Break the Wall: The Arithmetic Operations provides basic math skills practice 
for children ages 6-12. This game is packed with fast-paced and surprise elements 
and includes a sophisticated progress tracking system.

The object of Break the Wall is to break through a series of brick walls by 
matching the bricks that have equivalent math facts. Players can play the game 
with addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, or mixed math facts, and 
can choose any one of five levels of difficulty within each type. Completing the 
game at the highest level of difficulty earns players parts of a key which they 
can use to unlock a magic box for a special prize. 

For every game played, the program records the number of matches made, accuracy, 
and speed, and it can display any of this information graphically or in table form 
for any player. This motivates players by allowing them to see their progress 
over time, and allows parents and teachers to track children's performance easily.

This demo version has all of the features of the full version, except that 
it's limited to addition, and only the highest and lowest levels (levels 1 and 5).

We started Sparkle Productions to apply scientific principles of learning 
and motivation to the design of educational software. We have received grants 
from the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Health to do 
this.  We explicitly based the design and testing of this game - like that of all 
our products - on years of educational and psychological research, and then we 
tested the game extensively with kids to make sure that those principles worked.

Additional information can be found at http://www.sparkleinc.com

Files required: swal32d1.exe (1.40MB, Windows 95/NT), 
                or swal16d1.exe (1.47MB, Windows 3.1)

Requirements: 486/66MHz, 8 MB RAM, 256-color monitor (sound optional), 
              Windows 95/NT for swal32d1.exe, Windows 3.x or Windows 95/NT 
              for swal16d1.exe
              
To install: after downloading, double-click on swal32d1.exe (Windows 95/NT) or 
            swal16d1.exe (Windows 3.1).
            These are self-extracting files.

Documentation: on-line help and readme.txt

Support can be found
               at web site at http://www.sparkleinc.com 
               by e-mailing support@sparkleinc.com
               by calling 415-248-1795


