reading the Magic School Bus books has always been fascinating and fun, but this interactive app is even better. There is so much jam-packed into this app that kids will want to play it repeatedly to find all the interesting interactive elements hiding in these underwater scenes."
  — 4 our of 4 stars USA Today.com
• "...a polished storybook app featuring an exceptional amount of interactive content."
  — 5 out of 5 stars / CommonSenseMedia.org
• "[A]n app that feels as…full of activity as the ocean floor…[An] impressive amount of educational content…[A] successful intersection of learning and entertainment...The Frizz seems a natural fit for the medium...a promising first adventure."
  — Kirkus Reviews
• "They have succeeded” in using ‘the capacity of the iPad as a tool to support children to actively explore and interact with concepts and the ideas…that couldn’t be achieved through television or in printed books’; "an app that will engage with the breadth of children’s learning styles."
  - Wired.com (Geek Dad / March 2011)
• "...large amounts of information…about sea life. [A] lot of information that will give readers hours of listening and exploring."
  - Wired.com (Geek Dad / September 2011)
• 2011 Editor’s Choice Award / Children’s Technology Review
• "The Best Children’s Books on the iPad – Honorable Mention" / The New York Times

For more information on Scholastic apps please visit: www.scholastic.com/apps or www.itunes.com/appstore/. For more information about Scholastic, please visit Scholastic’s media room at http://mediaroom.scholastic.com.

For more information, review codes, and icons please contact:
Meghan Newton
Goodman Media International
mnewton@goodmanmedia.com
212-576-2700 x 245
 

Emma Mittelstadt
Goodman Media International
emittelstadt@goodmanmedia.com
212-576-2700 x 250

ABOUT THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS®
Based on the best-selling Scholastic book series written by Joanna Cole and illustrated by Bruce Degen, The Magic School Bus is an Emmy Award-winning animated television series that has been seen in 39 countries in 16 languages. Now in its 17th season, it currently airs on the Qubo Channel in the United States. With more than 58 million books in print, the brand has won numerous industry excellence awards, including two Emmys for Lily Tomlin (for her portrayal of Ms. Frizzle in the TV series), five CINE Golden Eagles, a Parents Choice Gold Medal, a National Conservation Achievement Award, an Environmental Media Association Award, and an Annenberg Public Policy Center Award. A live show entitled “The Magic School Bus Live: THE CLIMATE CHALLENGE” launches this Fall.