Academics
CommonplaceForge
A commonplace book you actually own. Read a durable idea and where it comes from, then — to keep it — restate it in your own words (you cannot keep a gem by pasting). Your gems live on this device, connect with a "because", come back for spaced review, gather into a written synthesis, and export as plain text you keep forever. No account, no feed, no summariser writing it for you. Ages 15–18.
▶ Play it nowBuilt for sittings of about 25 minutes on the screen. That is our design budget, not a measurement.
#5a4a8c Characters who teach
Meet the cast
CommonplaceForge's crew (ages 15–18) each embody one move of a commonplace book you truly own — the crew IS the method: keep an idea only by restating it in your own words, connect two ideas with a because, let them come back, gather several into a written synthesis, and keep the whole thing as plain text no one can lock away. Mentor Marl keeps it honest: the app never writes your words or your synthesis — a summariser that thinks for you leaves you with nothing kept. Written for teens, with no illustrated cast. No real brands, ever.
Verso
Keep an idea only by restating it in your own words — you cannot keep a gem by pasting; if you can only reproduce the wording, you have the words, not the idea
Corda
Connect two kept ideas with a because — the reason they belong together is the thread that turns a pile of notes into understanding
Reven
Let kept ideas come back — spaced review with no streak and no due-count dread; you keep what returns and you still recognise
Quire
Gather three or more of your ideas into one written synthesis — YOU write the paragraph that ties them; the app only gathers and asks
Marl
your book is plain text you own and can export forever; no account, no feed, no summariser writing it for you. No real brands, ever.
What's inside
Learning goal
A commonplace book you actually own. Read a durable idea and where it comes from, then — to keep it — restate it in your own words (you cannot keep a gem by pasting). Your gems live on this device, connect with a "because", come back for spaced review, gather into a written synthesis, and export as plain text you keep forever. No account, no feed, no summariser writing it for you. Ages 15–18.
Mentored by Marl — no data leaves the device.
How CommonplaceForge handles your kid's data
- ✅ All progress, settings, and AI-generated content stays on the device
- ✅ No analytics, no tracking, no third-party SDKs
- ✅ Free — no ads, no in-app purchases
- ✅ No personal information collected from children — in line with COPPA (updated by the 2026 FTC amendments)
- ✅ No chat with strangers — play-together rooms use a short code and preset emotes, never typed messages