My son Kai is 10 and hooked on his iPad.
We should really call it a KaiPad.
He watches videos on YouTube, draws and paints, takes pictures and makes his own videos.
Potato Pal Joy: EnJOYing her apps!
Bedtime story has moved into Kindle for the iPad now and he seems to be reading more than before.
Above all else there are apps.
I love the speed at which he mastered the technology.
I love his confidence.
How did you learn to do that?
Its easy, he says.
Potato Pal Joy: EnJOYing her apps!
If you are in any doubt about the speed of this technological helter-skelter, just think about this.
The iPad was launched less than four years ago.
Putting this awesome technology into small hands is exciting but arent there worries?
With this brave new world of opportunity comes big responsibility.
We are the first generation of parents and teachers to deal with this new reality.
Were all feeling our way along in the dark.
Meanwhile, app developers are racing ahead, creating more and more wonderful ways of entrancing our children.
The kids are keeping up.
He cherishes that time most of all in the day.
Occasionally he gets an extra ten or fifteen minutes.
Sometimes, on a long flight or car journey he gets to do an even longer session.
When its time to finish, we drag him off the thing using a team of wild horses.
I do know that feeling, because I am the same with my computer.
I also know how grotty he feels when hes done too much screen time.
I think we should be asking this question: What is the child on the iPadnotdoing?
What other activities is the iPad time replacing?
Sometimes he looks rather lonely there, folded up on the sofa, utterly absorbed.
Painting on an iPad lacks the sensory quality of painting in real life the joys of getting messy.
Is all this digital play just a mirage that replaces the real thing?
They dont even make much noise and they hardly even move.
Apps are certainly not going to be going away any time soon though.
Will the child learn something from it?
Does it give room for the childs own individual input?
Does it leave the child with a sense of achievement?
Does it produce something that can be shared with others?
Does it involve practicing a lasting skill?
Is this content appropriate, enriching and improving?
Can they really hear their own voice?
I hope that you agree.
ThePotato Pals 1 app can be downloaded from the App store.
We here at Super Simple Learning are big fans of the Pals.
Were super excited there is an interactive app now available!
Patrick spent 13 years in Japan teaching learners of all ages but is now based in Dublin, Ireland.
He is the author of Potato Pals, Stars and Everybody Up,all published by Oxford University Press.
Patrick tweets atpatjack67and blogs atpatjack67.com.
