Can we talk about (little) kids and computers?

[Guest]

What age do you introduce your little kids to computers? In many of our friends' homes, children as young as 3 and 4 have their own computers. All the little kids I know can operate a computer and the kids' computer section of our library is always way busier than the bookshelves, with kids playing games.

 

My kids are not allowed anywhere near our computer. I have a friend who keeps recommending Starfall.com and am wondering if I should let/teach ds (4) about the computer.

 

What age do you all start teaching typing and computer skills? I keep thinking that I didn't even learn to type until Jr. High and I am quite computer savvy, so what would be the advantage to introducing it earlier than later?

[gardening momma]

We started dd5 on a preschool computer game around the age of 5. Maybe it was at the latter part of age 4. It was a cake game, and dh helped her with it. Then dh got her a Blues Clues game, and she dabbled in that. We now have Caillou, Clifford the Big Red Dog and Arthur games (some of these were gifts). She does pretty well now on her own, but doesn't have her own computer (and won't for a loooong time). We turn on the computer and get it set up for her to play.

 

We were going to wait until dd3 was about 5 also, but she sees big sister doing it, so she wants to. I gave in and let her play certain easy games within those ones mentioned above (like coloring/painting or making music on a Clifford game). She does so well, it's amazing. She needs help sometimes when she gets stuck and doesn't know what to do next.

 

We do limit their time, but we don't have a set limit. Both dc play on our laptops at the dining room table.

 

ETA: I used to do starfall.com with dd5, with me in control, but haven't for a long time. Lately, though, I've let her do it on her own. She's had enough experience on the other games that she was able to pick it up quickly. A child could start out doing starfall games, too. It helps that we've been doing reading lessons, since that's what starfall is about.

Edited July 23, 2009 by gardening momma

[Rainbows]

my kids all learned young...DS4 just turned 3 and is starting to do some educational Cds (HOP) and playing around on NickJr (which he found out about from his older siblings ;) )

 

Its not a lot or often, but he likes being able to use it

[amy g.]

My kids could all use a computer by 2 years of age. My sister kept saying they would have 'little baby carpel tunnel".

[Veritaserum]

Well, my 2.5-year-old knows how to click and play an educational game we have. ;) None of our kids have their own computer, but we do have a computer in the kitchen that is mostly for their use (for pre-approved activities). :)

 

ETA: As with pretty much everything in life, moderation is key. Of course we also have lots of non-screen time reading books, going outside, playing with toys, etc. :)

Edited July 23, 2009 by Veritaserum

[BigMamaBird]

My dh taught my dd to use the mouse and how to right and left click when she was 3.5. He gets her to Starfall or PBSKids and then lets her navigate the site and play the games by herself. I guess you could call it, Into to Computer use.

[Guest]

Hmm...maybe mom's just stuck in the stone age. :D

[Ali in OR]

My dh is extremely tech-savvy and I'm certainly comfortable with it. Nevertheless, I don't think it is beneficial for young ones to get too used to computer screens. I want to use the early years to develop a love of words and reading, not images and mouse clicking. I love the section of WTM where SWB speaks against video learning. And I want my kids playing in the real world--outside, with their dolls and legos, interacting with each other, etc.

 

I am not at all worried about my kids picking up computer skills at an older age. Dh and I both learned in college as computers were first coming out. We use my laptop a bit in home schooling--I have Latin and Spanish chants in iTunes, we've used google images to find art, we use some Usborne links from interactive books, etc. But my kids don't need to be learning from a screen. They are doing VERY well as book readers.

 

I think during upper elementary you can start to teach kids how to use computers as a tool. My dd may start typing this year. In the next few years she'll learn Word, Excel, maybe PowerPoint. I'd love for dh to teach them how to use iMovie. But those are all things where the computer is the tool to help you express yourself. I don't want the computer to be used for math games, teaching the alphabet, or anything where my dc is passively watching a screen.

 

I know others view this issue differently (like my brother) but this is the approach in our household.

[herbalgirl]

My 3.5 yr. old uses it a bit, as well as my 5 yr. old and 7 yr. old. Maybe 1-2x/week, they play some educational computer games. They like starfall.com as one place to go. :)

 

I would say it wouldn't hurt if you are right there and set limits, etc.

[Jen in PA]

My dd started using the computer at 17 months old.... She kept reaching for it while I worked, so I set her up in my lap using Paint while I jotted down ideas for an article I was working on. I looked up when she proudly exclaimed that she had made a letter W. She had. Ds had a harder time getting used to the mouse -- he was pretty solid by around 2 1/2. Although both kids used the computer early, they have never used it a lot. We are pretty strict about websites they can visit, how long they can play, etc. They actually enjoy drawing in Paint and typing in Word as much as any of the fancy games out there. Since I work online from home and Dh is a web designer, I think the kids see the computer more as a tool than a toy.

[Satori]

My DH and I are extremely computer literate, for our careers and hobbies, and have a dozen computers around the house. That said, I did not want to introduce computers to my little one until later, but when she turned 4, she started having interest and now she is fluent, even typing some words and knowing where many keys are by heart. She's 4.5 now and she recently got her first computer.

 

It took her awhile to realize that she won't be making money like her dad or mom does on her computer though, hehe!

 

She learns on it, we have a readingeggs.com subscription. I don't let her sit at the screen for too long of a time and I now view it as a positive influence for her, with all the educational websites/games/programs.

[Radish4ever]

My 4yo DD is very computer savvy and loves playing on Starfall and the games on PBS. My 2 1/2 year old son loves to watch and he points to things and my DD helps him by choosing things for him....he doesn't have the mouse skill down yet, which is fine.

 

My DH works as a programmer for a living and I am online quite a bit and have really enjoyed being on computers since I was my DD's age (We were even "online" with our 14.4 modem on Prodigy..lol - the novelty of playing games and checking the weather!) and I want my kids to have that same opportunity.

 

They're never on a computer for more than 30 minutes in a given day, usually with some directed activities (I like to choose age appropriate games that go along with my curriculum) and then some free play time as well. It's just another way to extend their learning and NOT the sole way for sure.

 

I've had friends that used time4learning or something similar as the core of their homeschooling and I personally agree with the PP that said something about the kids needing to have a love of literature, reading, etc - not just colors and sounds and clicking things on the computer

[Momofeat]

My dh is a professional in the computer field, but we drastically limit the amount of time our children are on the computer.

 

The reason for this is that I'm trained to work with children who have dyslexia, and the research a few years ago showed that early computer use was detrimental to the development of the brain. The researchers recommended no computer use before age 7.

 

Now, we have not gone quite that far with it, but my dd(6) is only allowed on once/week for 30 minutes. Ds(3) is not allowed on it at all.

 

I also must confess that this research is not current. Maybe new things have been discovered over the past 5 years. Until I hear differently, though, our young children will not have very much access. There is plenty of time for them to acquire computer skills, and plenty of alternative ways to learn skills that may be taught or reinforced by computer.

 

Unfortunately, I cannot reference the studies right at the moment. I'll try to dig through my files in a few minutes.

[abbeyej]

I agree with Ali. We're a pretty wired family, but I see *zero* advantage to introducing preschoolers to computers (except possibly as the occasional sanity-saver for mom). Yes, computers are an integral part of our lives now, and it's important that (eventually!) our kids learn to use them comfortably and at the very least do some simple programming... But playing a color-matching game at 3 is not predictive of later ability to learn programming. (Whereas logic and math skills, the ability to read and understand and draw connections... Those things are vital.)

 

I don't think that very moderate computer exposure for young children is necessarily harmful. I just don't think it's beneficial either.

 

My kids are entering 3rd and 6th grades now... The 3rd grader doesn't do much with computers or game systems, partly because of age and partly because of interest. The 6th grader emails his grandparents, and occasionally uses the computer to search for information (with a parent keeping an eye out). He has done some simple programming with the NXT (Lego robot) with his First Lego League team, which he has done for three years now, and he has learned the rudiments of typing. Over the years he has played some games (Earobics, Zoombinis, Number Devil, Hearing Music)...

 

DH (a professor who researches, designs and programs video games among other things) hopes to do some more in depth teaching of programming in the next year or two... But he hasn't been impressed with the programming materials available to younger children who don't have much algebra under their belts yet. (He didn't feel the programming with the NXT was particularly useful either -- though working towards a long-term goal with a team of other kids certainly *was* a worthwhile experience.)

 

We do have a plethora of video game consoles available in addition to multiple computers in our home. Again, the kids have had some access, but it has not been a major aspect of their childhoods thus far. Their screen time (and I count most "screens" in the same category: television, computer, game consoles, handhelds) has been limited, and I think that's as it should be. They're surrounded by this stuff, and have picked up some by osmosis. As we get into middle school and high school, computers will figure more heavily in their school work... But already ds understands so much...

 

Don't feel bad about avoiding this stuff with your (still *very*!) young children. You'd almost have to raise them in a cave for them to be entirely computer illiterate -- and there's plenty of time to teach them programming and other more advanced computer skills later on.

[gardening momma]

Since I work online from home and Dh is a web designer, I think the kids see the computer more as a tool than a toy.

:iagree: My dc see me reading, reading, reading.

[coffeegal]

We don't allow children on the computer until they are reading well and are ready to start Spelling Power or Calvert Spelling CD's (around 8). Even then, they are allowed 30 minutes of computer time for every math lesson completed. lol, My oldest was allowed to play a toddler's computer game on my computer at 2. Within 15 minutes, he'd figured out how to get out of the game and open a word document. :001_huh: That was the end of computer time until he was 8.

[Karen sn]

the research a few years ago showed that early computer use was detrimental to the development of the brain. The researchers recommended no computer use before age 7.

 

 

 

Fascinating. I totally believe it.

I absolutely agree with waiting.

First of all - for reasons such as you mention.

Secondly - I want my kids to have correct typing skills before they get on and learn the wrong way.

 

My dd (12 yo) is allowed to look at certain things on youtube and she can play the video games on disney channel.

She does this maybe twice a month if that.

 

We are starting typing lessons in the Fall (6th grade).

But I still can't imagine her being on very often; I want to spare her childhood.

I like old fashioned snail mail with the envelopes addressed in her best cursive writing.

I like board games that we play together or with her friends.

I like books with real pages that get turned....books that smell old and wonderful.

 

I think we would lose some of that if we did alot of stuff on the computer....

So we wait.

And I don't buy into the whole need to get them started early or they will be behind.

The folks who invented the internet did not play on computers in their toddler years or even adolescent ones!

[Shelly in the Country]

My eldest dd was 18 months when she began playing simple preschool games on the PC. Back then we bought educational software. My eldest ds was about 3, I think. We just let him horse around on Starfall and PBSkids.org and such. I haven't allowed my 3 yo dd to yet because of her personality...she would get into EVERYTHING if we allowed her anywhere near the electronics. She already messes with dh's iPod on a regular basis. Too curious, that one. I haven't even given much though to the baby using the PC. I guess I still view him as a teeny tiny newborn. If I let him though, I'd HAVE to let my 3yo....oh dear.

[Satori]

I definitely do not want my children addicted to video games, but there's also research that says they help their brains. I think there's research pointing to both sides. I want a healthy balance and want my children mostly offline to do physical activities, reading real books, playing, etc... Moderation.

[Pamela H in Texas]

My kids were toddlers. My daughter was probably right at a year old. My son was probably closer to 2. They learn by doing and watching. We never had "lessons" per se.

 

I don't believe that it's detrimental to kids. It probably doesn't really have much benefit that can't be made up for later or in other ways. We wouldn't change how we did it.

[BikeBookBread]

My dh is extremely tech-savvy and I'm certainly comfortable with it. Nevertheless, I don't think it is beneficial for young ones to get too used to computer screens. I want to use the early years to develop a love of words and reading, not images and mouse clicking. I love the section of WTM where SWB speaks against video learning. And I want my kids playing in the real world--outside, with their dolls and legos, interacting with each other, etc.

 

I am not at all worried about my kids picking up computer skills at an older age. Dh and I both learned in college as computers were first coming out. We use my laptop a bit in home schooling--I have Latin and Spanish chants in iTunes, we've used google images to find art, we use some Usborne links from interactive books, etc. But my kids don't need to be learning from a screen. They are doing VERY well as book readers.

 

I think during upper elementary you can start to teach kids how to use computers as a tool. My dd may start typing this year. In the next few years she'll learn Word, Excel, maybe PowerPoint. I'd love for dh to teach them how to use iMovie. But those are all things where the computer is the tool to help you express yourself. I don't want the computer to be used for math games, teaching the alphabet, or anything where my dc is passively watching a screen.

 

I know others view this issue differently (like my brother) but this is the approach in our household.

 

:iagree: Big ditto. I didn't touch a computer until my first job after college -- 1991.

 

We have chosen this same path of non-screen learning. Yesterday, though, the girls watched a YouTube video of Scottish bagpipers, because they wanted to know what bagpipes sounded like after reading Wee Gillis, a wonderful picture book we had just read together. This is the type of thing I like to use the computer for...

 

And just so you know, I'm in the minority amongst my homeschooling friends...most use the compute/video for learning purposes.

[Heather in Neverland]

Both of my boys started around age 3. They are very computer savvy. But, to be honest, they still love to play legos and play outside and get dirty, etc. They are both excellent readers and have good eyesight and love board games and real books. So I don't think the computer has damaged them. :D

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

My ds started using educational computer games at 3 ish. We keep the computer in family room and intend to keep it that way to safeguard him.;)

[BillieBoy]

I feel technology is part of our present and future and as long as I teach my dd to respect it for what it is, a tool, then I have no problem with her using it. Dd (8) just got my Dh's hand me down laptop, but has been using mine for searches related to our studies for some time. She did Starfall at 4 and used Singapore Math games as well. However she is limited and supervised while on the computer. I am implementing a tech education class as an elective this next quarter.

[G5052]

Age 8 or 9 in our house. I read Failure to Connect by Jane Healy immediately after it came out, and was pleased to see it listed in the first edition of the WTM book (don't know if it's still in there). Focusing on basic literacy before computer skills has worked out well in our house.

[Aubrey]

Our oldest is 8.5, & *he* doesn't use the computer. Sometimes *we* use it to show him & littlers a movie, or a photo of something spacey. We use Lively Latin, & that has some Latin games that he's played 2-3 times.

 

Things w/ screens are easy to learn, easy to become addicted to. I'd bet you could start one kid on a computer at 2 & another at 16, & in less than a yr, they could be equally proficient. Maybe.

 

I'm not sure when I think a good time is.

[Shelly in the Country]

Things w/ screens are easy to learn, easy to become addicted to. I'd bet you could start one kid on a computer at 2 & another at 16, & in less than a yr, they could be equally proficient.

 

I'm not so sure about this. I didn't have daily access to my own personal computer until I was 18 and I think I have it figured out, but some days...

 

My parents WANT to figure out a PC and really struggle. I don't think they are alone amongst people of their age bracket. There has to be some kind of age window....I wonder when my kids' technical knowledge will surpass mine. BTW I am not advocating necessarily starting kids on PCs at 2, I'm just thinking out loud.

[skaterbabs]

None of my children have their own computers, but all have been using the family computer for years. Dot taught herself to read using 9among other things) www.starfall.com shortly after her 3rd birthday.

[Brigitte]

I haven't read all the other responses, but my kids are 8 and have never "used" the computer. I have let them type an email to my dad when he has sent an email to them, but that is it.

[OrganicAnn]

My dd is 5 and she knows that "we" can look up information on the computer, but she doesn't do the kiddie computer games. When she was younger I felt they were like the kiddie DVD - you know watch this DVD with Mozart playing in the background and it will make your kid smarter. I feel it is a bunch of hype and they say that it is actually conterproductive for little kids.

 

I kinda wish that she would have the opportunities to learn computers like I did. Very poor games. Finding game/educational programs in magazines and have to type in line after line of programs (in basic). You really had a sense of how a computer worked.

 

Now it is all about graphics and the internet.

 

Some aspects of computers can be addictive. So I wonder is it better to expose a child to something that is addictive at a young age or to wait till they are older?

 

Also she's too busy acting out stories to really want to do anything on the computer.

[CatMomof3]

My 3 year old plays Starfall with his sisters there. I only allow 20 minutes a day. They do not have their own computers, they just play on mine.

[schsmom]

My kids started at 4 then 3. I swear they are more computer savvy then me at times. We did alot of typing out of reports last year just for practice and they are getting very fast at typing. They also love love to play computer learning games which I think is great and a good way to help reinforce skills and have fun doing so. They are 10 and 8 now.

[Terabith]

I really wanted my kids to not use computers until age six or seven. But, the computer is such a big part of my life and my husband's life, that it was this major source of desire for them.

 

When Anna was 3.5 I started letting her play around with Little Bear Toddler cdrom that a friend gave her. I also showed her starfall, but I controlled the mouse.

 

We moved to Roanoke when Anna was not quite four, and while waiting for our house in San Antonio to sell, we lived with my inlaws. My father in law is very into puzzle games and stuff on the computer. My kids loved watching him play, and it was very much an activity he liked to share with them. They had also bought a few kid computer games. (Calliou, Reader Rabbit Preschool, a couple others). So the kids started playing on the computer with Grandpa, and it's been good for their bonding. (Catherine was around 2.5 at the time. She didn't play for about a year, but she watched.) They enjoy it, but they self moderate. They don't want to do it for too long. I started letting them play Noggin and PBS Kids and starfall occassionally. I used Headsprout for my oldest as part of learning to read, and my older is using Time4Learning during the summer. So, now they use the computer in a variety of different ways, and more than I had envisioned at their ages. It's a tool, and it's fun, but it doesn't take the place of hands on play or reading.

[KristenS]

Well, given my PPD issues, my babies were introduced to computers as infants, in the baby sling while Daddy programmed. :lol:

 

They've been 'playing' since they learned that whacking a key or moving a mouse can provoke a computer response. Limited games, of course, but both (age 7.5 and 4.5) can use a mouse proficiently, use Kid Pix well, and so on. They liked Starfall too. Over time my son has picked up some word processing skills as well. This year I'm going to let him use a typing game to get some formal typing skills in, now that he's a more fluent reader.

 

They also play with Daddy on several computer games, but we also have lots of non-computer entertainment, and it *is* Daddy's profession, so it was sort of inevitable in our house. The family computers are in the main room and easily monitored though ... no unsupervised internet or anything like that!

[AuntieM]

I didn't read all the replies, someone may have already mentioned this.

 

When our little ones first started on the computer, limited their time and got a cordless mouse. That way they could sit farther from the screen and not have their faces right up to it.

[Guest]

Lots of food for thought. I guess we are in the minority; I'm just not comfortable with our kids on the computer yet. DS is our eldest, though - I'm sure by the time his younger sibling(s) get older, we'll probably be a lot more lax! At least this opens my eyes to the fact that more people than I realized are introducing their kids to the computer at a young age.

 

No judgment - just good info. Thanks!

[bairnmama]

I started letting my dd use the computer for preschool games when she was about 4. We didn't have internet access then so I bought JumpStart Advanced and Winnie-the-Pooh. Ds has been using the computer since he was barely 3. Now that he's 4 1/2 he's almost an expert with the mouse and we LOVE JumpStart.com! He plays the learning games meant for 1st & 2nd graders with basically no problems. I do limit screentime (all screens included - TV, computer, Leapster, etc) and he still loves to do all the classic little boy things like stomp in the mud, play dinosaurs, etc. He even brings me our McGuffey's Primer to "do some reading", so I don't think it's detrimental at all. Mostly I let him play while I do some intensive work with dd's school so we won't be interupted.

[Guest janainaz]

I taught both my boys to use the computer mouse at 3, but just to go on Sesame Street games, Starfall, etc. I sit with my ds4 and help him while he plays games and I think it has been great for him. I think limited time on the computer, as long as it's educational, is fine.

[Tap]

About 2-2.5yo playing with things like audio books or basic point and click toddler games. Dd2 likes to lay on the floor and listen to/watch animated story books. We let her do it every few weeks. It was the same for our older kids.