Side project · 2026 · Vedavathy Kamath

Special Days

A Google Doodle for little kids: what’s special about today, and why.

Tara, a star who fell to Earth, explains festivals, national days and science moments to 2–6 year olds. Each special day is a short illustrated story with one tap, read aloud by a parent, and then it stops.

Try the live app special-days-indol.vercel.app
Tara, a round yellow star with a big smile and a woven satchel
The gap

Kids grow up between calendars, and nothing explains them together.

Heritage apps cover only Indian festivals and are tiny. The big kids’ platforms skip them entirely. YouTube has endless festival videos, with ads, autoplay and no curation. No product explains Gandhi Jayanti, Hanukkah and the first airplane flight in the same small, daily, kid-sized format.

The objective

Help a young child understand why today matters, next to a grown-up.

  • Many cultures, told from the outside: “many families…”, never “we worship…”.
  • Curiosity and conversation, not more screen time.
  • Something a child remembers and tells a friend the next day.
What I built

A live pilot for Oct–Dec 2026: 9 big days and 16 small ones.

Gandhi Jayanti scene: Gandhi-ji walking with a line of marchers
Gandhi JayantiEach tap adds a marcher: non-violence as being strong without hurting anyone.
Navratri scene: dancers in a garba circle around a glowing lamp
Navratri“Nav means nine, ratri means night.” Each tap adds a dancer to the garba circle.
Dr. Kalam's birthday scene: Tara beside a rocket on its launch pad
Dr. Kalam’s birthdayA boy who sold newspapers grew up to launch rockets. Tap to count down 5-4-3-2-1.

How a big day works

1
HelloTara names the day and explains the word: “Jayanti means birthday.”
2
Long agoA child-sized story built around one object or idea. No dates on screen.
3
One tapFive taps that act out what the day means. There is no way to fail.
4
A question, then stop“When could you do that?” A pause to answer, then “See you on the next special day.”

Under every scene, a grown-ups card holds talk prompts, a 5-minute activity and honest wording for harder history.

Small-day card for World Space Week with Tara and a satellite
Small daysOne picture, one sentence, no tapping. Tara glows in the day’s color.
Ordinary-day screen: Tara and a countdown to the next special day
Ordinary daysNothing to do, just a countdown. It works like an advent calendar, not a feed.
Guiding principles

Every story has to meet a research-based standard.

One object, one ideaUnder-8s grasp “long ago” through stories and objects, not dates.Skjæveland, 2017
Slow and parent-pacedFast, fantastical TV measurably hurt 4-year-olds’ focus right afterwards.Lillard & Peterson, 2011
A tap that means somethingActive, engaged, meaningful and social. No side games that distract.Hirsh-Pasek et al., 2015
Ask, then pausePausing for the child to answer, and rewatching, both deepened understanding.Crawley et al., 1999 (Blue’s Clues)
Watch togetherMost learning happens in the talk around the screen. For ages 2–5: under an hour a day, shared.Joan Ganz Cooney Center; AAP
Teach about, don’t preachShow that families celebrate differently, and ask whose story is being told.NAEYC; Bisson & Derman-Sparks
Honest, but gentleName the struggle; keep violence and death on the grown-ups card.Fred Rogers
A clear stopNo autoplay, streaks or rewards for coming back. One scene, then goodbye.Design choice
What qualifies as a special day

Every day passes a gate before it goes in the calendar.

GateAppropriate for a childNo massacres or attacks, however important the day.
RelevanceCelebrated, or worth knowingSomeone in the child’s world celebrates it, or it is their country, culture, a leader or a science moment.
SizeEngaging, and something kids likeBoth make it a big day with a full scene. One makes it a small day card.
How it’s made
Research and scriptsBuilt with Claude, then checked by a reviewer from each tradition.
TaraDesigned in Nano Banana Pro, redrawn as layered SVG so she can blink, wave and glow.
The appA static web app on Vercel. Adds to an iPad home screen and works offline.
PrivacyNo accounts, no ads, no tracking. Nothing about the child leaves the device.