We all love picture books for children but there is now one with a new twist, and a shake and a wiggle. Alice for the iPad is an amazing app which contains a slightly interactive version of this well loved story. It seems full of clever little touches like mushrooms that you can toss around a room with a twist of your iPad or an Alice who grows and shrinks as you move your gadget around.
To develop literacy skills all children need to be exposed to books and reading. For today’s techno-savvy youngest generation there is now an option to practice their reading skills online. Digital books are not meant as a replacement to paper books but another exciting medium to get kids reading more.
I love that the story can read aloud to kids whilst highlighting the words.
Children learn by repetition and we all know how kids can want the same story over and over again! So they can listen to the story a number of times and learn the associations between the sounds and the words.
I love that children can click on a word they are unfamiliar with and hear it spoken.
Without having to wait for adult intervention children can try and sound out a word whilst they are reading but if they get stuck they can hear it spoken by clicking on the word.
I love that ebooks look like a paper book with page turning.
Ebooks are not meant as a replacement to paper books but having digital books that look like their paper counterpart can instil a love of all books.
I love that the illustrations are animated.
Picture books that really come to life with animated illustrations – just magical.
I love the comprehension/memory quiz incorporated into the technology.
Children can listen to a story yet not pay attention. Having a comprehension/memory quiz can make sure they listen carefully and take more of the story in.
I love that children are using computer time as a learning experience.
As a parent myself I know how much the kids love to spend time on the computer. Now they can use screen time in an enjoyable and educational way.
I love that reluctant readers can be exposed to books in another medium.
Reluctant readers can hold strong negative associations with books so exposing them to digital formats can provide an alternative medium for them to be exposed to books which is not as threatening.
Digital books are not meant as a replacement for paper books. They are another medium that can harness a child’s passion for learning to read. They are a method for exposing children to more books whilst they are having fun. But don’t tell the children!
While the WORLD celebrates Earth Day today in big and small ways we like to think the by creating great ebooks for kids we are doing a BIG part. There is the BIG question of “are ebooks better for Mother Earth?” the answer is yes & no depending on what you are comparing them to.
By FAR they are much better than purchasing new books. They save paper, labor, carbon, machine gases, output from production and emissions into the air. If you are comparing them to old books that are reused or vintage, then not as much.
BUT, the greatest thing about Wizz-E.com, they are ONLINE books. So no using materials to make a reader, no cost in printing, no use of products what-so-ever. We are using the BIG 3 “R’s”. They are reusable, recyclable and they reduce materials.
When you little one asks about Earth Day or comes home from school with excitement to share about how he can be the super hero for the Earth, listen with a warm heart and show him or her the great things about ebooks and how the have the power to save!
American kids want their new president to do a few things for them.
Like, bring nine-year-old Lonnie’s dad home from Iraq.
Or find a job for 10-year-old Zachary’s dad in Michigan.
Or make it rain candy for six-year-old Aaron.
These are just a few of the tiny requests coming from 45 hundred or so 5-12 year olds that were being asked of the newly appointed leader. All petitions came to Kid Thingand with the generous assistance of the National Education Association the winning hopes were neatly organized into not just a book, or journal but an E-BOOK!
The young bidders then shipped the book off to a very special address, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, you know the White House!!
This little initiative will help launch education, reading and the value of the ebooks. I mean if the President likes them, they have to be super cool!
This is a great opportunity to go check out that eBook idea you have been hearing about but not sure what to do with. eBooks are being used all over through readers like Kindle, Sony and even your iPhone. You can take your favorite novel or favorite magazine with you anywhere.
2. Thinking of saving money?
College students listen up… etextbooks are available and they are for the most part, CHEAPER. Its cheaper to download and etext, then spend the money for the hard copy. Most retailers are providing the alternative and advertising the alternative. These days everyone is counting pennies and with rising cost of education with the lowering amounts of funds, saving big bucks when buying those required textbooks is a BIG bonus!
3. Retailers are getting the eBook bug!
Big time retailers are taking notice to the ebooks. Big time book seller Barnes and Noble release a staements saying that they plan to offer ebooks in the coming year. This is huge! The fact the retailers are taking notice to their customers that are wanting the option to purchase ebooks. I know that I love to grab a book the second the mood strikes, when a new book comes from a favorite author I want it now. I don’t wait for it to show up in my mailbox, by then I have lost the desire to read it. Read the full release at TG Daily
4. Kids dig ebooks!
Ok moms, grandmas, caregivers and au pairs listen up. Need a afternoon activity to help get those kids through the day? Go with them online to read. Reading online is more than putting words in front kids, it is engaging them into a world that changes their perspective on what reading is. Reading is more than words, it is the story that takes a child into his imagination and tell him or her it’s ok believe in something else beside reality. Reading takes a child to a place where they be anything. Allowing kids to read online lets them be in charge of the story and the outcome. It gives control, and what child does not what that. Reading together with a child gives them security and a memory they can hold onto.
eBook Week is March 8 ~ 14 download some great reads!
In most elementary schools the utilization of computers is a fast growing tool to teach and introduce not only a different medium to children, but to aide in the learning of a technology that they will need for the rest of their education careers.
Technology use in schools is more than just learning how to access the Internet or typing skills it’s an understanding of the control of information children see, hear and learn. An understanding between the teacher, student and parents. Most children come into kindergarten with some knowledge of computers, even if it’s just observance of their parents using them. They know what they are and what they are used for. Being the little curious sponges that they are, when offered the chance to get to use them and behave like those they have seen use computers, it is an experience in of itself.
In Collected Research using computers with Kindergartners can be useful as well as frustrating; maintaining these guidelines can help your classroom, living room, or homeschooling environment become more relaxed and learning can take place.
Keep the lesson short and sweet. Something interactive, colorful or with music with help hold their attention.
Having programs that are open-ended and can be done as the student controls, with the pace being set by the student.
Computers are used within the classroom, not set in another room or area. Something like “Centers” or “destinations” can be more accepted by the class.
The ability for audio to be used, so that those still working on letters and sounds can participate as well.
The use of media, such as a web cam or video camera to add to the picture or program they are using. This way they become part of the exercise.
After creating something the option to print it out and further color or bring home to share with others.
Programs that offer recognition and sound technology to emphasize sounds of letters or word phrases that can be followed along with.
Some of the greatest use of technology in the classroom is the option to have stories read through headphones as well as being able to follow along on a computer. A bonus would be to use story time that can be changed along with the flow of the story by the child listening and clicking on different points to enhance their story.
A subscription to a site like Wizz-e would provide another resource for online learning and reading.
A must is teaching children at a very young age what is and what is not safe behavior online. What to look at for and what to do in case they are asked funny questions online, who they can talk to about it and the understanding that some people are not good friends online.
Technology is growing and if we step back to far we will fail our children in the right they have to get ahead. Technology is here to stay, we must educate the new generations to master it.
In 2008 many things became historic, new ideas and new ways communicating have connected not only the world, but the world of technology. No longer is about which company can out-design, but which company can be more social; supplying instant gratification though the use of smart-phones, email, downloads and compact quality products.
Social networking/marketing genius Twitter, gives instant updates from those experiencing something first hand, allowing links to pictures and video. During the Mumbai attacks, Twitter users brought updates from inside and around the chaos. Turning on CNN is great but, if I can get instant updates from various locations from different points of view, that is priceless.
The use of eBooks is growing and more in demand. The fact that I can download my favorite book, or better yet my children’s favorite book to my iPhone is fantastic. Long drives, flights or waiting rooms become less stressful and gives them more exposure to reading.
Don’t get me wrong, sitting with a warm blanket and a great cup of coffee on a Sunday afternoon curled up reading is wonderful; however, you can’t do that waiting for the dentist.
In the Technology review published by the Telegraph, UK eBooks are among one of the fastest growing gadgets of 2008:
Much as the music industry is slowly getting to grips with digital, so too is the publishing industry. This year saw ebook readers move from geek to mainstream. Amazon launched the Kindle in the US, while in the UK, Waterstones started to sell Sony’s Reader. Other mobile devices, too, embraced the medium, with several apps available for the iPhone that turn the handset into an ebook reader, and even Nintendo announcing that DS users would soon be able to read classics published by HarperCollins on its device. In truth, though, sales of ebooks and ebook readers remain dwarfed by those of old-fashioned “proper” books, but 2008 has arguably seen some much-needed momentum build behind the ebook format.
The industry is booming with opportunity. It is the storefront for many ideas to transpire in the near future. The idea of a magazine being updated online with the latest information, being able to update version of a book without having to buy and new one (all university students will appreciate this one), knowing you are getting the most recent knowledge in what you are reading. Newspapers have the opportunity to do less print more electronic, saves money builds more followers.
Education is defined as: The process of giving or receiving systematic information.
Now, I don’t know about you but that tells me nothing about learning. Learning is more than being able to babble off useless facts or being able to regurgitate them for testing. When your learn something it becomes a behavior, a part of your understanding.
A baby, for instance does not become educated on how to sit up, or crawl; they learn to do these things. The same with a 3rd grader who is forced to write multiplication tables repeatedly, in which case he only learns how to get them done.
The new age of education is by far the most interesting and available to all children and adults. We have more colleges online than ever before, high school is online, even the academic side of getting an RN can be done online. Professors and universities are using online black boards to get student updates and post information.
Smart-phones, like the iPhone have applications for all ages to help you learn; areas of vocabulary to medical academics. The use of technology is growing, changing and infiltrating the classroom. My third grader uses my iPhone to work on his math skills, and my 5 year old can play the games and draw.
Major differences are in place from 10 years ago, grandparents are raising their grandchildren, 95% of all american children from the age of 5-17 have a computer in their room (this replaced their tv). Education is becoming electronic, and some of the coolest things are becoming more and more available to those who would not have the resources to learn about them before.
Learning is transforming, and it is bringing with it some really clever tools!
