Research released by Telstra earlier this year revealed something that may come as no surprise. More and more households now have at least one tablet device or are considering purchasing one with education in mind.
What exactly is the role of Tablet devices in education and at home when it comes to preparing children for the future. Recently I spoke with Shelly Gorr, senior advisor in Telstra’s Digital Inclusion team. Listen below.
Telstra’s Top ideas for sparking young digital makers:
- Coding – Flex your kids’ coding smarts with free visual programming languages Scratch (ages 8+) and ScratchJr (ages 5–7) to create interactive stories, games and animations; or enrol them in a Code Club, a nationwide network of free, volunteer-led, after school coding clubs for 9–11 year-olds.
- Music-making – Discover the joys of composing with Incredibox, by creating a free musical mix with your very own beatbox crew, then record and share it (age 8+); or by composing with Noteflight, budding musicians can write their own music (teens).
- Art-making – Unleash your kids’ inner artist with Sketchbook, a free digital drawing app for sketching, designing, doodling and more (teens) or try deluxe creative tool ArtSet (age 7+), downloadable from the iTunes store.
- Publishing – Create beautiful stories with WePublish which allows you to write, illustrate, publish and print your own 8-page book (age 5+), or make stunning free visual stories with Storybird (age 6+).
- Media-making – make radio, podcasts, TV or other digital media with SYN Media’s online resources (ages 12+).
- Building – Get building with a ‘sandbox’ program like Minecraft. Think digital Lego without the risk of tripping on blocks! Players place and break blocks in a 3D environment while “mining” for materials they need for their character to live (age 5+).
You may also like to reach some of Shelly’s other tips around online safely and technology and children HERE.
