Category: personalized ebooks for kids

How to Find Fun Educational Apps for Kids

Posted on | by KD Novelties
Educational Apps for Kids

Kids love playing games, and with more and more kids fascinated by their parent’s phones and other mobile devices, many children are spending more time playing video games and looking for apps that are appropriate for them and their interests. Some of the most popular games in the app store are big hits with kids, like Angry Birds, and while this game does teach kids some basics of physics, it’s mostly just a fun game. If your child is mesmerized by mobile devices, there are ways to harness that interest and use it to help bolster their early education.

There are plenty of educational games, activities and other apps that can benefit kids and their learning skills. With games that focus on math, spelling, language arts, science, social studies, languages, early learning, storybooks, games and more, kids can still have a blast while learning key skills that will help them perform better in the classroom.

When it comes to choosing the right educational apps for your child, there are so many for you to choose from. There are apps like Fishing with Grandpa available in the iTunes App Store that are great for developing early learning skills or Wonster Words, also available on iTunes for various devices, that helps acquaint kids with phonics. Traffic is a programming and coding game for children, a field that is exponentially growing and is becoming an arguably necessary and employable skill for people in many different fields. There are also interactive stories, like Pinky the Pink Penguin that aims to teach kids about diversity and accepting others because being different can be good. We also offer a wide variety of different personalized interactive e-books that can be downloaded and accessed on mobile devices for kids to peruse and learn key reading comprehension skills.

Personalized eBooks for Kids

There are other creative unique apps out there as well. ADHD Skill Boosters Tween is great for kids struggling with this particular disorder and helps them bolster their learning skills in a way that suits them and their needs. When it comes to finding the right apps for your kids, one of the best places to look is in recommendations lists or app pages that link to similar apps. Look at what games your child is known to like and see if there are any similar apps out there that might offer some educational benefits as well. Even searching for the apps listed here will bring you to even more “recommended” and “similar” apps that you can peruse. Before downloading an app, especially ones that cost money, make sure that you read the comments and that it is not too easy for your kids to accidentally buy features and other aspects of the app that they may advertise.

It also helps to remember that educational apps are still games. Spending time on a digital device is not inherently bad, and making sure that your child is acquainted with the various digital platforms out there can help prepare them for the world – but it is just as important that kids have variety in their daily activities. It is still important and beneficial to encourage reading from physical books, playing board games, being active in or out doors and participating in a wide range of different kinds of activities, is good for children and their overall development.

Are eBooks Good For Kids?

Posted on | by KD Novelties

E-books have become increasingly popular over the past few years. While it has not deterred people from buying physical books, it has instead increased the sale of books altogether. People who already purchased and read books regularly have stuck with their habits, but the presence of e-books has encouraged these same readers to look at a wider variety of books than they ever have before. It has also enticed non-readers into purchasing and trying out books for themselves. The great thing about e-books is that they take up less space and, for many; they tend to cost less than their print counterparts. These factors have helped to sell bestsellers to infrequent readers but it has also made lesser known titles and authors far more marketable as well.

Why e-books?
Now, what does any of this have to do with children, you ask? Well, a lot of the same logic applies. E-books can be great alternatives for children who already love to read. As a parent, you can introduce more titles to your child than ever before. Since you will also be buying your child these books or lending them from the library in limited numbers, knowing that you can purchase cheaper e-books or even find some free online, can certainly put you at ease.

For the reluctant reader, e-books can be exactly what may help a child get hooked. In this day and age, tablets, phones and computers are a part of our everyday lives. It has gotten to the point where even kids demand a significant amount of screen time to watch their shows and play their games. As a parent, you can make a child’s screen time valuable by making sure that they are at least using a majority of this time to ply educational games and watch interactive and imaginative shows. The same goes for e-books. If a child is reluctant to pick up a book and wants to use their tablet instead, there are plenty of interactive e-books out there that can pique their interest. Some of these e-books feel more like games, especially if they are on a screen. Since many reluctant readers feel as if reading is a chore for them, introducing them to e-books can show them just how fun it can be.

For these same nonreaders, there are not only plenty of fun e-books out there, but there are even personalized e-books that make the experience even more exciting. KD Novelties has several personalized e-books that can feature your child’s name and make them feel like they are a part of the story.

Personalized eBooks for Kids

e-books and Comprehension
E-books can be great learning tools for avid and nonreaders alike. The interactive interface can make the material more engaging and exciting for them, which can be extremely helpful if you are introducing them to reading material that is more educational than fantastical. Reading any kind of book will help boost their reading comprehension and even their writing skills, but if you want to introduce your child to a more difficult subject or want them to read a more informational book, then using an e-book format can make it feel more fun for them. This can be especially helpful to parents who homeschool their children or parents who want to play a bigger role in their child’s education outside of school.

Engagement
For many kids, looking at a screen is far more engaging than looking at a page. On a technical level, these two activities are identical, but to a child whose world is increasingly becoming more and more digital, it may be the thing that helps them interact with books and reading more in general. Even if your child is not reading an e-book per se, even encouraging them to use their tablet for educational games and other activities means that they are learning how to become more computer literate. In the fast-growing technological world, this sort of skill can be vital. So many children these days know how to better navigate the settings of an app than their parents do. Computer literacy also means that they are developing their general literacy as well. As kids learn how to go through the motions of menus and sidebars, they learn how to read some things on their own out of their own inherent interests.

As far as e-books go, some kids may feel more of a sense of engagement and accomplishment when reading in this format as it sometimes provides additional visual cues that physical books cannot offer. While reading does require visual skills, not all visual learners are good readers. Depending on what you use to read e-books, some devices provide in-system dictionaries to help with words that kids may not recognize. Some also allow for the reader to highlight sections and use the Internet to ask questions or find related sites to the books they read. Even the counter on the bottom of most books telling the reader just how far they’ve gotten can help keep kids motivated as it may feel a bit like a video game.

How to Read an e-Book with Your Child
Reading an e-book is a lot like reading a traditional book. If you are trying to get a reluctant reader to read, reading aloud and often with them can help encourage them to read on their own. If you are reading with an avid reader, then you can ask them to read to you instead.

As a parent, you will want to read e-books with your child before letting them read them on their own. This way you can help them learn how to operate the device and how to use everything they have available. Showing them how to read on their own will encourage them to be responsible when they do so alone.

Raising Kids in the Digital Age

Posted on | by KD Novelties
Parenting in the Digital Age

It is an undeniable fact that we live in a digital age. As parents, remembering a time when things were simpler, but modern children will not have such memories. Sure, some pieces of technology will look and perform differently now than they will when they are older, but this generation and new-coming generations of children will not remember a time before the internet or a time where basic cable was all you had.

It can be hard enough keeping up with the times as an adult, but many parents out there are resorting to these technological advances a little too much. Sure, things are easier now, but that does not mean that certain things should be ignored or overlooked. It is still necessary to be a parent and to do some parenting in this so-called “digital age.”
Many of us have seen plenty of cartoons where homes are kept in order by programmed robots and other Artificial Intelligence, but there really is no substitute for the babysitter. Many more parents these days plop their kids in front of the TV equipped with on-demand channels or Netflix to appease their children while they do chores or other activities. Some parents are resorting to giving their children their phones or iPads to play with while mommy and daddy deal with grown up stuff. While these sorts of things may be great for a quiet afternoon or a long car ride, kids still need supervision. Simply putting on the TV or an interactive online game is not the same as having an adult presence. Doing so may lead to behavioral issues, and children may not listen and will prefer to do whatever they want, especially if they are not used to having an adult around. Kids may become more demanding when it comes to using these technologies. For example, if they are not used to watching TV or playing games for set periods of time, they may have difficulties understanding times where they are denied access or it is taken away from them.
There are other dangers to letting your TV or tablet become your babysitter. When kids are left to their own devices, they are often subservient to something called “curiosity.” Kids will explore other channels, look at other on-demand options, browse Netflix, or may even search the web. Many parents use parental controls to prevent these sorts of things from happening, but parents who are not around may not realize what content their children are being exposed to.
Apps and e-books for Kids

This is why it is so important to guide kids through the digital age. While one argument may arise that states to simply cut down on technology, which is still a good thing, it is also unavoidable in today’s society. Instead of letting Netflix babysit your kid, have yourself or an actual babysitter sit and explore it with them. Whether it is the TV, a tablet, or a phone, offering the proper guidance can help kids foster a healthy relationship with technology. It is imperative to help kids refrain from growing too reliant on technology, which may be the case if they are exposed to it for long periods of time, therefore making it hard adjusting to other activities.

Spending personal time with your children is important, so make sure that any time spent looking at online content or utilizing any of the world’s fabulous technological advances, are shared, healthy and informative. Having all of these aspects present can help create a healthy relationship between your child and technology where they can adapt to new advances without suffering socially or emotionally, with or without them.

Quick Tip: Get them their very own personalized book where they become the main character in the story.  This will sure excite them and take them away from digital technology and get them to read a book and enjoy it! Get a personalized book for your child today!