Apps for Kids

Many people have a mobile device, and many let their children use apps on these devices. There's nothing wrong with that, but establishing some good habits around digital media use is a good idea. While an app will NOT teach your child to read, interaction between yourself, your child, and your iPad can certainly help your child develop the skills they need in order to learn to read. An iPad, iPhone or other device is not the best choice for a bedtime story either, as some studies are suggesting that the blue light from computer devices of any sort before bedtime can disrupt sleep patterns (and not just for kids, for adults, too!) So when is the best time, and how should we be sharing apps with young children? And how do you find the best ones to share? Look for some hands-on classes at your library this winter and spring, but until then, here are a few tips to get you started!

First off, spend time with your young child as they play with apps. Just like with TV, use of tablets or phones should be limited for children under 5, and children under 2 should have very little exposure. Talk about what is happening in the app, what you can do, read together, play together, ask questions and talk with your child. 

How do you find the best apps to use? And how do you decide which ones are worth the money? There are lots of free apps, but as with anything free, quality is often an issue. I like to follow The iMums on Twittter and Facebook to get deals on apps and also free ones.    There's also Digital Storytime , which has a bank of reviews, sortable by age, price, quality, and more. A nice list of resources can be found here. 

I've been testing some apps, and I do very brief reviews on my Pinterest board called, you guessed it, Apps for Kids. Mostly I look for apps that are low-cost or free, educational yet fun, book-related, or ones that can help develop early literacy skills such as drawing, storytelling, and vocabulary. I especially like apps that take good children's books and make them even more fun, such as Good Night Moon, The Three Little Pigs, or the Sandra Boynton books. So take a look at some of these resources, and have fun exploring the digital early literacy world with your young child! 

Angela Reynolds, Head of Youth Services

Web Tool – Wordle

Wordle is amazing and best of all "fun".  It is a web tool that easily generates word clouds.  You don't need to download any software, login or create an account.  Simply go to www.wordle.net and begin to have fun.

You enter the words you wish to use; the more times a word appears, the larger that word is in the cloud.  You can copy and paste text or type directly into the form.  From the examples in the image to the left,  you will see three separate word clouds using the same set of words.  You can change the structure or direction in which the words are placed and the colours.  It is a great way to create an image when you don't have one specific to an event.  After you've created the image you can save it online, which means it is visible to others.  Or you can capture the image before it is saved to the web using Jing or the Windows Snipping Tool. 

A tip for keeping multiple words together is to leave out the space e.g. TwoWords or use the symbol “~” e.g. Two~Words.  This is useful when using names.

Have fun with this one.

Charlotte Janes,
Head of Systems and Administration

Free Software: Jing

Jing is the always-ready program that allows you to instantly capture images and video.   I have been using it for screen captures only.  The video presents a problem as it only saves files in Flash (.swf) format.  These won't load to YouTube. 

But, this program is worth using just for the screen capture capabilities and it's FREE.  After you install the program it resides as a sun shaped icon at the top of your computer screen.  When you need it, simply hover over the image and the tools are quickly at hand.  I use it to capture bits of the screens I'm using for insertion in instruction sheets, for relaying to users when troubleshooting or assisting them with technical questions.  You simply click on the capture tool and you get a grid that you click and drag over the screen to capture the exact bit you wish to use.  This can then be copied into any other program and saved in whatever format you wish. 

Other features offered with the screen capturing, include being able to highlight, frame, colour, add arrows and text over the images.  These are great tools when preparing instructional handouts.  Worth trying!

There's a tutorial here; and you can click here to download your free copy. 

Charlotte Janes,

Head of Systems and Administration

Free Software: PICASA

Picasa is a Google software product that is FREE.

The Picasa software provides a simple way to view, edit, and organize photos on your computer.  There are two great features about Picasa that are worth identifying:

1.  Picasa does not store the photos on your computer.  You download the software.  When you open Picasa, it simply displays a copy of the photos it finds on your computer.  It displays them based on what types of files you specify when asked and where you suggest it looks.
2. Your original photos are always preserved.  When using the great selection of editing tools in Picasa, your original files are never touched.  The photo edits you make are only viewable in Picasa until you decide to save the changes.  When the edited photos are saved, it is a new version of your photo that is saved, leaving the original unchanged.

I really like the editing features that allow you to crop, straighten, fix redeye, add text, retouch, sharpen, tint, change to black & white or Sepia and many, many more.  One of the 24 new features is side by side editing, allowing you to view the edited and original versions side by side. 

Go beyond editing and share your photos online and then add the email addresses of those you want to view your newly created album.  They'll receive an email invitation to view your photos.

This is worth a try.   Did I mention, it's FREE?

Use this link to get your copy today!

Charlotte Janes,

Head of Systems and Administration

Free Software – Photo Story 3 for Windows

Would you like to compile a slide show of pictures with some text and music?  Or maybe you do this already and would like to make that work easier.

This program allows you to touch-up, crop or rotate pictures with a single click.  Add special effects, soundtracks, and even your own voice to your story.  The small file size makes it easy to send your work by e-mail, which is very different from MS PowerPoint and the large files it creates.  You can also view these on your computer or television.

The download file says it is for Windows XP, but it has been updated and now works with Windows 7.  Oh, did I mention that it is FREE!

This Microsoft product allows you to load dozens of photos at one time, you can then move them around, by dragging and dropping them, to get the sequence you want.   If you add music, it plays for the length of the show, automatically fading at the end. 

 

Use this link to get your copy today!

 

Charlotte Janes,

Head of Systems and Administration