We are very excited to announce that both FactMiners and The Softalk Apple Project have been selected as semi-finalist Pacesetter projects in the Ashoka/LEGO #Play2Learn Challenge. Selection as a Pacesetter comes after a thorough screening process in which 636 entries were considered. We are incredibly pleased to be moving on to the next phase of this Challenge.

When Ashoka and the LEGO Foundation posed the question, "Up for the challenge?" on the #Play2Learn Challenge homepage, FactMiners and The Softalk Apple Project jumped right in and got busy. We submitted our inter-related projects -- The Softalk Apple Project and FactMiners. Then the fun began.

As noted in We Want You... to #Play2Learn and Beyond just rolling up your sleeves to make your application a good one is only half of what happens when you participate in an Ashoka Changemakers Challenge. Participating in a Challenge is an opportunity to interact with Kindred Spirits, to meet potential volunteers and advisers, and maybe even to talk with some funding sources.

Ashoka and the LEGO Foundation have initiated the 3-year, multi-pronged Re-imagine Learning #Play2Learn agenda, challenging Changemakers world wide to create innovative projects for learning, in an environment of playful fun.

Participating in the #Play2Learn Challenge has already been an exciting, invigorating process for us. We now look forward to meeting and working with many more of our Pacesetter peers as we move on into round two.