Archives
Electronic Highways
The Internet for kids: It's not just fun and games
Often parents and educators are torn between children using technology versus traditional books and toys. Today, there are many wonderful edutainment Web sites that promote child development in a variety of areas. The following selection of Web sites is organized by developmental or educational level.
Toddlers and preschoolers spend their days mimicking adults, growing their vocabulary and developing their imagination. Many children at this stage become engrossed in their favorite television programs or storybook characters. Adults can find a number of Web sites created by these entities. The Boobahes, the next generation of Teletubbies created by Anne Wood, promote creative thinking and creative movement. Their Web site at http://www.boohbah.com/zone.html is a place where young children can play independently and learn hand-eye coordination, cause and effect, make music and recognize like items.
Preschoolers will enjoy the site for Noggin TV at http://www.noggin.com/. Here they can develop language and early literacy skills through the Pinky's Word Games, engage in creative movement with Oobi, or learn how to problem solve with Blues Clues and Dora. Like Noggin, Playhouse Disney at http://disney.go.com/playhouse/today/ has a Web site devoted to its characters. Children can explore the online activities of Mickey Mouse Club House, Little Einsteins, Jo Jo's Circus and Charlie and Lola. Parents can sign up for a monthly membership to Preschool Time Online, where preschoolers have access to a weekly activity based around the alphabet, numbers and more.
Young elementary school children will love the Clifford the Big Red Dog Web site at http://pbskids.org/clifford/index-puppy-flash.html or http://pbskids.org/clifford/index-brd-flash.html. They can choose a character to play with and enjoy such activities as matching games, "hide and seek," 2D puzzles and online coloring books.
Houghton-Mifflin has created the Education Place at http://www.eduplace.com/kids/, where students receive help through online, interactive tutorials on subjects like math, science and social studies. The textbook "The United States: The Early Years" has matching word games for each chapter, biographies with online quizzes, primary source text with critical-thinking questions and a great game call GeoNet, where students trek across the United States answering questions about landmarks and American history.
Yahoo! has a search engine just for kids at http://kids.yahoo.com/. Each site is age appropriate with bright colors and lively graphics. There are plenty of streaming videos and high octane music, but it is tempered with content like the Study Zone, where kids can get help with homework, gather information on a topic for a project or explore a specific hobby or interest.
Young people during their "tween" years begin to realize they really are not the center of the universe. They begin interacting with other children in play and develop support groups. Sesame Street has created Passport Kids at http://www.sesameworkshop.org/passport/, which many will recognize as an Internet version of pen pals.
Body image and social standing are crucial for young people, especially girls. Miss O and Friends at http://www.missoandfriends.com/ is a Web site created by girls for girls. It encourages self-esteem through its Miss O Club, where girls can become online friends, share growing-up issues, design avatars, experiment with fashion and contribute content to the club's newsletter. Miss O's friends are from diverse backgrounds and have unique career goals. For an interesting look at each girl's background, visit "Are You Like Me?" at http://www.missoandfriends.com/misso/girls/misso/about.php. Another site with similar goals is the Girls Scouts of America's Studio 2B at http://www.studio2b.org/.
The U.S. government maintains a listing of specialized websites at Kids.gov (http://www.kids.gov/k_funstuff.htm). The list includes NASA for kids and Smithsonian for kids, as well as commercial sites.
The Internet can be a dangerous place for children, but with supervision and common sense your home computer will open up worlds of wonder, growth and enlightenment for children of all ages.
—Cynthia Tysick, University Libraries