Thanks to the new media revolution, your child will grow up in a world vastly different from the one you were raised in. Virtual gameplay and digital libraries are replacing their physical counterparts, but do these changes benefit or disadvantage a child’s development? Can fairytale apps really replace physical toys, games cartoons and books?
When I was about eight years old, my mom decided that it was time for us to meet her aunts, uncles, cousins and other relatives in the Netherlands. We packed up and left the neighborhood in high spirits to brave a long, trans-continental flight to Amsterdam, via Luxemburg. High drama occurred at the very first stopover. Pierre the Teddy went missing. My five-year-old brother was in almost in tears. The yellow teddy bear with his bright green dungarees and smart bow tie was his irreplaceable sleeping companion. Minutes were ticking by and the connecting flight would soon be boarding, but my brother insisted. He could not venture out into the unknown without Pierre by his side. Fortunately, as my mom retraced our steps, we re-connected with Pierre at the luggage check-in counter and the rest of the flight went without incident.
Preparing for an overseas trip, a camping holiday or even a road trip with kids can be challenging to say the least. It’s Mom’s job to remember everything, from towels to tea bags and toilet paper. With small children, you have to bear in mind that accidents can and do happen, which means you will need extra clothing, underwear and diapers. The real fun starts, of course, when you discover that while you were still scratching your head trying to find space for an emergency rain cape, your toddler decided to lend a helping hand and thoughtfully returned all Daddy’s T-shirts to the closet to make room for his three favorite soft toys.
Sigh. Of course, your child’s priorities will differ from your own. The story of Pierre (who still occupies a favored spot in my now-adult brother’s bedroom) illustrates how deeply attached small children can get to a blanket or a favorite toy. For him, his teddy is as real as you are. Silly as it may seem, you may find yourself making a tongue-in-cheek arrangement with the lady next door to make sure Fuzzy and Mr Buttons get their breakfast cereal in the morning, when she comes in to water the plants.
Part of the magic of holidays lies in the discovery of unexpected novelties and treasures. From the same holiday where Pierre went missing, we brought home something that was to provide many hours of family fun. It was the popular board game, Memory. Our set came with a beautiful selection of animal pictures. If you’ve never played Memory before, the challenge is to match two duplicate square cards from memory from amongst a vast selection of identical looking cards that lie face down on the table. Match a pair, and it’s yours. When we played, we all had our favorite animals – the tabby cat, the spaniel, the pony and the cute bunnies – but sometimes you had to add one of the creepy ones like the scorpions or the spiders to your stack of cards.
Board games, or bored games as a friend calls them, combine quality family time with a learning experience for younger members of the household. They introduce children to the principle of taking turns and allow them to practice basic maths skills – such as counting – in games like Monopoly or Snakes and Ladders. Depending on the objective of the game, they can also teach the value of teamwork, good sportsmanship and the challenge of difficult choices.
Childhood memories like these reminded me of how much the digital revolution transformed the world of children’s activities. When I was growing up, the availability of children’s toys, games and books depended on supply and demand. I still remember how frustrated and disappointed I was as a kid whenever I learnt about the release of some exciting new game or book and then discovered that it wasn’t available in my home town. Today, the best apps for toddlers can be downloaded with a few key strokes, regardless of where in the world you are. Once you’re online it’s available. For a parent, that’s one of the best features. No queueing or waiting. And, on top of that, it’s much cheaper than a physical book will ever be.
Fairy-tale apps for toddlers like PonyApps incorporate many of the same elements as board games. With their interactive features, the stories encourage children to team up with a fairy tale character and help him or her along the way. This could involve solving puzzles, learning to play musical instruments or building those tools the character needs to complete his or her quest. It’s also more interactive than cartoons. While television and DVDs are passive media, smart phone or IPad apps for toddlers encourage children to jump in and become part of the story, at least virtually speaking.
Could you persuade your child to prefer a mobile reading device over a physical book? There are a number of obvious advantages. A fairy-tale app can be downloaded to a smartphone, tablet, iPad or any other mobile device and these are light, portable and don’t take up much space. Their pages won’t get torn, damaged or decorated with crayon marks. The best iPad and android apps for toddlers also beat other types of games for convenience, especially when it comes to road trips, vacations and even shorter excursions. Unlike puzzles and alphabet blocks, there are no bits and pieces that can go missing. If you do lose the device, it is easy to re-install the app on a new one.
How will you get your child interested? It’s easier than you think. Children often sense our own focus on mobile devices. As with many other activities, they want to copy our behavior. Once they hold the device, its interactive nature will draw them in. With the best apps for toddlers, it’s quite easy to get started. Tap the screen or touch a hot spot and something happens. Magic. At this point, they will need little encouragement to explore further.
When you allow your toddler to share the use of your iPad or smartphone, you will need to childproof the device. Ask yourself, what’s the worst thing a child could do to your smartphone? If you answered, “Drop it on the floor,” then you probably have a lot to learn about kids and what they can get their busy little fingers into. Any embarrassing photographs or video clips? You kid could share them with your Facebook friends with a few keystrokes. Do you have an ITunes account that’s linked to your credit card? Your child won’t be looking at the price tags on the downloads he or she accidentally authorizes. Alternately, your child could delete your calendar or contacts. Fortunately, you can restrict access to certain apps and features with password protections and block changes to your most important data and account details. It is also recommended that you install a child safe app for internet browsing.
Ideally, the best android apps for toddlers should be integrated with other forms of stimulation, balancing physical exercise, unstructured play and social interaction with screen time. It should compliment a child’s communication with parents and teachers, but not replace it. The use of age appropriate mobile apps and games benefits the development of reading and mathematical skills, but on a wider scale, it also prepares children for a future where proficiency in cutting edge digital technology will one day become their passport to better educational and career opportunities.
