Kids and EBooks a guest post by ER Yatscoff
If you think eBooks are popular now, consider the new generation of kids whose parents have smartphones, laptops, eReaders, and every other electronice device. More and more parents are handing off their iPhones with apps to entertain young children or simply shut them up. The youngest of the bunch get apps with music and animals and stuff to keep them occupied. The older ones get more printed words and simple games. Up the ladder we go until each child will have their own eBook device. Already people are reading more because of eBooks. Ebooks are cheaper than their print versions and far more available.
In this technological age children under eight are spending more time than ever in front of screens. Those with access to technology are more affluent while low income groups are still watching TV. For kids under two, experts have found no educational benefit to watching television, and, in fact, believe TV could actually delay language development. Reading remains the best path to developing language skills.
Common Sense Media , a San Francisco non-profit group, has just released the first study of children and screen time from birth. Almost half of affluent families downloaded apps specifically for their young children, while lower income families were far less likely to do so. Only one in eight low income families downloaded apps. As technology gets cheaper, expect more and younger children to have screen devices. Presently, the study found half of children under eight had access to a mobile device like a smartphone, a video iPod, or an iPad or other screen device.
Television is still the number one screen device but that will likely change as interactive programs will no doubt challenge children more, keeping their interest much more than static television programs. Even with the current state of the economy, 30% of children under 2 have televisions in their bedrooms. I can’t comprehend a TV in a two year old child’s room. My children had no TVs in their rooms and, I believe were much better readers for it. As incomes rise, the preponderance of TVs in kid’s rooms drops.
In regards to another screen, the computer; preschoolers are using them more than ever. Putting your child in front of a computer or other screen has to be better than the TV, education-wise, anyhow. Parents do like their laptops and iPhone and games and we all know children copy their parents.
So, given that children are attracted to screens, it’s a good time to wean them from TV and get them specific apps to encourage reading and interaction. When this new generation of eKids grows up we hope they will be better readers and subsequently do better in academics. They will have access to humungous online libraries directly from their rooms. I just don’t think they’ll be as excited going into a bookstore or library as I was. Better readers will find this technology easier to use and have advantages over others. Technology may even result in children reading at younger ages.
Read more: Screen Time Higher Than Ever For Children
This article was written by E. R. Yatscoff, retired fire captain with Edmonton Fire Rescue. Widely traveled, Edward has won several writing competitions and awards for short stories. His writing credits include travel articles, short stories, non-fiction, and mystery novels ranging from juvenile/middle grade to adult. He wrote the very first firefighter mystery in Canada in an eBook format. Edward manages a writers group in Beaumont, AB. His hobbies include fishing and camping, boating, home renos, and writing.
For more information about Edward Yatscoff and his books, please visit his website.
