I’ve been toying with the idea of buying a tablet PC for a while now, half selling it to myself (and Vicki) on the strength that Mia would benefit, while honestly thinking she was probably not quite ready. Over the past weeks, however, I have noticed Mia showing a newfound fascination in my phone – so I thought I’d download a couple of kids apps to gauge her interest. Having now seen how she can in fact interact with an interface as responsive and intuitive as a touchscreen, I reckon I have been underestimating her skills (sorry Mia!) – and the time may have come to splash out on a new ‘toy’ the whole family can enjoy.
Here’s Mia giving us her first tune on the ‘piano’…
I know there has been at least one previous post on the topic, but I would be really interested to hear your experiences regarding using these devices with your kids, and whether there is any point in looking at anything other than the iPad?
Thanks,
Ross
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We got Brodie an iPad on his second birthday so he’s had it for a year. At first I played on it with him always, now he can turn it on and use it independently for drawing apps and a handful of simple ones. It took him time to figure out how to touch the screen with just one finger, heck it took him some time to figure out he could cause an effect with finger actually but I’m super pleased we started when we did because now we can use educational apps with him, there’s a whole universe of learning within the apps available for toddlers. I would recommend the iPad because theres more available apps I think….would be frustrating to hear of amazingly perfect app for Mia and find its only available for iPad.
I have a daughter with Down syndrome and she is 3. We have two iPads and they are excellent devices for her. We have tried other tablets (windows, android, etc) and hands down the iPad is the best quality, has the best selection of apps, and is the easiest to administer and use. She is able to fully navigate now, pick the apps she wants to interact with, watch movies, practice sign language, and so on. No matter what level your child is at, they will absolutely benefit from being exposed to this device! And no – I don’t work for Apple 🙂
Thanks guys, really helpful advice.
Kendall hasn’t completely grasped the concept of how things work on an iPad. Shell tap not he screen to mock what we do, but doesn’t quite understand that her actions are creating something. We’ll keep trying! But as you know, each kid is different. Mia seems to get the conpect, so I would think that it would do her wonders!
Rochelle never showed any interest in TV, books or flash cards. She loves iPad. She cannot operate it herself, but it has captured her interest and she plays several games and watches shows on it with assistance. I would like to know the name of the app Mia is playing piano on. She is a promising musician. I think it is something Rochelle would like.