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Wondrous World is a children's magazine with a mission to inspire and inform people of all ages. Each issue curates stories about science and adventure around a theme. In 2019, I spent six months ideating, writing, illustrating and designing its preliminary issue, "Under The Sea."
Younger generations have been raised with constant screen time, and many facets of culture have adapted in format to shorter attention spans. However, education still largely lags behind in this area.
In schools, the information being taught has not lost its density. Modern parents and teachers are presented with the challenge of making information easier and faster to digest for children accustomed to quick, visual content. Resources that can engage children's minds and facilitate learning within this landscape are needed.
The stories in Wondrous World are designed to capture attention, spark conversation and foster shared learning experiences. By engaging readers visually, Wondrous World tells stories that stick. And because the publication is meant to be held on to, children can return and learn more from it with time.
Presenting information in magazine format increases the accessibility of the resource. Its affordability over hardcover books presents a better chance of being adopted into a classroom subscription model, increasing its affordability for more schools. The model of a quarterly magazine allows for endless themes that can both serve as evergreen entertainment and supplement specific curriculums throughout the school year.
While Wondrous World is intended to have mass appeal, the target demographic is elementary-age children. To most effectively relate to this group, I kept the language within stories simple, engaging and fun. Complicated topics are not avoided, but they are broken down in order to give children a point of relevant entry. To increase engagement, stories prompt readers to imagine how concepts may relate to them personally.
After researching accessibility standards for different age groups, I used friendly sans serif typefaces throughout Wondrous World for legibility and kept all type above an 11-point size. I chose a color palette with a primary red, blue, and yellow base because studies have shown that these are the most attractive shades for children—not neon or pastel tones. Studies have shown that children mentally represent more information in visual form than in verbal form, so abundant illustrations give them a better chance of reading retention.
As young people develop their reading comprehension, they spend a lot of time alone with books or reading out loud with adults. To help readers get more out of this engagement, I added interactive elements to as many pages as I could. This not only helps children think more deeply about what they're reading, it also creates easy conversation points for them to share thoughts with others. Quizzes and games make subjects more approachable and memorable. Giving context to historical or scientific facts with an interactive activity like a maze allows the mind more time to reflect on the concept and boosts retention.
While creating the magazine, I shared drafts with children in my target age range for direct feedback on their reading experience. One of the first clear points was that children immediately gravitate towards pages designed as games. Because of this, the final version of the magazine dedicates one-third of its pages to a section explicitly labeled as activities. This provides an easy entry point for engagement.
After several design iterations over the course of a year, I launched a Kickstarter in 2019 to produce a short run of the magazine. The campaign successfully reached its goal and 100+ copies were distributed (along with bonus branded postcards and stickers) throughout the country.
Wondrous World is still currently available for sale on Blurb. You can browse the entire magazine below: