Lindsey Wright is an educational technologist fascinated with the potential of emerging educational technologies, particularly the online school, to transform the landscape of learning. She writes about web-based learning, electronic and mobile learning, and the possible future of education.
Computers have come a long way in recent years and include many educational benefits for people of all ages. Adults can use a computer to take online courses and they are excellent educational resource for teen as well. Additionally, children as young as 4 years old can benefit from these machines, learning everything from vocabulary questions, how to spell correctly, when to properly use grammar and much more. The sooner children become exposed to this technology, the more they can benefit from them.Many children dislike school because they find it too hard or too boring. This can cause the child to stop paying attention in class, which then causes them to fall farther behind in school. This only worsens the problem, creating an endless cycle of frustration for teachers and parents alike. With technology, however, you can take the same problems that were being taught in school and place them on a computer. This makes the lesson more hands on, allowing the child to not only learn, but have fun at the same time.
Luckily there are many different websites designed to help children learn in a fun and safe way, such as Starfall and Scratch. Starfall is designed specifically to help children who are struggling with phonics. The website can be used for free and designed for children ages two to seven. Younger children can learn their ABC sounds while older children can design books that are specifically about them. Due to the fact the website is asking children questions about themselves rather than focusing on letter sounds, children learn more.
The same can be said about the site Scratch, though it takes online education one step further. The website itself features games that children have designed, and include everything from games about the planets to games about animals. However children aren’t just limited to playing with their peers’ games. The Scratch program can be downloaded directly to your computer and once installed, children can create their own interactive games, stories, graphics and videos.
There are other programs that allow you to create your own creations, but only Scratch is designed specifically for children. This means that the program is easy enough that kids can make their own projects even at 8 years old. Not only does this teach children computer science, but also the simple mathematical thinking that is needed to complete a story. Children also learn how to bring their creatively to life through reason and working collaboratively.
Because children are designing these games and graphics, other children find them entertaining. For example, one of the current popular creations at Scratch is “Punctuation Saves Lives.” In the game, two animals are sitting in class learning about grammar and punctuation. Their teacher, another animal, asks the class to look at the board and then write the sentence correctly. The sentence displayed is, “lets eat grandma.”
Both animals spend a moment writing on their paper before the teacher checks their work. The first animal corrected the sentence properly, writing “Let’s eat, grandma!” while the second animal failed to insert the proper punctuation, instead writing “Let’s eat grandma!” This implies that the animals are going to eat their grandmother, rather than simply inviting her to the dinner table as intended.
For adults, this may seem like a silly way to teach the importance of commas, but for children, it’s a fun and an entertaining way to remember that, as the title says, punctuation saves lives. Indeed, the comments on the video are almost all positive, stating how that is a great way to remember proper writing.
With so many technology advances, it’s only a matter of time before computers become the main way to learn. Programs such as Starfall and Scratch give them a head start on basic computer knowledge while continuing to teach important school lessons. Such programs also provide children with the ability to learn anywhere there is a computer. By not limiting the amount a child can learn, they will not only grow academically, but also thrive in the future.
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