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Ask Slashdot: Android Apps For Kids Under 12 Months?
An anonymous reader writes "My kid seems incredibly interested in my Android tablet, but I'm not too comfortable with letting her play with my browser. I've been hunting the app store for apps that I could let my kid play around with, but haven't found much. It seems like most apps are targeted for slightly older kids and are trying to teach them words, math or whatnot. Has anyone found any cool apps for approximately 6-month-old children? I'm mostly looking for something that makes funny noises or where you just have to e.g. track moving objects on the screen."
I wouldn't worry about finding specific apps that are "safe" for a 6-month old. At that age, no parent should even consider letting their child use an Internet-connected device unsupervised. So, if yo show the child something on the web browser, or another app, you should know specifically what you're looking at and should be 100% comfortable with the material.
Counting Robot
Basically it is a sort of whack-a-mole with different numbers of moles each time.
When information is power, privacy is freedom.
http://www.zoodles.com/home/marketing/android Pretty good kid-mode for android. Disables most apps / buttons and provides its own kid interface to just what you enable.
http://interserver.net/
Love and affection. At that age it is nothing more then a glowing rectangle that makes noise. Go outside and show your children the world around them.
Toddler Lock works nicely. Cool colours and sounds as they touch the screen. It temporarily replaces the home screen so it locks out phone/internet/other app access until an adult follows the onscreen unlock instructions.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=marcone.toddlerlock
My understanding is that physical play with 3D objects (e.g. blocks) for motor skills and physical interaction with a parent for language skills are much more important to young children than learning apps. Anecdotally, I've heard that kids learn language much better from real interaction with an adult than from language aps.
Although this might be heresy for a tech web site, put away the screens, big and small, for the very young!
This idiotic question is easy to answer. Any app calling shutdown() right at the beginning will do just fine.
Really, just stop fucking up your kids.
If you want to make them into responsible open source contributors you better start as early as possible.
My toddler is very interested in my car keys, but I'm reluctant to let him drive my BMW. The iDrive system is somewhat complicated, and I think a RWD performance car might not be appropriate for a first-time driver - especially since here's snow on the ground and he can't reach the pedals. Can anyone recommend a FWD or AWD car with a simpler interface and adjustble pedals which would be appropriate for a sub-2 year old child?
A child shouldn't be handling technology until about 3 years old, as many Slashdot stories have reported. It's also just common sense that so much stimulation so early on is bad for a developing brain.
You mistake interest for curiosity. It is in the child's nature to explore and learn about their environment, but introducing them to your tablet is just going to impede their progress as all their attention is consumed by the device.
and we decided he will not look at a TV/PC/phone screen before he is two years old as a minimum. We instead try to spend as much as time possible with him doing activities appropriate for a 9 months old baby. Maybe this is the reason why he is so active and curious about what happens around him.... And no, I am not a tech luddite (I am a physicist).
"My 3 week old is fascinated by certain shapes. Is there an app that looks like big tits dripping milk that would be something he could play with?"
Dumb ass posting; never should have seen the light of day.
Look for the following....
A rattle, a ball, and any of the other toys that work on dexterity and focus. Apps? really?
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
The research is still early on this. I would be very careful, and I'd limit exposure to flat screen TVs as well.
http://articles.latimes.com/2012/aug/28/news/la-jc-sleep-book-backlit-melatonin-20120828
“Our study shows that a two-hour exposure to light from self-luminous electronic displays can suppress melatonin by about 22 percent," said Mariana Figueiro, the lead researcher. “Stimulating the human circadian system to this level may affect sleep in those using the devices prior to bedtime.”
Self-righteous enough? You're obviously never had a screaming toddler on your lap while you're on the phone, when a minute of Talking Ginger on the Nexus is the difference between screaming and giggling contentedly. This isn't mutually exclusive with playing with blocks or stuffed toys.
So giving in to a toddler is the answer?
If you do not neglected your kid, it will sometimes cry to try out boundaries. If you give in at the young age, you will give in later as well.
You are not the kids best friend. They do not have to think you are great because you give in and do what they want.
You are the parent. You are there for the kid. Giving in is for yourself. This is not about you. This is not about the kid crying. This is about you giving the kid what it needs to grow up and know boundaries.
If you are lucky, your kids will get kids of their own and only then will they understand what you were trying to do. Till then, they probably hate you at some level.
And yes, I have had a crying toddler on the phone, craving attention that it wasn't getting. Tough shit. I will hang up, because I do not want the other person to be deaf. I then will call back as soon as the toddler s safe and out of noise range (probably still crying).
Obviously I do not take calls all of the day. However the kid has got to learn that sometimes I am not around, so it should learn that I take my 10 minute phone call or a 5 minute toilet break.
Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
Try "baby picture fun" ... Super simple, free, no ads. Will entertain for a couple minutes.
Seriously, it's crazy to do that to an infant. An infant is still developing their visual system and learning (by pruning their brain synapses) about the reality of the world around them and how they (the infant) interact with it physically. Providing examples of useless GUI interfaces and ongoing stimuli with poor interaction is a crazy thing to do to an infant.
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They need physical toys like rattles and pacifiers and blocks that they can touch and move around and make noise with and learn the "intuitive" laws of physics from them. Give them a few years before you throw Emacs at them. The only Gnu they need to interact with at that tender age is a stuffed Gnu plush toy. And I say this as a fervent believer in children playing with computers: do NOT make infants and toddlers play with computers and tablets.
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The American Academy of Pediatrics itself recommends limiting access to screen time for children under the age of 2 years .
how about the 'play with your kids app'??
like peek-a-boo, and pass the ball, and ride the horsey?
expecting a 10 month yr old to play w an android tablet instead of playing w a real human is ridiculous..
you can do better as a parent
2cents
j
As a forewarning, your child's eye sight isn't fully developed yet at this age, and should probably not use the device before age 2-3 any more than a 3d game consol.
Now, if you still let him or her look at the screen at arm's range, he or she will see bright lights with vague shapes. You'll be able to tell because he or she will have a hard time distinguishing and interacting with precise UI features. Thus, at least do your kid a service by dimming the screen's brightness to the lowest possible setting.
If my own nephew is any indicator, btw, tasting the device will your infant's primary interest, alongside an occasional crash test when it slips. You've little need for fancy apps for that, the device itself and some simple music or drawing app will suffice.
Lastly, as many other posters have suggested already, you should be playing with and talking (very important) to your child, instead of delegating babysitting to a screen.
Giving a baby something bright and shiny to play with to distract them from teething pain for five minutes isn't "giving in". Your argument seems to be that any attempt to stop a child from crying is spoiling them. I wonder how long your attitude would last if you were sat behind a 1 year old on a ten hour flight. Would you prefer their parents tried "In The Night Garden" on the iPad, or a lesson in boundaries?
If there's one thing I can rely on Slashdot about, especially when no one here has ever met a woman, it's reliable parenting advice.
Playing games on a phone? Unlikely.
I once saw a young mom hand her expensive looking clamshell phone to her one year old daughter. Then I watched as the girl snapped it backwards and handed the 2 pieces back to the stunned mom.
Your kid is slow. When my son surfed out of my wife's vagina I handed the little guy a piece of chalk and he proved Fermat's Last Theorem. I scolded him and told him that was proven 17 years ago! Get working on P != NP, son!