Technology & Children

What effect is technology having on kids?


Learning

Best Kids Tablet to Buy

Kids are learning more and more every day. Parents want them to learn from good quality sources. Those which can be educational but also entertaining. Those which can be protected by Mommy and/or Daddy in preventing access to areas they shouldn't be accessing. The Nabi 2 tablet is an educational and learning tool for our current times. Running on an Android 4 Ice Cream Sandwich Platform with NVIDIA graphics, bluetooth, wifi and 8 GB Ram extendable to 64, this makes the Nabi 2 Tablet one of the best and most versitile tablets for the learning mind. Best Android Tablet Available Made For Kids, NABI 2 7" Touchscreen Kids Tablet PC features over 100 software applications for kids and their parents to enjoy. A 2MP camera, Bluetooth

Sick of Reading? Think about our students!

I was reflecting on my way home from work today on how sick I am of reading. I was never a good reader. I had to put all my attention to the book while reading otherwise I would forget what I had read. 

It wasn’t until college when I was taught about reading strategies. Now a days I could have been classified as ADHD, but I had amazing executive functions skills! Although I was a frequent book reader, I never actually read a book until college.

The first book I “read" was Number the Stars. I was a junior in college and it was a 4th grade level text. After college I developed a liking for books and read for pleasure. Naturally I read more historical fiction, non-fiction and realistic fiction. I always felt that if I was going to read I might as well learn something from the text.

My current position requires me to read, read and read some more. As a result, I never want to READ! As I mentioned, I was never a good reader, and really never a good writer or editor, yet my current position calls for all of that!

This past week I ran a meeting where we talked about a student who struggled with reading. Immediately, I began thinking about my experience with books, reading and strategies.

The student’s math homework consisted of word problems. They were required to complete reading fluency practice daily at home.  They were also required to complete ELA homework (which involved reading), read for 30 minutes and read an additional book for library class.

Don’t get me wrong, I completely understand the importance of reading, but my heart goes out to these students who struggle with reading and are forced to do it ALL DAY LONG and then again at night. I

It makes me think about the pressure we put on children now a days and how it affects their emotional well-being.

I am 32 years old which I consider “young”, but things have changed dramatically for our students since I was in school. The expectations are high and continue to be more demanding. However, at the same time society has become more complex, the cost of living has increased further putting stress on students, families and society as a whole.  There are also implications of social media and technology on our young kids.  There are pros and cons and often not enough balance. Teacher’s jobs have become even more complex in this day and age as we try to reel the student’s attention into the classroom to focus on learning and away from the video games, internet and cell phones. I believe parents and teachers have many more challenges ahead of them

Kids Computer Tablets Hands ON

Kids Tablets best of 2013

Children's and Kids Tablets 2013

Children growing up in today’s society are going to be exposed to so many different and new technologies. Back in the early 1990’s would you have thought that your 12 year old would be asking for a cell phone for Christmas?  There are advantages and disadvantages to technology and social media at every different stage of one’s life.  But that isn’t what my post is about. I figure if you are looking for a technology for kids to play with, it should be one that they can grow and learn on. Mobile computing today is all about laptops, tablets and cell phones. There are a few companies that have some nice kids tablets out.

In my opinion I would avoid the ones that tend to use cartridges as they expense can be huge.  That is why tables have software delivered via services such as Google Play.

Here are some of the Companies I came across recently.

Leap Frog

They have the learning tablets

You have to take into consideration the cost as well as if it has wi-fi safe kid connect. Additionally, look at battery life and most important durability.

NABI TABLET

Durability is one of the reasons why I was attracted to the Nabi Tablet. 

The Nabi Tablets were immediately attractive because they generally look like adult tablets but with a very durable build and casing. They also use android operating system.




They have the following tablets, although i wasn't able to see all of them.
1. Nabi.Jr which uses Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich.
2. NabiJr Nick Addition 
3. Nabi 2 with special editions in Disney and Nickelodeon and features 8GB. 
4. NabiXD  which is called the worlds first ultraportable for tweens. 

The Nabi Tablets have alot of security features and a mommies login area. For more details on this tablet visit their website http://www.nabitablet.com/

NabiiJr

For children of all ages, nabi delivers amazing experiences in learning and entertainment through its innovative eco-system of products and services dedicated to transformation of a child as they advance through learn, play and grow.

I would have to say I am a bigger fan of the Nabi Tablet because of the  design resembles more of a traditional tablet with inputs and outputs and durability. Additionally, I am not a fan of the cartridge system. 

Nabi Nick

Nabi Jr