Academics
HarborDojo
When a friend is struggling, how do you help without trying to be their therapist? Be the harbour - a safe place to come alongside. Practise the five moves (validate, ask, sit with, gently redirect, and - when it is bigger than a friend can hold - bring in a trusted adult) and the one firm boundary: it is not your job to fix them. Caring for a friend is real; knowing your limits keeps you okay too. A science of feelings, not therapy. Ages 15-18.
#46708a Distributed-narrative cast
Meet the cast
HarborDojo is text-forward (R-OLDER-TEEN-DN-ADAPTED, ages 15-18) - no illustrated cast; the 'crew' are the moves of co-regulation, and each part IS one way to be a safe place for a struggling friend. Harbour is the steady presence who holds the whole practice and asks, 'how do you help without trying to be their therapist?' - most of it is coming alongside, not fixing. Mooring is sitting-with - staying quietly beside someone when there is nothing to fix and words would only fill your own discomfort; Mooring's act IS presence without pressure. Sounding is asking - 'do you want to talk, or just sit?' - following their answer instead of guessing; Sounding's act IS respecting what they actually want. Cleat is the boundary - it is not your job to be your friend's therapist, and holding that line keeps YOU okay too; Cleat's act IS refusing to carry alone what needs a grown-up. Lifeline is escalation - when something frightens you for a friend's safety, bringing in a trusted adult and NOT promising a dangerous secret; Lifeline's act IS the caring move that people mistake for betrayal, the one that keeps a friend here to be a friend. Self-harm is handled ONLY as a non-graphic escalation drill that points to real help. Illustrated portraits/chapters/audio are N/A for the older-teen band, not a follow-on.
Harbour
(Mentor) - the steady presence who holds the whole practice. Harbour asks, 'how do you help a struggling friend without trying to be their therapist?' - most of being a harbour is coming alongside, not fixing.
Mooring
Sitting-with - staying quietly beside someone when there is nothing to fix and words would only fill your own discomfort. Mooring's act IS presence without pressure, the move that is often the whole answer.
Sounding
Asking - 'do you want to talk, or just sit?' - and then following their answer instead of guessing. Sounding's act IS respecting what a friend actually wants rather than turning it into a talk they did not ask for.
Cleat
The boundary - it is not your job to be your friend's therapist, and holding that line keeps YOU okay too. Cleat's act IS refusing to carry alone what is bigger than any friend can hold.
Lifeline
Escalation - when something frightens you for a friend's safety, bringing in a trusted adult and NOT promising a dangerous secret. Lifeline's act IS the caring move people mistake for betrayal - the one that keeps a friend here to be a friend.
What's inside
Learning goal
When a friend is struggling, how do you help without trying to be their therapist? Be the harbour - a safe place to come alongside. Practise the five moves (validate, ask, sit with, gently redirect, and - when it is bigger than a friend can hold - bring in a trusted adult) and the one firm boundary: it is not your job to fix them. Caring for a friend is real; knowing your limits keeps you okay too. A science of feelings, not therapy. Ages 15-18.
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 Harbour — on-device AI, no data leaves the device.
How HarborDojo 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
- ✅ No personal information collected from children — in line with COPPA (updated by the 2026 FTC amendments)
- ✅ Parental controls + session limits + content filters built in
HarborDojo 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
HarborDojo 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