Gamified Apps Teach Kids to Code, Speak and Solve
Do you worry your kids are going to lag behind in their learning because of all the screen time? There is an app for that. As the age old argument goes, “It’s not the tech, it’s how you use it.” I’m not sure if that is the exact saying, but you get the crux. If you’re worried that your kids aren’t learning anything off their smartphones or their tablets, it’s probably because you haven’t ensured they’re using the right apps. Because yeah there are some pointless apps out there that serve no purpose but sending out Yos. And then there are addicting gaming apps *cough-Kim-Kardashian-Hollywood-cough* that are fun to play but have no real substance to teach kids anything at all. But then there are brilliant apps too that can help children explore different avenues. Those that serve learning through gamification allow your kids to do just that. Kodable Like learning how to code. This is an app that teaches toddlers about programming before they can even read. It has been designed like a game with furry creatures. And you learn things like conditions and loops and debugging. In this way, children have a head start on programming. They think of algorithms and commands as common sense rather than something that only computer-y people know. Which is pretty cool because now tech moguls like Google have realized how teaching kids to code helps them build the things they want, or bring an idea to life. Duolingo An app that helps kids learn new languages? Yes please. Forget kids, this app works just as well for adults with its gamified lessons on Italian, French, Spanish, German and many other languages, too. Each lesson is a ‘level’ that you cross by answering the questions. Wrong answers make you lose a ‘life’. Lose them all and you’ll have to repeat the level. Which means you go through the lesson again till you’ve learnt it for sure. Now wouldn’t you rather your kids spend their time on an app like this where they take away something tangible from their screen time? Better than crushing candies anyway. MindSnacks This is a similar app to Duolingo, except the creators have ventured off into other learning areas like Math, Geography and SAT vocab, too. Forcing your children to study for their SATs is no fun at all. But asking them to install a gaming app on their phones is probably much easier. As long as they are taking something valuable from all the time they spend dwindling their thumbs away on their device of choice, you should be a happy parent. What these apps are doing is gamifying education itself. Which isn’t a new concept at all, but when it cashes in on children’s technology addiction, we might have ourselves something worthwhile here.
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