When chemistry leaps off the textbook page and molecules become something kids can build and hold in their hands, a dramatic reaction occurs: They start to learn about the world in which they live. That’s the premise behind Happy Atoms, a new educational tool developed by Schell Games.

When founder and CEO of Schell Games Jesse Schell was growing up, he was fascinated by chemistry, although his career path ultimately led to computer science. He thought something was missing in the way chemistry was taught — it was like learning the letters of the alphabet but not seeing how those letters form words and more complex language.

“In every classroom, the periodic table is up there, but what is it?” Mr. Schell said. “You don’t really know what it means until you start to get to more advanced chemistry, and even then, there’s this huge focus on what each atom is made of — how many protons, neutrons, electrons. It doesn’t really matter very much to know about that. What matters in our real world is chemical reactions and which chemical compounds can turn into which other chemical compounds. And to understand that, you need to understand how molecules are actually formed.

“The truth is chemistry is interesting. People like building things, and the whole universe is built out of atoms. What could be more interesting than that? We just need to put it in their hands so they actually can do it.”

Happy Atoms project leader Yotam Haimberg is an advanced game designer with Schell Games who has been able to put his background in chemistry to work on this project. One of the key goals behind Happy Atoms is to cultivate curiosity, he said.

“We want kids to play this game and be interested in chemistry. There’s an unfortunate shroud of mystery around chemistry. For me chemistry is the closest thing to magic.”

Happy Atoms combines both physical and digital elements. The set consists of simple pingpong-like balls that represent different atoms. These colorful plastic models can be connected magnetically to build physical models of molecules, making it easy for students to learn about atoms, bonding, and both simple and complex chemical compounds.

“It’s just so much easier to be able to build these things with your hands,” Mr. Schell said. “We want people to be able to learn it more easily, but building things is really fun, and building the real molecules of the real universe makes it more fun.”

The companion iOS app — an Android version is in the works — is used to identify the assembled molecules people construct. Using computer vision, the camera scans for colors and chemical symbols on each atom and synthesizes the information so the students can see what they built. It presents collections of facts designed to tie the abstract formulas to their place in the real world: for example, after scanning a picture of a methane molecule, the picture of a cow is displayed, and kids learn how these animals produce methane in their stomachs.

The app guides students on how to make a specific formula.

“I can tap on it, and almost like a Lego Book, it will tell me step by step,” Mr. Haimberg said. It displays molecule maps, which group together different kinds of molecules in “continents.” Two animated chemist/​characters provide guidance and instruction for the user.

An advanced feature of the app is the way it breaks down complex chemical names into their components, so the user can learn what each means — almost like learning a language.

When Mr. Schell tested the early prototype of Happy Atoms on groups of fifth- and sixth-graders, students who had little or no knowledge of chemistry quickly began to understand the basics.

“You let kids play with it for half an hour and within minutes they could build complex molecular structures and talk about it,” he said.

Happy Atoms is tailored to the upper elementary school age group, although kids as young as 8 can get something out of it. Other levels of instruction built into Happy Atoms can help high school and even college-level students.

Happy Atoms is set to launch in November. There are three versions: one with 50 atoms for $159, an introductory set with 17 atoms for $59, and a larger classroom edition with 250 pieces for $799.

Schell Games launched an Indiegogo campaign this summer to help fund the project and raised more than $56,000. The company also received a grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences.

Although the crowdfunding campaign is over, buyers can still preorder the game at its regular price through Indiegogo, while donors who gave to the campaign will get a discount.

“A bigger part of crowdfunding is helping to build an audience of people who care about it and are interested,” Mr. Schell said. “We’ve had around 400 people help back this. What’s nice is when we take this to launch, all those people can be a street team for us, and they can help spread the word that it’s out there.”

Schell Games teamed with Thames & Kosmos, a publisher of science kits and board games, to market Happy Atoms.

Happy Atoms is the result of a lot of interdisciplinary collaboration: software and computer vision and manufacturing experts, educators and chemists. Schell Games worked with the education research and development agency WestEd to ensure that Happy Atoms will be an effective and viable educational tool.

“A lot of people have this hangup about this new digital stuff, [that] maybe the old-fashioned more hands-on is best as opposed to digital,” Mr. Schell said. “But it doesn't have to be an either-or. The two work really well together.”

Adrian McCoy: mccoyadrian5@gmail.com.

First Published: September 25, 2016, 4:00 a.m.