…ew mobile applications that are leading parents to “pass back” their smart phone devices to younger and younger kids. We have also recently convened a research workshop on “joint media engagement” with support from the Digital Media and Learning Hub at University of California, and colleagues at the LIFE Center (Stanford, University of Washington, and Northwestern). A report of the workshop will be available this Spring. Our newly launched profess…

…the goal is to “blast” as many words as possible that begin have the same phoneme as a target word while you cuddle by your mother’s side on the couch. While both are mobile target practice games, the experiences of each are very different. Marshall McLuhan’s well-known statement “the medium is the message” surely would allow for easier data collection. But unfortunately, the media and technology world has become a lot more complicated over the p…

…an iPhone and an iPad and they’re 7years old. I got my first shitty, brick phone when I was 11.” The idealists: – “I bet kids in music school don’t need to haul around tuners, metronomes or stacks of music anymore. They just use an iPhone or iPad. Lucky!” – “iPad worth the hype? Here is why we love it so much. It’s opened up a new world for my 2 kids.” – “Ppl laughed at me when my 6yr old got an iPad for her birthday, but now she knows all 50 stat…

…children and caregivers, and 3) Use as many possible affordances of smart phone and tablet computers. The result was a number of apps with non-digital counterparts. One type of app was the digital version of the “exquisite corpse.” “Le cadavre exquis” was a parlor game favored by French Surrealists, involving players making a contribution to the whole (be it an image or set of worlds) without having knowledge of anyone else’s contributions. This…

…ansparency to the parent – in this day and age of GPS chips, cameras, microphones, and online sharing networks, it’s incumbent upon all developers to make it easy for parents to decide what their kids should or shouldn’t be posting online. Like any website, sophisticated apps need to phone-home to provide generic analytics to the developer, providing us the dashboard necessary to adapt and improve our products. High-fives to the FTC for drawing a…

…the traditional concept of communications – as what was previously done by phone or even in person now demands honed reading and writing skills. Anecdotal research – as anyone who has spent time around a toddler engaged in endless rhymes and repetition can vouch – has shown that children very early develop an interest in, and a pre-occupation with, the patterns and sounds of language and syntax. Poetry can teach patterns, syntax (both as in tradit…

…00 pages of offerings over the 4-day event. (Thank goodness for the mobile phone app!) But, I wanted to highlight some interesting themes that I saw emerging from a series of talks that I was able to attend, to hopefully provide a sense of what kinds of conversations are taking place in this field. The conference theme this year, “Non Satis Scire: To Know is Not Enough,” suggested a sort of action agenda for those presenting and becoming involved…

…un of explaining to dates later on why I had a bunch of “Mommy Apps” on my phone.) My sister-in-law used her iPad, along with old and new episodes of Sesame Street and the Electric Company (and full disclosure, some of Disney’s Little Einstein and Nickelodeon shows as well), to entertain and educate her sons, then ages 2 and 5. The videos not only provided the educational content they are renowned for, but also connected the boys to the U.S., allo…

…the Science Buddies website. Through some really enthusiastic introductory phone calls and Skype sessions with students and their parents over the past couple of weeks, I’ve learned that some of the kids drawn to the Online Learning Program this summer have some completely awesome goals. Many want to be game designers when they grow up. Some want to be computer programmers and eventually learn how to code their own games. One student is going into…

…as “willful and repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices.” If you’re the operator of a site, app or other service that allows teens to engage socially, are you comfortable that you’re doing everything you can to prevent cyberbullying on your platform? What about protecting young users from other predatory behaviors? A particularly important note for new developers: just because you intend your…