Pregnancy And Baby Care Slideshow Technology for Tots: When to Introduce Kids to Gadgets

Technology for Tots: When to Introduce Kids to Gadgets

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Guidelines for introducing your kids to technology!

When it comes to raising kids, parents are always plagued with a million questions and doubts. In this age of technology, there is a whole new bunch of problems that parents have to deal with. When do you start teaching kids about technology? How do you introduce them to new gadgets? How can technology help them learn? While there are wide ranges of opinions on these topics, ultimately it’s your call as parents to decide what is best for your child. Following are some guidelines for teaching your kids about technology.

Before you even begin to use interactive gadgets for kids or teach them how to use the computer, both parents have to decide what limits should be set. For example, your child can get one hour of computer time everyday as long as his homework does not suffer. Ensure that there is enough outdoor playtime as well and your kids don’t get addicted to gaming or being online. You will also need to explain to your children about the dangers of the Internet – about problems such as cyber bullying and privacy issues and how to keep them safe.

The Internet can be an amazing learning tool for children of all ages. There are tons of fun games and activities, as well as YouTube and Wikipedia for slightly older kids. Technology also encompasses MP3 players and gadgets such as mobile phones and video games. As your children become more familiar with these devices, you can start teaching them how to program these gadgets and the basis of their mechanics. Nothing too elaborate, but just enough to get them familiar with the concepts.

An alternative way to introduce kids to technology is to give them toys like Lego that improve their creativity and imagination. These games also let them have a hands-on approach to building things. Applications and programs such as Skype and video chatting get even the young ones in your family involved, making technology for them an everyday, commonplace occurrence.

Most toddlers today already have a fair grasp of the technology that surrounds them. Unlike their parent’s generation they were born into a world that runs on machines and gadgets. As a result children tend to be fast and eager learners. It’s up to you as parents to teach them to be responsible users as well.