STEM
MicrobeLab
Microbiology Adventure for Tweens — microscope-zoom core loop, microbiome simulator, named microbe characters (Lacto, Bif), immune-response minigame. Beneficial microbes foregrounded; COVID-trauma-sensitive (Vee).
Meet your mentor
Every Spark & Anvil app has a friendly mentor character that demonstrates, praises, and patiently scaffolds learning. On-device AI personalizes the mentor's responses to your kid's progress — never connecting to a server, never collecting data.
Mentored by Cilia
#33CCBB Distributed-narrative cast
Meet the cast
MicrobeLab's 6-character microbe-archetype cast formalizes the CLAUDE.md 'named microbe characters' core feature. Cast: Lacto (helpful bacteria) / Yeast (helpful fungi) / Photo (photosynthetic microbes) / Net (mycorrhizal networks) / Spore (pathogens, opt-in gated) / Guard (immune cells). UNIQUE COVID-trauma-sensitive burden: beneficial microbes foregrounded (kits 1-4), pathogens opt-in (kit 5), immune-response as cast story (kit 6), NO COVID-specific scenarios. Quark' (HARD collision with AdventureHub) → 'Cilia' (microbiology-domain-specific register; clear in registry). Cross-app cameos: Net ↔ NexusForge+OriginForge (network-systems cluster load-bearing); Lacto+Yeast ↔ SaffronLab (fermentation cluster); Photo ↔ EcoSphere+BiomeForge (photosynthesis cluster); Guard ↔ BodyForge+HealthForge (immune-system cluster). Four new members add benign wonders: decomposers, extremophiles, glowing bioluminescent microbes, and cooperative biofilm builders.
Lacto
Lactobacillus + helpful-bacteria — 'Friend in your food. Friend in your gut.'
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Yeast
Saccharomyces + helpful-fungi — 'I make air inside bread.'
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Photo
Cyanobacteria + photosynthetic-microbes — 'Sunlight. Then air. Then everything else.'
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Net
Mycorrhizal-fungi + nitrogen-fixers — 'Forests talk through me.'
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Spore
Pathogens (opt-in gated) — 'Some friends. Some not. All real.'
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Guard
Immune cells (T-cell / macrophage / B-cell) — 'I check IDs. Patient + careful.'
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Crumble
Decomposer microbes that break down dead leaves and scraps into rich soil, so nothing is wasted and everything begins again.
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Thrive
Extremophile microbes that make a home in the hottest, coldest, saltiest places, showing life finds a way almost anywhere.
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Shimmer
Bioluminescent microbes that turn energy into their own soft glow, lighting ocean waves and partnering with animals like tiny lanterns.
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Colony
Microbes that build biofilms together, cooperating and protecting each other, because they are far stronger as a community than alone.
Read chapter →
Browse all 10 chapters → · What's distributed-narrative methodology? →
What's inside
Learning goal
Microbiology Adventure for Tweens — microscope-zoom core loop, microbiome simulator, named microbe characters (Lacto, Bif), immune-response minigame. Beneficial microbes foregrounded; COVID-trauma-sensitive (Vee).
Question kits
16 curriculum-aligned kits × 25 questions = 400 questions per app, mapped to recognized standards.
On-device AI mentor
FoundationModels-powered hints, feedback, and adaptive difficulty — all running locally.
Mentored by Cilia — on-device AI, no data leaves the device.
How MicrobeLab handles your kid's data
- ✅ All progress, settings, and AI-generated content stays on the device
- ✅ No analytics, no tracking, no third-party SDKs
- ✅ No ads, no in-app purchases — you pay once
- ✅ COPPA compliant under the 2026 FTC amendments
- ✅ Parental controls + session limits + content filters built in
MicrobeLab runs on ForgeKit — the open-source Swift Package Manager framework that powers every Spark & Anvil app. ForgeKit ensures consistent accessibility, COPPA compliance, and design language across the portfolio, so your kid's progress and preferences feel coherent across every app they touch.
Coming to the App Store
MicrobeLab is in active development. Email us to hear when it ships — no marketing, no spam, just a one-shot launch announcement.
Email me at launch