Tots and Tablets

As parents we are faced with many questions related to events and milestones in our children’s lives.  At what age should I introduce solid foods?  What’s the right time to potty train?  When do we begin structured sports and other leisure activities?   Parents may want to consider this question as well: how old should my child be before I allow him or her to use technology?  Kids have always wanted to imitate the things they see their parents doing.  Little girls want to paint their nails and put on makeup like mommy; boys want to shave and wear neckties like daddy.  Why would we think anything different about technology and mobile devices?  Our children see us using technology daily for a myriad of tasks, so it shouldn’t surprise us when they show an interest in these things from very early on.  (I’ll look at some of the arguments for and against early use of technology in later blog posts.)

My sweet, almost 4 year old son (I’ll call him “BT”) loves our iPad.  He is very facile in using it, easily swiping and opening the folders that hold his apps.  BT and I have many apps that we enjoy using together, and I’ll talk more about those later in this post and in subsequent blog posts.  But let me first assure you that I would never put such a delicate and costly device in the hands of a three year old boy without first taking some precautions.  If you’re going to invest in an iPad or other tablet, get an appropriate case to protect it.  We have an Otterbox, which is said to be indestructible (if it survives BT, we’ll know for sure).  When we purchased our iPad, we also bought the protection plan that Apple offered; it covers a variety of issues that you might encounter, and it was inexpensive compared to potentially having to replace the entire device.  Once your tablet is protected, you can relax and feel comfortable putting in little hands.   

As I mentioned in the previous post, there are over 500,000 mobile apps.  A friend of mine recently commented on Facebook that the only thing her iPad won’t do is clean her house, and to that I ought to reply, “It’s only a matter of time.”  If you’re new to the app world, it’s worth noting a few things.  First, some of these apps will install to both your tablet and your iPhone if you own both devices (I’m not sure how that works in the Android market).  For each app listed, you’re shown several items of information: its icon (that’s the picture that will appear on your tablet screen), its category (such as “education” or “games”), when it was most recently updated, its user rating based on a scale of 1 to 5 stars, and its cost.  I recommend reading the reviews before making any purchases because what might have garnered an app a poor review during its initial release may have been improved with an update.              

To promote and develop your preschooler’s critical thinking skills, try Innovative Mobile Apps’ Little Solver-Preschool Logic Game.  As it’s described in the app store, “Little Solver is a fun and exciting game to help kids sharpen their minds by developing critical thinking and analytical reasoning skills.  While matrix analogies are nothing more than a comparison that points out relationships between things that are different, cognitively for kids it plays a significant role in developing analytical reasoning, problem solving, perception, and spatial relational skills.”  What does BT like about this app?  He likes the colorful pictures of toys, animals, foods, and other objects.  He gets excited when he answers correctly and receives positive feedback from the app.  I like the analysis provided at the end of each session, showing the accuracy he achieved at each level.  This app costs 99 cents and received a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars.    

  

I am not naïve to think that everyone reading this blog owns an iPad, but I will assume that you do have access to the internet.  Below is a link to a free online tool that you can use with your little ones.  We all know Fisher-Price as a popular toy maker, but if you visit their website you’ll find a variety of web-based educational tools.  Choose the “Games and Activities” tab at the top of the F-P homepage. You will find learning games and resources for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers.  As a musician, I really liked “Let’s Play the Piano” for preschoolers.  There are also tons of coloring pages parents can print out for their kids; after all what kid doesn’t enjoy coloring?  Check it out!     

http://www.fisher-price.com/us/default.aspx