Focus Junior

Focus Junior, the Mondadori Group magazine that is a point of reference in the world of kids, has launch a daily programme of content to support and entertain children kept away from school by the current health emergency.

Science, history, technology, fun and games: every day on the web site www.focusjunior.it – which reaches an audience of over 500,000 unique users every month (Source: Audiweb, January 2020) – and the Facebook and Instagram social network channels, Focus Junior offers a range of background materials, creative activities and brand new experiments, in line with the brand’s characteristic edutainment philosophy, which aims to stimulate and engage children while having fun.

Like a real day at school, starting at 9 in the morning, with news and the facts of the day, continuing at 11 am with revision of the rules of mathematics and grammar.

At 1 pm and then at 7 pm, background materials in Italian, maths, history, science, with a wealth of curiosities to discover.

At 4 pm, it’s time for creativity with special workshops: videos led by Focus Junior experts, with a range of ideas for things to try at home to exploit manual skills and learn new things, from Harry Potter’s magic potion, which involves chemical reactions, to the construction of a video projector to recreate a little cinema in your bedroom, and much more.

The kids are also invited to talk about their daily activities at home on video, a selection of which will be posted each day on the Instagram profile of Focus Junior.

The Mondadori Group is exporting to China  in franchising the Focus Junior Play Lab format, the educational and play space for children aged from 3 to 11, developed  by the magazine that is a reference point in the world of kids.

The initiative is the result of an agreement signed with Chic Investment Group and a Memorandum of Understanding with Xi’an International Community Fashion Town Construction & Development Co.

For the first time Focus Junior will deliver, also at an international level, its educational offer and all of the know-how of the Italian brand that is the leader in its sector, in line with the philosophy that characterises the title: an “edutainment” approach, that aims to engage kids and stimulate their skills and capacities through the development of labs and activities to accompany them as they grow up.

The first three Focus Junior Play Labs will open up in China in 2020 in Xi’an, within the High Tech district of the Sino Italian Fashion Town, a new international complex that is being built around the ancient city of Xi’an, and in the cities of Nanjing, in the Kingmo shopping mall and Chongqing, in the Chic World Together shopping centre.

Through the Chic Investment Group, the management and investment company that is working to bring European brands of outstanding excellence to the entire country in the coming years, Focus Junior Play Lab will expand also to other cities in China, with the opening of 12 play labs in franchising within 3 years.

Focus Junior Play Lab will enhance the Asian market for services aimed at families: children and kids will be able to spend their time alternating between recreational activities and educational and learning projects aimed at stimulating manual dexterity, creativity and scientific thinking through numerous labs that will introduce them to topics related to science, art, mathematics and engineering in a fun, engaging and innovative way.

A result preceded by a series of institutional stages that took place in recent months: firstly, a meeting in China in November 2018, an event organised by the Italy-China Foundation at Palazzo Clerici in Milan and the visit of a delegation from the government of Xi’an to Palazzo Mondadori in Segrate in March this year. Cooperation activities in China will continue in the coming years with the introduction of new initiatives currently under development.

The new project is consistent with the objective of the Mondadori Group to  concentrate on its brand leaders with the best multi-platform development potential.

Focus Junior is a magazine dedicated to curious kids that is a brand extension of di Focus, the Mondadori Group magazine that is a point of reference in popular science and entertainment and is the nucleus of a multimedia system able to transform readers into authentic “inhabitants” of the world of Focus, right from the pre-school years. In print and on the web and social networks, and from a TV channels to events like Focus Live, organised around the country, the overall audience of the Focus system is around 6 million (Source: Nielsen MI assessment based on AW Mag 2019 figures, Audipress 2019.1).

Focus Junior, the Mondadori Group brand that is a point of reference for the world of children and kids, is launching Focus Junior Academy: a project for primary and middle schools featuring free teaching laboratories introducing journalism with the aim of bringing pupils closer to the world of publishing and news.

“Following the launch of Focus Scuola, the new practical review for teachers, we are opening the doors of the editorial department of Focus Junior to children and kids during school hours to offer a fun but realistic experience of what they learn in the classroom,” said the editor of Focus Junior Sarah Pozzoli. 

This initiative will further strengthen the role of the Focus Junior brand in the educational area: from collaboration with institutions and companies to didactic programmes aimed at engaging students and parents, schools and teachers, with a wide range of activities and events that speak to the protagonist of the world of education with an innovative and appealing educational vision.

A press, digital and social campaign has been planned to support the launch of Junior Academy.

From February, in line with the brand’s philosophy of “having fun while discovering the world”, Focus Junior Academy will offer every week the opportunity for a class to visit the editorial department of Focus Junior in the Mondadori Building and to meet the editor and journalists to understand how the team works and its internal organisation. The pupils will get a “hands-on” look at the fundamentals of journalism: how to write an article, the selection of photos and images and how to lay out a magazine, the news will then be published on the web site and on social media.

From 5 W to the importance of sources and the issue of fake news, and from the sharing of a post on social media to the selection of images and headlines, the Focus Junior Academy laboratories will offer students an interactive learning experience that will enable them to try out team-working and experience the key moments in a day in the life of an editorial department.

Aspiring journalist will also have the chance to conduct interviews with “subject experts” (science, history, technology, etc.), who will make themselves available in the editorial department of Focus Junior and to meet personally the students and respond to their questions and satisfy their curiosities.

The participants will also be able to take part in the page layout of their “little magazine”, that will also be published on web site focusjunior.it in the section dedicated to schools and re-launched on the social channels of Focus Junior with the hashtag #JuniorReporter.

At the end of the lab, the pupils will receive a “Junior Reporter” certificate, while their teachers will receive a “Become a journalist” kit to continue the work done during the lab also in the classroom.

To book a Focus Junior Academy teaching laboratory, interested teachers should write to the editorial department at focusjunior@focusjunior.it.

Focus Junior Star, the collectors’ special edition of Focus Junior entirely dedicated to the most popular personalities from the world of entertainment, including YouTubers, singers, stars of the cinema, rappers and bloggers, from tomorrow will be a monthly.

Focus Junior Star is a spin-off of Focus Junior and shares the same mission: to entertain young readers and to stimulate their curiosity through their idols in music, on television and social networks, that we will attempt to present through stories and anecdotes from their lives. We also want to bring the personalities as close as possible to our readers to show that they are almost always just normal kids, with the same problems and doubts, but have been able to transform their fragility into points of strength. In addition, we will exploit the seemingly ‘light’ topics in Focus Junior Star to explain the scientific, historical or news issues featured in the songs. There will also be detailed background on the evolution of music, artistic workshops and lessons on how to become a YouTuber. 

This new magazine will enhance the communication system that revolves around Focus Junior, the Mondadori Group brand designed to satisfy the curiosity of children and teenagers, from 8 to 13. Focus Junior is available as a printed magazine, in digital and augmented reality, through the dedicated app that is also active of the web site focusjunior.it, on social networks and the spin-off XGioko.

The brand has also created “Play Lab”, a new games format in line with the philosophy of Focus Junior.

The first issue of the monthly Focus Junior Star, on newsstands from 7 February, will feature a host of content on the stars of the moment, including the rapper Coez – who talks in an interview about his real passion – and an entire feature article on the Maneskin, the rock group of the moment, and the revelation of the latest edition of X-Factor. And much more: the latest trends from the world of YouTube, the challenge between the YouTuber from Naples, Vegas, who has made his passion for videogames and authentic business, and Capo Plaza, the rapper from Salerno, class of ’98.

With the augmented reality app, the young audience for Focus Junior Star can also listen to songs, video dedications by their idols and a wealth of other related images; plus a range of  background info, games and curiosities about the stars and sixteen gift posters.
Focus Junior Star will be on sale at newsstands with a cover price of €3.50. In support of the launch a advertising campaign has been organised in Mondadori Group Magazines and support through large-scale retail outlets.

Sale&Pepe and Focus Junior will take part at Milan Franchising Fair 2017 (Salone Franchising Milano) which runs from 14 until 15 October. The two Mondadori Group brands will present new franchising formats for the opening across Italy, of cooking schools, with the Sale&Pepe brand and new educational and play centres for children with the Focus Junior brand.

The first Sale & Pepe cooking school opened in 2015 in Milan, the result of the more than 30years’ experience of a magazine that is a point of reference in the food world. Over the years Sale & Pepe has been able to expand its offer, giving different form to its content and becoming a meeting point where a passion for food comes to life. All year round, the cooking school offers a wide selection of courses for adults and children, with ideas also for an international audience, events for individuals and companies, showcooking and themed events.
Thanks to the new franchise offer, it is now possible to open a cooking school in other cities, being able to rely on the strength of the Sale & Pepe brand. There are two formats: the first foresees a fixed location with fully equipped work areas for the chef and workbenches for participants, just as in the original location in Milan. The second is an innovative travelling or itinerant cooking school: a “cooking station” prototype, that can be used to organise courses and events on tour, indoor locations or in public areas.
The project is aimed at anyone with a passion for cooking who wants to turn it into lasting and profitable work. The added value of the model proposed by Sale & Pepe is that it gives to affiliates, in addition to the design and use of the Sale & Pepe brand, also a continuous communication plan in the magazine, on the web site and social networks; as well as professional training courses; a quarterly training plan and the possible involvement of the outlet in activities around the country promoted by the magazine.

At the Milan Franchise Fair it will also be possible to discover the new Play Lab format, launched by Focus Junior, the leading brand for children and teens. The Focus Junior Play Lab foresees the creation of educational and play centres designed for children and teenagers from 3 to 12 years of age, accompanying them in this phase of growth, while satisfying their natural curiosity and having fun while discovering the world in new and smart ways.
At the Focus Junior Play Labs, children and teenagers can spend their time alternating recreational with educational and learning activities, in line with the Focus Junior philosophy. A space that differs from the current market offer by adopting an “edutainment” approach, focusing on activities to stimulate children’s skills, such as science labs, drawing, cooking, digital journalism, and much more.
Spaces can be customized depending on the needs of the franchisee, as they are designed to be completely mobile, easily transportable and equipped with technology such as touchscreens and tablets to render the spaces “Play areas 2.0”.
Like the Sale & Pepe cooking school, the added value of the franchise proposal for this project is to offer affiliates, in addition to the complete set up of the play area, depending on the available space, an annual curriculum developed by Focus Junior, the training of operators and updating sessions with partners, a dedicated communication plan in the magazine, on the web site and social networks, and the possible involvement of the outlet in activities promoted by the brand around the country with technical partners for the development of activities.

Focus Junior –  the Mondadori brand conceived to satisfy the natural curiosity of children and kids will be available, from tomorrow 16 June, to its young readers with a completely new layout for the print, digital and web versions.

The new Focus Junior has been totally redesigned and the changes can be seen starting from the cover of the magazine, with higher impact images and a new logo. On the content side, in addition to the classic topics related to nature, science, animals and history, more space is given to issues of relevance to young people: technology, behaviour, feelings, sport, adventure, mystery.

The key words are curious and fun, thanks to the extra space devoted to games (also in English), jokes and cartoons; multimedia, with extra content (photos and videos) linked to the magazine’s articles; current affairs, with the new section Junior News, dossiers  and background detail to help kids understand the world; innovative, with greater attention to everything connected with new technology.

Another very significant new feature is the Reporter Junior initiative, which enables readers to submit photos, articles, stories, becoming authentic protagonists in the creation of content, both for the magazine and the web.

“The thought that underlies this profound process of renewal,” underlined the editor Sarah Pozzoli, “is that Focus Junior must just be a magazine or a web site, but a brand consisting of a magazine, the web, social network, initiatives and events around the country and cooperation with schools. Consequently, we decided to make a fundamental change in our approach: we have to go where the readers are, rather than waiting for them to come to us. This is why the editorial team is working non-stop to select the best for today’s kids and to intercept their needs. Our aim is to stimulate curiosity and to create engagement: to be a part of the Focus Junior world is to enter a di community that can help you and provide additional tools to become an aware adult.”

With a view to increased synergies and integration between print and the web, also FocusJunior.it has been completely renewed. The site has been updated both in terms of layout, making it more immediate and accessible, and in terms of content, with new areas including schools, animals, as well as scientific and technological background and authentic interactive workshops. The site is also totally responsive to provide a optimal  experience also on mobile devices, increasingly popular among the young, with a strong interactive focus that will enable users to send their contributions directly and have a direct channel to the editorial department of Focus Junior.

The launch of the new Focus Junior will be supported by a media campaign on kids’ TV on both satellite and digital terrestrial channels.