THE CUTTING EDGE: CONSUMER’S COMPUTER GUIDE : Lessons in Educational Software : Children: Experts recommend programs that are fun, ‘help kids discover the power of their mind.’
With a gentle twist of the wrist and a click of the mouse, Lauren Cartier, 10, deftly navigates her way into the computer, playing detective in one game and then showing a creation of her own: bank accounts for several dogs and cats, each with their own fictional names and addresses.
“I like being on the computer because of the games you can play,” says Lauren, a fifth-grader who sandwiches 30 minutes a day of computer time between piano lessons and homework.
Twin sister Kendall prefers reading. But she has recently begun to use the computer to write stories.
“I like typing [on the computer],” Kendall says. “You can go back and read it. If it sounds weird, it’s easier to erase it.”
Lauren and Kendall are a part of a new generation of children who use computers as just another way to learn and play. Parents are budgeting thousands of dollars for computers, hoping to give their children an edge in life.
“The computer opens up so much for you,” says Mary Hackworth, a St. Louis, Mo., graduate student whose 4-year-old daughter, Paige, spends more than an hour on the computer every day. “It’s much better than letting her watch television.”
Nobody really knows whether spending a lot of money on computers for kids is worthwhile. Tyler Cartier, the twins’ father, says the Power Mac he uses to write marketing materials for high-tech companies paid for itself in a week. But he often wonders whether he has gotten his money’s worth out of the $2,500 Macintosh computer he bought for his daughters two years ago.
Having made the investment, however, Tyler is eager to find educational software that will encourage his children to use the machine more for creative projects and to reinforce skills they learn at school
Not buying software for the computer, he says, is “like buying a car and not buying gas for it.”
Indeed, if you have a computer and you want your kids to use it, the key is buying the right software.
Software is expensive. A typical CD-ROM costs about $40. Kidsoft offers a new series of titles that sell for just $12.99. Some of them, like “Gus Goes to Cyberpolis,” are pretty good.
But often you are better off paying extra for the best titles available: They offer better sound and graphics, more educational value and more lasting fun.
Usually the best titles come from top children’s title publishers, such as Edmark and Broderbund. But there are also less-know publishers, such as Sunburst, that do excellent work.
Lauren and Kendall, for example, both enjoy the silly games offered up by Headbone Interactive of Seattle--cooking outrageous meals in a simulated restaurant, or dressing up in wild costumes--but their parents are skeptical whether they have much educational value.
To make your money go far, experts recommend that parents buy open-ended software titles that act as “tools” requiring creative input from the child.
“If it’s a game, they will play it for a while and then won’t touch it again,” says computer specialist Marianne Britsanos, the computer specialist at the Lauren and Kendall’s school in Seattle.
Even top rated CD-ROMs can be short-lived if they are static. Living Books, for example, has a clever and amusing book series that some young children love for a while but may soon find repetitive.
Art titles, by contrast, can allow children to be creative by drawing pictures, creating certificates or making Christmas cards. They can use these program for years. Similarly, word-processing programs for kids start as ways to create greeting cards and later become tools to use for writing book reports and other school assignments.
Programs, such as Edmark’s Thinking Things, offer activities that challenge users to create songs, manipulate 3-D images or even trade commodities on world markets.
The goal of educational software should be “to help kids discover the power of their mind--to make them think of themselves as having the power to learn,” says Donna Stanger, vice president in charge of development at Edmark who was an elementary school teacher for 20 years.
The combination of interactivity, animation, text and sound gives multimedia titles the potential to help children learn as they would in a one-on-one situation with teachers.
Children who learn more quickly by sound should look for software that gives frequent verbal and musical cues, while children who are more visually oriented should look for software heavy on use of patterns and animation, Stanger says.
Reference programs are also long-lasting and play a part in teaching kids the rudiments of research. But Frederick Knirk, a professor of education at USC, warns that parents have to help children develop the mind-set of looking in computer reference works for information.
“Kids need to develop the sense of the computer as a basic utility,” Knirk says.
Computer games can be a way to hook a child. Even then, though, parents should choose games, such as the Putt Putt series by Humungous, that require kids to use their brains to solve problems.
Teresa Poprac, director of schools for Futurekids, a Los Angeles-based computer school with 800 franchises worldwide, recommends software that allows a smooth transition to adult software.
Although Microsoft’s Creative Writer is well-made, for example, Poprac prefers programs like StoryBookWeaver Deluxe that uses the same menu bar as Microsoft’s adult programs.
Poprac says children can also begin the task of understanding the fundamentals of computing through children’s programs. Tabletop Junior, for example, introduces children to the concept of sorting and categorizing things into databases.
Cruncher is a fully operational spreadsheet that children can use, for example, to show their parents how they plan to support a pet on their allowance.
Many parents say programs like Math Blaster have helped their kids learn math. Michael Griffin, a Seattle police officer-turned computer instructor, says his son, who has attention deficit disorder, learned his multiplication tables using games the required him to answer math problems.
Poprac, however, recommends that parents choose programs that not only ask kids to answer straight math problems, but require them to use math skills to deal with real world situations, such as shopping. She recommends Millie’s Math House by Edmark.
“Just being able to spit back math doesn’t mean you know how to use it,” Poprac says.
There are a growing number of sources for reviews of children’s titles. HomePC and FamilyPC both have labs where children test software. If you are on the Internet, go to https://www.WorldVillage.Com. Click on the schoolhouse and you’ll find well-written reviews of kids programs.
Newsweek has come out with its first edition of the Parent’s Guide to Children’s Software. The book contains reviews and comes with a CD-ROM that provides a multimedia perspective of what to expect from the software.
A word of warning: Just because these titles are for kids, don’t assume that setting them up is easy. Some programs don’t work well on Microsoft’s Windows 95, for example, and you may have to call support. Reviewers often won’t warn you about setup problems.
And think about buying a computer with a volume dial that you can turn. Most computers require troublesome software maneuvers just to adjust the volume.
When buying software, it’s a good rule of thumb to check the return policy of the manufacturer or the store. Microsoft, for example, will give your money back if you return the product within 30 days of purchase. If there’s no manufacturers guarantee, some retailers, including CompUSA, won’t give you your money back but will give you credit to buy something else.
Computer Games: Video and CD-ROM gift guide, Sunday Calendar.
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Educational Software
Here are some of the top-ranked educational software programs, as screened and tested by Home PC magazine, Newsweek’s Parent’s Guide to Children’s Software and The Los Angeles Times.
****
Age rating:
Colors designate age groups:
2-6 years (green)
6-8 (red)
8 and up (blue)
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Early Learning
A to Zap (Sunburst, [800] 321-7511) 2-6 years
Fisher Price ABC’s (Davidson & Associates, [800] 545-7677) 2-6 years
Dr. Seuss’ ABC (Living Books, [800] 397-4240) 2-6 years
The Playroom (Broderbund, [800] 521-6263) 2-6 years
****
Art
KidPix Studio (Broderbund) 2-6 years, 6-8, 8 and up
Crayola Art Studio (Micrografx, [800] 676-3110) 6-8, 8 and up
Art Explorer Deluxe (Adobe Systems, [800] 833-6687) 8 and up
****
Games and Problem Solving
Thinking Things series (Edmark, [800] 691-2985) 2-6 years, 6-8
Putt Putt series (Humongous Entertainment, [800] 499-8386) 2-6 years, 6-8
Dazzeloids (Voyager, [800] 446-2001) 2-6 years, 6-8
Pantsylvania (Headbone Interactive, [800] 267-4709) 2-6 years, 6-8
Triazzle (Berkeley Systems, [800] 344-5541) 8 and up
****
Exploration and Geography
Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? series (Broderbund) 6-8, 8 and up
Oregon Trail series (MECC, [800] 685-6322) 8 and up
Magic School Bus series (Microsoft, [800] 426-9400) 6-8, 8 and up
Gus Goes to Cybertown (Creative Labs, [800] 530-5080) 2-6 years, 6-8
SimTown (Maxis, [800] 336-2947) 8 and up
****
Math
Math Blaster Series (Davidson and Associates) 6-8, 8 and up
Jumpstart series (Knowledge Adventure, [800] 542-4240) 2-6 years
****
Writing
Creative Writer (Microsoft) 6-8, 8 and up
Amazing Writing Machine (Broderbund) 6-8, 8 and up
Imagination Express series (Edmark) 6-8, 8 and up
****
Reference
Encarta encyclopedia (Microsoft) 6-8, 8 and up
Explorapedia series, Dinosaurs (Microsoft) 6-8, 8 and up
My First Encyclopedia (Knowledge Adventure) 2-6 years
Me and My World (Future Vision, [800] 472-8777) 2-6 years
