Hopefully it's not against the rules, if so, please let me know and I'll remove the post. Anyway:
I made an educational open source game for small kids (2-6 yo) where they can match cute animals (currently sea and dinosaur theme packs).
Features:
- cute pictures
- works on both a phone and a tablet
- multiple theme packs
- fully free, no tracking or anything
- there are multiple flavours, one of which bundles all of the assets and doesn't even have the permission to access the internet <- great if you're extra cautious
- big buttons, no reading necessary, small kids friendly
It can be downloaded both from GitHub and the Play Store.
Some screenshots
Let me know what you think!
Eh, everything is about the quantity, afaik. If you let your kid watch TV/phone every day for a few hours, you've got a problem.
If you limit it and watch your kid, it's fine. At least as far as I can see, anyway.
Some researches tend to agree with me (well, the other way, really, I agree with them), while others don't.
But one thing all researches I've read agree on is that passive screen time (TV, YouTube etc.) is bad, so I think that something that boosts memory and helps with cognitive abilities is much better. And that's why I built this game.
Studies have shown that screen activities permanently impair a child's intellectual abilities, and just looking at the testimonies of doctors and parents, it's clear that this poses a huge problem...
And other studies have shown that moderate screen time doesn't impair them. And that games can improve intellectual abilities has been known for millennia, with studies proving it.
And as is the case for pretty much everything, there's more than one angle. Being the "weird kid" who doesn't know what their schoolmates are talking about when they reference the latest popular show is not all the rage it might seem.
We're talking about children whose brains are not yet fully developed, not teenagers or adults, and screens didn't exist for children decades ago...
The problem is new, not old.
I don't see the connection with the "weird guy", I'm talking about health problems related to speech and intellectual abilities. It's not a personality trait to have a mental delay, but a health issue...
I split the problem into two parts in my previous comments:
So it all depends on what you believe has a bigger impact even if you're in the "all screen time is bad" camp. Anyway, I know I'm not gonna convince you and you're not gonna convince me. It's not like I never read anything and decided that I'll base my opinions on my feelings only.
I'm a firm believer that the problem is with parents not setting healthy boundaries for screen time, not the fact that a screen is showing some pictures.