Apps, and technology overall, are another tool for learning. Children get the most out of playing with apps if they are well chosen by you and if you play together. The National Literacy Trust gives the following advice when choosing apps for your children to use:

Tip 1
When choosing apps for your child, it’s useful to consider:

+ Your Child: It has to be something they will enjoy and which relates to them specifically
+ The Content: Suits their abilities and helps them learn something
+ The Community: Apps reflect what your child sees around them
+ The Context: Make sure the children are also spending time offline

Tip 2
Watch gameplay footage of the app on Youtube so you know what it does. It’s a great way to get a feel for what your children will be doing before buying.

Tip 3
Things that you should always try to avoid are:

+ Violence
+ Gender or racial stereotyping
+ Pop-up adverts and sales promotion

Tip 4
Exploration is the best form of learning so don’t let yourself or the app be too strict about how your child plays with it.

The Literacy Apps website reviews and recommends apps that can be used with children at different ages from age 1-5 years and that promote learning.

Literacy Apps