Nothing is easier than putting an iPad in the hands of the children to have your own hands free or to be able to continue working undisturbed during your work-from-home day! However, at the end of the day I am often left with a nagging feeling; how long have they been on the iPad today? And what programs have they actually watched? Am I a bad mother now?
Sure, a child should be able to entertain themselves with other things than a screen. Playing outside with friends or playing a game. But luckily there are plenty of 'educationally correct' games and videos for your child to play on the iPad when the weather is not that nice for playing outside!
Below you will find a selection of the best children's apps:
Miffy
Who didn't grow up with them: the stories of Miffy. In the App Store you can download several (free) apps of Miffy: Look and read along and the world of Miffy for example. These apps give your child a glimpse into the life of the famous rabbit. Especially fun because they encounter all kinds of recognizable situations: brushing teeth or choosing clothes, visiting grandpa and grandma and getting a brother or sister. Miffy Educational Games is also very fun and educational!
EASY peasy: English for kids
Is it time for your child to learn English? The EASY peasy app offers a solution. At the start of the app, you immediately indicate the child's current level. Then you fill in how many words you want to learn per day: 5, 10 or 15. Then you choose a set of words and get started. It is a beautiful app that uses flash cards to learn words. My own children love it!
TinyTap
TinyTap contains educational games, made by teachers. These games have all kinds of subjects. For example 'Learning letters with Sinterklaas' (really fun now!) and 'Recognizing musical instruments'. When starting the app, you can indicate that you are a parent or teacher and you indicate the age of your child. The app is divided into free and paid games. A subscription is required for the paid games.
Of course, this is just a small selection of the countless apps you can find in the App Store! If you search for educational games for kids, you will find them for every age group.
Child lock
Since you can’t always be wrong, it’s a good idea to enable a restriction for a child-friendly iPhone or iPad . This will protect your child from objectionable content and allow you to deny access to certain services.
Screen time
Ok, now that you have filled the iPad with all kinds of fun and educational games, it is also important to keep an eye on screen time . You can easily set screen time per device. The guideline advised by Stichting Mediaopvoeding is:
- 2 to 4 years: 5 to 10 minutes at a time, up to a maximum of 30 minutes per day;
- 4 to 6 years: 10 to 15 minutes at a time, up to a maximum of 1 hour per day;
- 6 to 8 years: maximum 1 hour per day, divided into periods of maximum 30 minutes;
- 8 to 10 years: maximum 1 to 1 ½ hours of screen time per day;
- 10 to 12 years: maximum 2 hours of screen time per day;
- 12 years and older: maximum 3 hours of screen time per day.
Protection
Of course, not entirely unimportant is the protection of the iPad. At leapp we have specially designed children's covers in the nicest colors!
Now there's nothing stopping you from working from home and letting your child play on the iPad with peace of mind.
Happy work-from-home day!
-----Eva
Chief Smiling Customer at leapp
and mother of Mila (11) and Rosalie (10)
