System, program product, and related methods for managing child activities

• US 8,010,037 B2
• Filed: 01/29/2008
• Issued: 08/30/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Edmund G. Regina, Kevin J. Bannwolf
• Original Assignee: Edmund G. Regina, Kevin J. Bannwolf
• Inventors: Regina, Edmund G., Bannwolf, Kevin J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Thai; Xuan
• Assistant Examiner(s): PAGE, EVAN RANDALL
• Application Number:
  US12/021,992
• Publication Number:
  US 20080182232A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,309 Days
• Field of Search: 434/322, 434/350
• US Class Current: 434/350
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/02 of the type wherein the student is expected to construct an answer to the question which is presented or wherein the machine gives an answer to the question presented by a student
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/28 Timers or timing mechanisms used in protocols

Abstract

A system, program product, and method for managing activities of a child over a communication network are provided. The system can include a communication network, a plurality of user computers in communication with the network, a database server, and an educational enhancement web server in communication with the network and the database server, and including memory storing educational enhancement program product to facilitate managing activities of a child over the communication network. The educational enhancement program product can include instructions, that when executed, cause the educational enhancement web server to perform the operations of providing data to direct an agent resident on a respective child client user computer to interrupt or prevent usage of the computer for a computer-based leisure activity, and to provide data to the child client user computer to display an educational task which must be completed as a prerequisite to receiving control of the computer needed to initiate or resume the computer-based leisure activity.

Claims

1. A system for managing activities of a child over a communication network, the system comprising:

a communication network;

at least one computer hosting an online educational enhancement web site accessible to the communication network to define an educational enhancement web server, the educational enhancement web server having a processor and memory coupled to the processor to store operating instructions therein;

at least one computer in communication with the educational enhancement web server to provide database management services thereto to define a database server, the database server having a processor and memory coupled to the processor;

at least one database accessible to the processor of the database server and having a plurality of child client user records associated with a plurality of child client users, each child client user record associated with at least one parent client user;

a plurality of child client user computers each positioned at a respective plurality of child client user sites remote from the educational enhancement web server and accessible to the communication network and having a processor and memory coupled to the processor to store operating instructions therein and to receive data from the educational enhancement web server, a display in communication with the processor to display data using an associated web browser, and a user interface in communication with the processor to provide the child client user with on-line web-based access to the educational enhancement web server over the communication network, the memory of each child client user computer also including an educational enhancement agent adapted to receive commands from the educational enhancement web server to interrupt or resume at least one application program adapted to provide a computer-based leisure activity;

educational enhancement program product stored in the memory of the educational enhancement web server to facilitate managing activities of a child over a communication network, the educational enhancement program product including instructions that when executed by the educational enhancement web server, cause the educational enhancement web server to perform the operations of;

receiving data from a child client user computer identifying a child client user,

providing data to the child client user computer to display a first educational task required to be completed to allow access to at least one application program adapted to provide the respective child client user a computer-based leisure activity,

providing data to direct the educational enhancement agent to allow access to the at least one application program responsive to child client user satisfaction of access criteria,

providing data to direct the educational enhancement agent to interrupt the computer-based leisure activity to define an interrupt order responsive to a permissive access time limit,

providing data to the child client user computer to display a second educational task required to be completed to allow access of the interrupted computer-based leisure activity, and

providing data to direct the educational enhancement agent to resume the computer-based leisure activity responsive to child client user satisfaction of access criteria.

2. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein the at least one database further comprises a plurality of dynamically selectable educational task items organized by at least one of the following:

grade or age of the child client user, subject matter, difficulty, task type, and performance on prior educational task items.

3. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein the child client user records include identification data, scholastic aptitude data, data identifying a set of a plurality of child client user authorized application programs selected by a parent client user and providing a computer-based leisure activity, permissive access criterion associated with each of the plurality of authorized application programs, and child client user task item completion and performance history.

4. A system as defined in claim 1,

wherein each child client user computer displays a desktop, a web page window, or web page toolbar listing each child client user application program selectable to launch the respective at least one application program responsive to the respective child client user computer receiving access data;

wherein the at least one of the application program includes a web-based game; and

wherein the at least one database includes a list of uniform resource locators associated with the web-based game.

5. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise monitoring expended permissive access time to thereby determine when to provide the data to direct the educational enhancement agent to interrupt the computer-based leisure activity.

6. A system as defined in claim 1,

wherein the at least one application program includes at least one of the following:

a plurality of authorized application programs providing a computer-based leisure activity or a plurality of instances of the same authorized application program; and

wherein the operations further comprise monitoring usage time of each of the at least one application program to thereby determine when to provide the data to direct the educational enhancement agent to interrupt the computer-based leisure activity, and monitoring cumulative usage time of each active usage of each of at least one of the following;

the plurality of authorized application programs or the plurality of instances of the same authorized application program to thereby prevent circumventing timed interruption of the computer-based leisure activity.

7. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein the educational enhancement agent provides data to initiate display of a warning to the child client user that the computer-based leisure activity is about to be interrupted to thereby allow the child to save associated application program data responsive to receiving the interrupt order.

8. A system as defined in claim 1,

wherein the operation of providing data to direct the educational enhancement agent to allow access to the at least one application program includes the operation of providing permissive access data to the child client user computer, the permissive access data including identification of the at least one application program to thereby allow child client user selection of the at least one application program, the at least one application program selected by a parent client user and adapted to provide the respective child client user the computer-based leisure activity;

and

wherein the educational enhancement agent provides data to direct the child client user computer to receive and display an educational site webpage presenting a set of dynamically selected educational task items responsive to receiving the interrupt order.

9. A system as defined in claim 1,

wherein the operation of providing data to direct the educational enhancement agent to allow access to the at least one application program includes the operation of providing permissive access data to the child client user computer, the permissive access data including identification of the at least one application program to thereby allow child client user selection of the at least one application program, the at least one application program selected by a parent client user and adapted to provide the respective child client user the computer-based leisure activity;

and

wherein the educational enhancement agent provides data to direct the child client user computer to receive and display an educational site webpage or webpage toolbar listing at least one available educational sites responsive to receiving the interrupt order.

10. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise dynamically selecting educational task items from the at least one database responsive to the permissive access time limit, responsive to data stored in the child client user record for the respective child client user, and responsive to performance on prior educational task items.

11. A system as defined in claim 10,

wherein criteria for dynamically selecting the educational task items includes child client user personal profile data submitted by an associated parent client user and child client user task item completion and score history for the respective child client user;

and

wherein educational task items added to the at least one database after an educational task has been provided to the child client user computer are made available for dynamic selection during the ongoing educational task.

12. A system as defined in claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving educational task completion data for the educational task provided to the child client user;

evaluating educational task performance of the child client user responsive to completion of the educational task to determine if the respective child client user satisfied associated access criteria to thereby determine an amount of access time for additional computer-based leisure activities prior to a next interrupt;

storing completion and score data associated with the educational task; and

providing an associated parent client user real-time notification of the completion and the score of each educational task and child client user current status.

13. A system as defined in claim 1,

wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving computer-based leisure activity time limit criteria data defining permissive access data from an associated parent client user for the child client user,

receiving identification of the at least one application program during initial installation configuration and periodically thereafter, each application program adapted to provide the child client user a computer-based leisure activity,

associating the permissive access data with a child client user record for the child client user, the permissive access criteria including at least one of the following;

a parent client user selected minimum passing score for test-based educational task items and a parent client user selected minimum educational web site access view time,

receiving subsequent real-time permissive access data updates from the associated parent client user for the child client users and

providing real-time permissive access update data to the educational enhancement agent; and

wherein the educational enhancement agent provides updated permissive access to the at least one application program responsive to the updated permissive access update data.

14. A system as defined in claim 1,

wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving computer-based leisure activity time limit criteria data defining permissive access data from an associated parent client user for the child client user,

associating the time limit criteria data with a child client user record for the child client user, the permissive access criteria including at least one of the following;

a parent client user selected minimum passing score for test-based educational task items and a parent client user selected minimum educational web site access view time,

receiving subsequent real-time permissive access data updates from the associated parent client user for the child client user, and

providing real-time permissive access update data to the educational enhancement agent; and

wherein the educational enhancement agent terminates access to all application programs providing a computer-based leisure activity responsive to the permissive access update data.

15. A system as defined in claim 6, wherein the operations further comprise:

storing cumulative child client user access time individually for each of the at least one application programs and cumulative child client user access time for each educational site accessed by the respective child client user for at least one time period; and

providing a message link between a parent client user computer and an associated child client user computer when logged into the educational enhancement web server.

16. A computer program product, stored on a tangible computer memory media, operable on a computer to facilitate managing activities of a child over a communication network, the computer program product comprising:

an entry initiator adapted to access child client user records in at least one database to thereby provide user login access for and authentication of each of a plurality of child client users and to provide user login access for and authentication of each of a plurality of parent client users to allow entry of and access to data stored in associated child client user records, each parent client user associated with at least one of the plurality of child client users; and

an interrupt manager adapted to access interrupt criteria for a child client user, to determine at least one of the following;

cumulative expended leisure usage time or cumulative computer-based leisure activity application program run time, prior to a last interrupt, to initiate commands over a communication network to an educational enhancement agent residing on a child client user computer to interrupt one or more application programs responsive to the interrupt criteria, and to initiate commands to the educational enhancement agent to resume the one or more application programs responsive to satisfaction of associated permissive access criteria.

17. A computer program product as defined in claim 16, further comprising:

an educational task manager adapted to dynamically select a plurality of educational task items for assignment to the client child user responsive to the client child user'"'"'s personal profile data submitted by the associated parent client user, task item completion and performance history data for the child client user, and responsive to the interrupt manager; and

an educational task evaluation manager adapted to receive educational task completion data, to evaluate educational task performance of the child client user for each assigned educational task, and to determine if the child client user satisfied associated permissive access criteria to thereby determine an amount of resumption time for additional computer-based leisure activity prior to a next interrupt.

18. A computer program product as defined in claim 17, further comprising:

a program initiation manager adapted to present custom-configured web pages to the child client user computer to thereby welcome and orient the child client user and to instruct the child client user on how to execute the one or more required educational tasks; and

an educational task completion and performance storage manager adapted to receive evaluation data from the educational task evaluation manager to thereby manage storing the child client user task item completion history and performance history in the at least one database.

19. A computer program product as defined in claim 18, further comprising an educational program reports manager adapted to provide online reporting of real-time child client user activity status of an associated child client user to a parent client user for an associated child client user, real-time child client user performance data on newly completed educational tasks, child client user task item completion and score history, child client user performance comparative statistics, and child client user computer-based leisure activity history, responsive to a real-time child client user milestone, on-demand request, or preselected periodic interval.

20. A computer program product as defined in claim 19, further comprising an educational program installation and maintenance manager adapted to provide answers to inquiries about the web-based educational enhancement program, subscribe the parent client user and associated child client user, manage installation of the educational enhancement agent, collect and store selection data providing customized educational tasks and performance based reward schedules selected by the parent client user for each separate associated child client user.

21. A method for managing activities of a child over a communication network, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving identification data through a communication network from a child client user computer identifying a respective child client user;

providing data through the communication network to the child client user computer to thereby display an educational task required to be completed to allow access to at least one application program adapted to provide the child client user a computer-based leisure activity; and

directing an educational enhancement agent residing on a child client user computer through the communication network to allow access to the at least one application program responsive to child client user satisfaction of access criteria.

22. A method as defined in claim 21, further comprising the steps of:

receiving educational task completion data for the educational task provided to the child client user; and

evaluating educational task performance of the child client user responsive to completion of the educational task to determine if the child client user satisfied associated access criteria to thereby determine an amount of permissive access time for computer-based leisure activities prior to a next interrupt.

23. A method as defined in claim 21, wherein the access criteria includes the child client user performing the educational task for a preselected time or obtaining at least a minimum passing score, and wherein the educational task is a first educational task, the method further comprising the steps of:

directing the educational enhancement agent through the communication network to interrupt the computer-based leisure activity to define an interrupt order responsive to a permissive access time limit;

providing data through the communication network to the child client user computer to thereby display a second educational task required to be completed to allow resumption of the interrupted computer-based leisure activity; and

directing the educational enhancement agent through the communication network to resume the computer-based leisure activity responsive to child client user satisfaction of access criteria.

24. A method as defined in claim 21, further comprising the step of remotely monitoring expended permissive access time to thereby determine when to provide the data to direct the educational enhancement agent to interrupt the computer-based leisure activity.

25. A method as defined in claim 23,

wherein the method further comprises the step of directing the child client user computer to receive and display at least one of the following:

an educational site webpage presenting a set of dynamically selected educational task items, or an educational site webpage or webpage toolbar listing at least one available educational sites, responsive to receiving the interrupt order; and

wherein the step of directing the educational enhancement agent to allow access to the at least one application program includes the step of providing permissive access data to the child client user computer, the permissive access data including identification of the at least one application program to thereby allow child client user selection of the at least one application program, the at least one application program selected by a parent client user and adapted to provide the respective child client user the computer-based leisure activity.

26. A method as defined in claim 23, further comprising the step of dynamically selecting educational task items from at least one database responsive to at least two of the following:

the permissive access time limit, data stored in a child client user record for the respective child client user, and performance on prior educational task items by the child client user.

27. A method as defined in claim 26,

wherein criteria for dynamically selecting the educational task items includes child client user personal profile data submitted by an associated parent client user and child client user task item completion and performance history for the respective child client user;

and

wherein educational task items added to the at least one database after an educational task has been provided to the child client user computer are made available for dynamic selection during an ongoing educational task being performed by the child client user.

28. A method as defined in claim 23, further comprising the steps of:

receiving computer-based leisure activity time limit criteria data defining permissive access data for the child client user from an associated parent client user through the communication network;

associating the time limit criteria data with a child client user record for the child client user, the permissive access criteria including at least one of the following;

a parent client user selected minimum passing score for test-based educational task items, or a parent client user selected minimum educational web site access view time;

receiving subsequent real-time permissive access data updates from the associated parent client user for the child client user; and

providing real-time permissive access update data to the educational enhancement agent.

29. A method for managing activities of a child over a communication network, the method comprising the steps of:

directing an educational enhancement agent residing on a child client user computer through a communication network to interrupt an application program responsive to a permissive access time limit, the application program providing a respective child client user a computer-based leisure activity;

providing data through the communication network to the child client user computer to thereby display an educational task required to be completed to allow resumption of the interrupted computer-based leisure activity; and

directing the educational enhancement agent through the communication network to allow resumption of the computer-based leisure activity responsive to child client user satisfaction of access criteria.

30. A method as defined in claim 29, further comprising the steps of:

receiving educational task completion data for the educational task provided to the child client user;

evaluating educational task performance of the child client user responsive to completion of the educational task to determine if the child client user satisfied associated access criteria to thereby determine an amount of permissive access time for computer-based leisure activities prior to a next interrupt; and

remotely monitoring expended permissive access time to thereby determine when to direct the educational enhancement agent through the communication network to interrupt the computer-based leisure activity.

31. A computer readable medium that is readable by a computer for managing activities of a child over a communication network, the computer readable medium comprising a set of instructions that, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform the following operations:

receiving data through a communication network from a child client user computer identifying a respective child client user;

providing data through the communication network to the child client user computer to display an educational task required to be completed to allow access to at least one application program adapted to provide the child client user a computer-based leisure activity; and

providing data through the communication network to direct an educational enhancement agent residing on a child client user computer to allow access to the at least one application program responsive to child client user satisfaction of access criteria.

32. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 31, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving educational task completion data for the educational task provided to the child client user; and

evaluating educational task performance of the child client user responsive to completion of the educational task to determine if the child client user satisfied associated access criteria to thereby determine an amount of permissive access time for computer-based leisure activities prior to a next interrupt.

33. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 31, wherein the access criteria includes the child client user performing the educational task for a preselected time or obtaining at least a minimum passing score, wherein the educational task is a first educational task, and wherein the operations further comprise:

providing data through the communication network to direct the educational enhancement agent to interrupt the computer-based leisure activity to define an interrupt order responsive to a permissive access time limit;

providing data through the communication network to the child client user computer to display a second educational task required to be completed to allow resumption of the interrupted computer-based leisure activity; and

providing data through the communication network to direct the educational enhancement agent to resume the computer-based leisure activity responsive to child client user satisfaction of access criteria.

34. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 33, wherein the operations further comprise remotely monitoring expended permissive access time to thereby determine when to provide the data to direct the educational enhancement agent to interrupt the computer-based leisure activity.

35. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 33, wherein the operation of providing data through the communication network to direct the educational enhancement agent to allow access to the at least one application program includes the operation of providing permissive access data to the child client user computer, the permissive access data including identification of the at least one application program to thereby allow child client user selection of the at least one application program, the at least one application program selected by a parent client user and adapted to provide the respective child client user the computer-based leisure activity.

36. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 33, wherein the operations further comprise dynamically selecting educational task items from at least one database responsive to at least two of the following:

the permissive access time limit, data stored in a child client user record for the respective child client user, and performance on prior educational task items by the child client user.

37. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 36,

wherein criteria for dynamically selecting the educational task items includes child client user personal profile data submitted by an associated parent client user and child client user task item completion and performance history for the respective child client user;

and

wherein educational task items added to the at least one database after an educational task has been provided to the child client user computer are made available for dynamic selection during an ongoing educational task being performed by the child client user.

38. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 33, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving computer-based leisure activity time limit criteria data defining permissive access data for the child client user from an associated parent client user through the communication network;

associating the time limit criteria data with a child client user record for the child client user, the permissive access criteria including at least one of the following;

a parent client user selected minimum passing score for test-based educational task items, or a parent client user selected minimum educational web site access view time;

receiving subsequent real-time permissive access data updates from the associated parent client user for the child client user; and

providing real-time permissive access update data to the educational enhancement agent.

39. A computer readable medium that is readable by a computer for managing activities of a child over a communication network, the computer readable medium comprising a set of instructions that, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform the following operations:

providing data through a communication network to direct an educational enhancement agent residing on a child client user computer to interrupt an application program responsive to a permissive access time limit, the application program providing a respective child client user a computer-based leisure activity;

providing data through the communication network to the child client user computer to display an educational task required to be completed to allow resumption of the interrupted computer-based leisure activity; and

providing data through the communication to direct the educational enhancement agent to allow resumption of the computer-based leisure activity responsive to child client user satisfaction of access criteria.

40. A computer readable medium as defined in claim 39, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving educational task completion data for the educational task provided to the child client user;

evaluating educational task performance of the child client user responsive to completion of the respective educational task to determine if the child client user satisfied associated access criteria to thereby determine an amount of permissive access time for computer-based leisure activities prior to a next interrupt; and

remotely monitoring expended permissive access time to thereby determine when to provide the data through the communication network to direct the educational enhancement agent to interrupt the computer-based leisure activity.