Tots go high tech
Categories: Toddlers, Preschoolers, Kids 5-7, Gadgets & tech, That's entertainment
When Ellie was about three years old, she began playing learning games on my computer. These games were made for kids her age and I was blown away at how quickly she learned to use a mouse and navigate her way around the programs. Fast forward four years and she's a computer pro. She can log herself on and figure out what to do when something goes wrong.
Ellie's Christmas wish list includes several gadgets and games for the computer and she's not alone. According to this article, children as young at 2 are leaving dolls and toy cars behind and instead asking for high-tech toys from Santa.
But three-year-olds with iPods and Internet access has some child psychologists concerned that these types of toys don't encourage the same kind of imagination that a set of Lego's or a baby doll does. I agree - dressing up Barbie online is very different than dressing up Barbie in person. But I don't believe online play and high-tech toys are completely without value and do allow Ellie to do it. But like television and sweets, it is all about moderation.
Ellie's Christmas wish list includes several gadgets and games for the computer and she's not alone. According to this article, children as young at 2 are leaving dolls and toy cars behind and instead asking for high-tech toys from Santa.
But three-year-olds with iPods and Internet access has some child psychologists concerned that these types of toys don't encourage the same kind of imagination that a set of Lego's or a baby doll does. I agree - dressing up Barbie online is very different than dressing up Barbie in person. But I don't believe online play and high-tech toys are completely without value and do allow Ellie to do it. But like television and sweets, it is all about moderation.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Joy 12-01-2007 @ 2:12PM
I don't know if I'm just an old crab or not. I think some of these computer games are "okay" I guess if your bored and have nothing else to do. Kind of like a "filler" between things. When you don't have the time for something "real."
I went and looked at this site and have to admit, it's cute. I do know something though, if my granddaughter had the choice to dress the doll online or dig into her playhouse and do it for "real", she would never pick the game online.
I also think if you do the "real" things, then the computer things are okay. I just feel sad for the kids who, for example, only get to build a snowman or make a gingerbread house in such a fake way. To smell and taste the snow and feel the snow-flakes on your eyelashes and make a huge mess and get all sticky and full of candy sprinkles.
I guess these things are okay but nothing can take the place of doing these things for real.
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Joy 12-01-2007 @ 2:20PM
The website I was reffering to was the gingerbread house one. I got both of these articles mixed up! They are so close to the same subject....sorry everyone! And to think I pay for my blond hair!!!!
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caitlin 12-01-2007 @ 3:18PM
I don't remember life without a computer, and it was one of the reasons I learned how to read when I was 3. My parents used to give us "TV/Computer" tickets as rewards for doing all of our chores or other good behavior. They were good for 5 minutes each and you could only redeem an hour's worth per day.
I learned to read early because when I was a kid, all the good games were text based RPGs. My parents got tired of being asked "What does this say?", "how do you type this?", and telling me "That says you were eaten by a grue" every minute or so. The only negative effect that computers have had on me is that my writing is atrocious, because I learned to type a year or so before I picked up writing manually.
My almost 3 year old has had his own computer since he was about 20 months old. It was just an old Imac we had laying around the house, and we installed Alphababy on it. It hasn't been until the last year or so that he's really gotten into it. He likes to check his email, and
play matching games on the Xbox (think Zuma) or Wii sports. He really gets a kick out of getting an email from his cousins or grandmas and dictating a response.
I prefer him to use the computer or games, since he's not just sitting there like he would with a tv show. Since he's only 3, we limit him to 45 minutes for his choice of tv, computer, or games. If he couldn't tear himself away from it, then I'd consider it problematic. But it's a great thing in moderation.
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Meagan 12-01-2007 @ 4:56PM
Personally I think every kid over two should be introduced to computers... with the same media limits as you might use for TV and video games. For anyone who is interested in buying a computer for a kid check this out: http://laptop.org/ it's a laptop built especially for kids in developing countries and it's intended to be their primary source of learning. My blog post on it is here: http://hadesarrow.blogspot.com/2007/11/100-laptop-for-just-190.html
right now they've got a buy one/give one deal for $400 that ends this year... supposedly they won't be available in the US after that but I hope they change their minds. This would be a great gift for a school aged child.
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Joy 12-01-2007 @ 10:32PM
I'm so sorry Caitlin but I disagree with almost everything you said. I don't mean it personally so please don't take it that way but I find it sad that you can't remember life without a computer. Your parents go tired of reading to you and answering your questions? My youngest son read at three and computers weren't even around yet then. I guess we did it the old fashioned way, by reading. I also find that a 3 year old playing video games and answering email is a bit much. Playing video games is better than sitting and watching TV, why does he have to do one or the other? What about normal 3 year old playtime?
This is what I find sad about "today's" time.
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caitlin 12-02-2007 @ 5:28AM
I guess I find it hard not to take personally when you've twisted everything to the most negative connotation. I don't remember life without computers for much the same reason I don't remember life without a record player, even though I wasn't allowed to touch the records. They were both in the family room, were used, and I must have walked past them thousands of times when I was growing up.
I'm not really sure where you got that my son had to watch tv or play the computer, or that it would leave him no time for normal 3 year old things. If he's going to do one or the other, I would rather it not be watch tv. He's limited to 45 minutes each day, and is awake for 12-14 hours. If the weather is nice, we're usually enjoying geocaching in the park for a good bit of the day. But sometimes it's inclement or one of us is sick, and it's usually those days I have to remind him of the time limit.
I don't see the email as being a bit much, since the only person who writes him daily is his great grandma and it's something we do together. He might get two or three emails a week from everyone else. My grandma is a shut in, and has problems with real time conversations because she is hard of hearing and has memory problems. She sends him stories, usually about when she was a little girl, or sometimes about when my dad was a little boy. On her good days, she is a really good storyteller, and my son loves it when I read her emails. He requests them for bedtime stories more often than not. She also seems to enjoy getting to hear about what my son thought we did that was noteworthy that day.
As for my parents, the text rpg, and my desire to read... my parents are human and thus susceptible to frustration. Three year olds usually haven't figured out when to let something drop for awhile, and try again later. My parents read to me in the evenings and answered the endless stream of "Why?" and "But if...". My dad even wrote me a game that was on my level, but I refused to play it because I wanted the text based game. And my parents realized what I did not - the game was probably a 3rd-4th grade reading level, and even if I did learn to read at 3, it was unlikely I'd be able to play that game on my own for awhile. The only time I remember them getting irritated with my questions was after I had been told I was too young for something, and got stubborn about it.
Meagan 12-02-2007 @ 1:58PM
Caitlin-
I wouldn't take it personally if I were you. Everyone has to do things their own way.
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Meagan 12-02-2007 @ 2:11PM
Oops, hit return by accident.
One of the difficulties in talking about computers is that people of different generations are likely to have completely different understandings. I consider myself a part of the last generation that CAN remember life before computers. Personally I don't consider a text based RPG a video game since there's no video or even graphics involved. Basically it's a choose your own adventure story that happens to be on computer. It seems likely that Joy doesn't recognize what a text based RPG is, and certainly that she didn't laugh at the "you were eaten by a grue" comment as I did. Joy if I'm wrong about that I apologize, and please understand that I'm also not trying to disparage your knowledge, I'm just pointing out that people are bound to relate differently to computers based on how long computers have been in their lives. I consider my father pretty computer savvy for someone of his generation, but a few weeks ago I had to teach him how to copy and paste over the phone.
Computers are an important part of life now, I see teaching a child to use a computer no different than teaching a child to write or use the phone or use any other tool. Obviously media access of any kind needs to be limited, but computers are not television.
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Joy 12-02-2007 @ 6:47PM
Oh Meagan.....You are SO right. I knew what I said didn't sound right but I have only been on the Internet for 10 years and I couldn't live without it. I didn't mean it bad, it's just so different. So for me, when I have my grandchildren here, we never go online. I may add also, they never ask to. So maybe, they like what they do here without. My oldest grandkids are 7 and my grandson doesn't even have a computer in the home. We live on 80 acres and there are so many other things for them to do and I shouldn't consider that "normal" play but heaven help me, I do.
Caitlin, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings but it almost sounded like the computer raised you and that was what I found sad. Please don't take offense. I really didn't mean it that way. Meagan just said it much better than I did. Also Meagan was right when she said I probably didn't know what you were talking about, RPG and grue's.....I have NO idea what they are.
This is what I like about ParentDish, I'm learing everyday. Please accept my apology Caitlin. AND THANK YOU MEAGAN.
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