MISSION STATEMENT August ‘19

Introductory Biog- Greg Houlgate

Age 68
Living in London
Background in photography and graphic design

Aims - to build a ‘friendly’ trusted character, Tobias Teddy Bear

to guide children through learning and play.

Products - Stories, where good behaviour gets rewarded.

Books, Learn with Tobias (+ puzzles).
Music, (some backing tracks - children encouraged to
write their own words).

Board Games - Have fun while developing logical thinking and exercise
brain functions such as strategy, decision making, and
memory - as well as social interaction by having fun with
family and friends.

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The stories are mainly entertainment / fun / adventure to excite the imagination,
while also extolling the simple virtues of friendship, honesty, etc.

These stories have educational overtones, while the ‘Knows’ books are primarily
focused on education, in an entertaining framework, thus encouraging curiosity
and intrigue.

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The Challenge
Having had a difficult time growing up with dyslexia, and struggling at school, Greg
sees reading and writing as precious learned skills, and much under appreciated in
this digital age. It seems that children today are adept at social media (not a bad
thing in itself), but this can be at the expense of developing broader thinking skills,
as well as social interaction skills and confidence.
Too many children, it seems, get home from school - only to retreat to their bedroom,
to spend hours thumbing a digital screen of some sort. And then, what time is left of
the evening - is spent watching TV!

Now ‘retired’ and (slowing) with Parkinson’s Disease, Greg wants to offer an
alternative life style to children, to encourage them away from the ubiquitous
hypnotic compulsion of the screens, and develop individual thought, while building
much needed family bonds.

Greg’s plan (idea) is very simple - encourage primary school age children to read,
and play, and learn. To achieve this benign objective, the character of Tobias has
been created.

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Biog. Born 1950 Lands End, Cornwall

Greg Houlgate was born into a bygone age. No computers, or mobile phones, Post
War austerity (and rationing) was ‘normal’, yet there was a contentment, and a ‘make
do’ attitude prevailed.

The Houlgate family were homeless for a while, and lived in a caravan in
Bedfordshire, before moving, again, to stay with Granpa, in Macclesfield, Yorkshire.

However, at age 8, the young Greg, along with older brother, and now a little sister
settled down in St. Albans, where he grew up.

Greg’s Primary School was like something out of Dickens - learning to write with
chalk on little slate boards, before graduating to messy dip pens, with blotchy ink
wells set in the desk, and adding up was taught with an abacus! And a ruler - was
used for whacking!

Although very curious, and interested in everything, Greg had great difficulty
learning to read and write.
Today, dyslexia is acknowledged, but in the 1950’s and ‘60’s you were considered
‘slow’ or stupid. Unfortunately, Greg also suffers from very vague memory - this
combination of poor reading and bad memory meant he was an academic disaster
at school, leaving with not a single GCE ‘O’ level!

Undaunted though, Greg spent the next 5 years going to Evening Classes, to
eventually pass 5 ‘O’ levels by the age of 21.

Perhaps Greg’s game inventing skills blossomed from his upbringing.

Growing up without a TV, computer, or telephone meant family evenings were

spent in conversation and playing games, such as Draughts, Chess, Bridge,
Monopoly, Scrabble etc.

Storytelling came naturally to Greg when on family outings in the car, he would
keep his little sister entertained by making up stories.

Later in life Greg took up the pen again to write many poems, on romantic and
environmental subject matters, and that developed into writing lyrics for songs.

All this considerable literate activity was achieved despite being encumbered
dyslexia.