What if my child is not warming up to Moxie?

Every child has a different experience with Moxie, and for those moments when a child is having a bit of a hard time warming up to Moxie, we are happy to provide some suggestions!

• Watch the Moxie demo video together so they can get used to the way Moxie interacts, what Moxie sounds like, and how Moxie moves. Re-watch the video as many times as needed. https://embodied.com/blogs/news/watch-a-live-demo-session 
• Explore the welcome packet. Moxie comes from the Global Robotics Laboratory, or G.R.L. for short! The welcome packet included with Moxie is filled with fun things to get your child excited about being a Project Moxie Mentor. Read the G.R.L. welcome letter and comic book together, and visit the G.R.L. kids portal to explore the G.R.L. characters and get familiar with Moxie’s world: www.globalroboticslab.com
• Explore Moxie’s Accessibility Features. We have included some accessibility features on the Parent App that may help improve their experience with Moxie. These include options to limit Moxie’s visual or sound effects, slow down Moxie’s speech, or increase the amount of time Moxie will wait for them to respond.
• Help them practice. It can be helpful to practice where to sit with Moxie, how to talk with Moxie, and some important Moxie commands:
  • Moxie can see its mentor better when they sit directly in front of it and about 1-2 feet away. It can be helpful to practice sitting in front of a stuffed animal and pretending it is Moxie.
  • In order for Moxie to hear its mentor accurately, they must speak at a regular volume and speed. If they speaks softly, mumbles, or speaks too fast, it can be helpful to practice talking to you, or the stuffed animal, as if they were talking to Moxie. Have them practice repeating themself, which can be helpful if Moxie doesn’t understand something they say.
  • Moxie will teach its mentor special commands they can use during their time together. One helpful command is “Moxie, please repeat that” which can be used if they don't understand something Moxie says, or if they need to hear it again.
• Use “Moxie Earmuffs” to help! If your child needs help generating questions or answers during their interaction with Moxie, this phrase will allow you to step in and assist. Simply say “Moxie, Earmuffs,” so Moxie won’t listen or respond while you two are brainstorming. Remind them to say, “Moxie, Please Listen to Me,” once they are ready to continue chatting with Moxie. 
• Let them know their role is important! You can remind them that they have an important role as Moxie’s mentor. Moxie was sent to them by the G.R.L. to learn all about the human world, what humans experience and feel, and what it means to be a good human. So the G.R.L. is excited that the mentor will help Moxie learn!

Another option you can try is to use Moxie yourself! You can pair as the Moxie mentor and have your child watch your interactions with it so they can better expect what Moxie will do. You can run through a few activities to see if your child will feel comfortable to do it themselves. Once your child is ready to get started, you will want to Unpair Moxie within the parent app and pair as a new user. This will reset Moxie so it can then identify your child as its mentor as well as start from day 1.

Hopefully these tips will give your child the courage to interact with Moxie. Please let us know if you have any questions!