Periodic Reporting for period 1 - Lyfta (Lyfta: an immersive educational storyworld platform) Reporting period: 2017-08-01 to 2018-01-31 Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project In today’s changing world, we need encouraging stories to help us better understand our world and one other. The world over, the education system is in flux. 21st Century skills, such as communication, critical thinking, creativity and collaboration are becoming increasingly relevant for children to learn. At the same time, digitalisation and curriculum changes pose new challenges for teachers. In order to thrive in this globalised world, teachers need proper guidance and materials to deliver meaningful, 21st Century lessons that meet teaching requirements. To solve these problems, Lyfta is building a platform of high quality, phenomenon-based, immersive learning experiences to suit the global needs of learning. Lyfta's award-winning resources help teachers to capture the hearts and minds of their students - making it easier to introduce and delve into complex topics. Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far During the SME1 project, Lyfta has developed from MVP stage to a user-friendly, working platform that teachers are able to use in teaching. The content of the platform has been developed and refined. Lyfta explored and tested new business models, piloted the platform with end users and created a business plan and product roadmap for the coming years. Lyfta conducted research and consulted IPR consultants on best practice IPR models for 3rd party content creation on the platform and has reached a conclusion on how to create a scalable production model in the future. During the project, Lyfta’s customer base grew to 120 school customers in the UK and Finland. Surveys and interviews with end users tell us that teachers find Lyfta beneficial in their teaching and students find Lyfta extremely engaging. The feedback from teachers has been overwhelmingly positive.Lyfta also explored US market segments and developed a relationship with a teacher training university in the US. Lyfta will start piloting with the university in spring 2018. Lyfta is now ready to sell its service (SaaS) to customers and developed a competitive, new business model in its target markets and a clear roadmap on how to reach its 2018 sales goals. Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far) Lyfta's aim is to help equip children with the 21st Century skills they need to thrive in the future and to inspire them to better understand the part they can play in creating a fairer, sustainable legacy. The conclusion of the action is that Lyfta has great growth potential and is set to make a big impact through its revolutionary approach to education. Lyfta will continue to develop the platform, the content and the business model, in order to achieve a scalable, useful and impactful solution for learners around the world. lyfta-kids-vr-and-ar6.jpg boy-using-vr.jpeg lyfta-2-0-ar-globe.jpg
