Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Tech Savvy

When Matthew was a baby, I didn't know the extent of Matthew abilities when I was told he would develop like other kids but just at a slower pace.

Matthew's tech toysAt age 3, he takes my iPhone, unlocks it, and scrolls through six screens of apps to find his favorites. He does this all by himself after observing me many times and some trial and error on his own. He has not accidentally deleted any of the apps (yet). His current favorites are Talking Roby, Talking Hippo, preschool prep apps, I See Ewe, Toddler Counting (by iTot Apps), and SmallTalk Phonemes.

He pushes the 'on' button on his vReader and vTech Mobigo, then proceeds tapping on the screen and navigating through games. I don't think he understands all the instructions but he understands enough to be able to experiment, learn to figure out some of the games, and play some of them independently.

If I let him, he'll randomly click on the laptop mouse when he wants to view more of the videos that I made for him or look at photos. But he's a little too click-happy with the mouse and since there are too many important documents on my laptop, I've taken away his mouse-clicking privilege.

Yes, he may be learning many things at a slower pace. But he is tech savvy just like most kids in his generation.

6 comments:

Anna said...

Im not somputer saavy to say the least but I know on our PC we have different users. That way my son cant access the manager type stuff. There might be a way you could do the same thing for your little one? that way if he is mouse happy he cant hurt anything? Right now we are all or nothing with certain things- weve only had her home 6 months so no touching the computer, TV etc. She is learning so quickly that I can see she will be able to do these sorts of things too. I am thinking of getting an IPAD for us. They use them in the school here and I think it would be good for her to start learning how to navigate while she is home. Love your blog and tips.

Cathy said...

Lily isn't allowed to use my Droid for fear that she'll accidently dial 911, but she loves my iPod. I've downloaded some of the apps you've recommended.

One thing I need to go though is find a skin or some time of cover that makes it a little more difficult to press the little back button. She's a whiz at getting OUT of the apps I load for her. LOL

Love all your tips, Ria!!!

Cathy said...

Should have proofed before I hit post!

One thing I need to DO though is find a skin or some TYPE of cover that makes it a little more difficult to press the little back button.

Monica Crumley said...

So cool. JM could unlock my iPhone if I didn't have a passcode on it. He loves Preschool Adventures and I Hear Ewe. I need to check out some other fun ones.

Tara said...

Sounds just like my typical 3yo, although he HAS deleted apps! :)

Jill said...

Isn't it simply amazing?! Nate has even made up his own sign for the iPad and can do the things you describe Matthew doing! He loves the wheels on the bus and itsy bitsy spider but lately it's all about puppet pals! I am always telling people how incredible it is how he scrolls through pages of apps and never selects mine or deletes anything, just like you mentioned! How fun :)