Without fail, one of the things that seems to always come up in discussions with other parents is the controversial topic of screen time.
What is the right thing to do? Do you limit the time or not do screens at all? And if you allow your kiddo screen time, what are the "right" things to let them engage in and watch?
As parents, we don't always know the "right" thing to do. I remember my mom and dad commenting that I "didn't come with a manual."
I never fully understood the impact of that statement until I had my kiddo. As a young girl, I couldn't wrap my mind around that because moms and dads are always supposed to have the right answers and know what to do, right?
As a mom to a Nero-Spicy 3-year-old, I am constantly struggling for the right answers. What is best for my kiddo isn't necessarily the best for my friend's kiddos, my sisters' kiddos, or for that matter, anyone's kiddo except mine.
However, one thing we can all agree on as moms and dads is that we constantly try to do the best for our kids. Protecting them and nurturing them; mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, is our top priority.
Another thing we can agree on is the overwhelming pressure we put on ourselves and the staggering weight of "mom/dad shame" we get from other parents.
I used to feel so guilty when I would admit that, yes, my kiddo does get a limited amount of screen time.
I have done my very best in cultivating wholesome and educational content on his tablet and I realized that for my family, the amount of screen time that my kiddo was allowed to have, was outweighed by the content that he is allowed to have access to.
So, what apps does my kiddo have access to you ask? Let me share with you, Dear Reader, my favorite FREE and PAID apps for kiddos under 6.
FREE APP's
PBS Kids:
This app gives your kiddo access to thousands of free videos and shows featuring some of their favorite characters like Clifford the Big Red Dog, Curious George, Sesame Street, Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood, and Arthur along with many other entertaining and educational shows.
Kahn Kids:
I love, love, love this app. This app is one of the top-rated educational apps for kids. It includes the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework and Common Core standards.
Your kiddo will find activities in math, ELA, executive function, socio-emotional learning, and creative expression. Some of the games and content stretch up to first grade, with some math and ELA lessons for second graders as well. Parents can follow the kiddo's progress and see what skills they have mastered and what they are still working on.
PBS Kids Games:
PBS Kids Games includes over 25 educational games featuring your kiddo's favorite PBS characters. My kiddo loves this app and while I do enjoy this app for him, I feel like the learning base is a little more solid on a few of the other apps that he has. Now that is just my opinion! I always recommend this app to other parents because it is wholesome, and the games do have learning components.
The Apps in the following group are made by RV AppStudios. They are part of Lucas & Friends Learning Apps. There are some additional apps available such as multiplication and sight words. I'm already planning on downloading them for my kiddo when he gets to that level of reading/math skills.
ABC Kids-Tracing & Phonics
ABC Kids phonics and alphabet teaching app that is geared towards toddlers to kindergartners, (2-5years old). It teaches letter recognition, letter shapes, letter tracing, phonic sounds and letter matching.
123 Numbers- Count & Tracing
123 Numbers helps your toddler and preschooler learn numbers through tracing, counting and matching.
ABC Spelling- Spell & Phonics
ABC Spelling helps kiddos learn the alphabet, sound out words, phonics, word association, spelling, letter matching and fill in the blank.
Number Kids: Math Games
Number Kids uses Montessori style learning tools to encourage basic math skills such as counting, number association, number comparison, ascending and descending numbers.
Kids Toddler & Preschool Games
Kids Toddler & Preschool includes over 15 separate games that include the concepts of sorting, picture coloring, patterns, creative play, big & small/size sorting, pattern matching and more.
Elmo Loves ABC's Lite (free version)
In true Sesame Street style, Elmo's ABC's includes songs, coloring pages, games, and videos that teach letter identification, letter sounds, letter tracing, art and creativity, and music appreciation.
Elmo Loves 123's Lite (free version)
Again, Elmo 123's includes songs, coloring pages games, and videos that help your kiddo with number identification, tracing, counting groups of objects, addition and subtraction, problem solving, and art/creativity.
Bible for Kids
This app allows kiddos to explore the big stories in the bible with wonderfully interactive and bright animation. The navigation of the app is kid-friendly, although, I would suggest that it's better for 4/5 year olds and up. It includes fun facts designed to help kids remember what they learn.
Superbook
I downloaded this app initially for the Superbook Episodes because my kiddo loves them. However, while the content of this free app is very good and there is a lot to it, I think it is geared toward older (able to read) kids as the platform isn't as user-friendly for littles.
That being said, it includes a full kids' bible with audio, more than 20 games, Superbook Episodes, daily verses for kids as well as answers to many common questions, Gospel messages, and profiles of people, places, and artifacts. You can customize the Kid's Bible, and the kiddos can search for specific verses and interactive content.
PAID APP's (But totally worth it!)
Vooks, Listener Kids, and Minno are some of my overall favorites, and while you do need to pay for them, I believe that they are completely worth it.
Vooks
Vooks is a digital read-out-loud library of animated children's books. That's right! Animated, read-out-loud books for kids! This app is ad-free so you don't have to worry about non-kid-friendly content popping up in the middle of your kiddos' story time.
The books are read out loud, but there is highlighted read-along text and soft, soothing music.
The animation is subtle so it's not overstimulating, and the narration is calming enough that we use this app a lot before bed.
Listener Kids
This app includes faith/Christ-based content that includes music and videos such as re-vamped versions of classic Sunday school songs. There are also Bible verses that are presented with cute, animated animals.
I used to put this on for my kiddo when we were having a tough moment (still do from time to time) and it was like magic. He'd calm down and engage. I recommend it to my friends and their kids love it too. We call it the "toddler whisper app".
Minno
Another faith/Christ-based app that is completely worth the money. The platform is exceptionally user-friendly and includes content that has been safety-checked before it was added to the app.
This app has music, cartoons, videos devotionals, and shows like Laugh & Grow Bible for Kids, Veggie Tales, Church at Home, Young David, Owelgories, Bibleman, and many more.
Each episode encourages learning about qualities like kindness, friendship, forgiveness, and other positive social-emotional qualities.
Hungry Caterpillar Shapes & Colors
My kiddo was obsessed with these games before he even turned three. He loved playing them and laughed his way through all of the adventures and lessons.
The games were developed with Head Start Child Development & Early Learning Framework in mind.
There are six categories with over 50 games. These games encourage logical thinking and math skill and, the games increase in difficulty to keep the kids engaged and excited (which I love as much as my kiddo does).
Your kiddo will learn how to recognize basic and advanced shapes, sort, and match shapes by color and shape, compare light and dark colors/shades, learn and identify patterns and sequences, order shapes by size, and create tangrams (combining shapes to create a picture).
Hungry Caterpillar Play School
Hungry Caterpillar Play School offers activities for young children ages 2-6 that are based on essential early learning, and Montessori principles and encourages hands-on and independent learning.
There are hundreds of books, activities, videos, songs, and even meditations through an "explore and learn at your own pace" philosophy.
Your kiddo will learn skills and explore such topics as ABCs/tracing/spelling, early math skills, science and nature activities, problem-solving, art, and music. Skills in health and wellness such as practicing meditations to calm down, relax, and reduce anxiety (self-regulation) are also available.
I'd like to note that both of the Caterpillar apps that I talked about are highly praised (and recommended) by parents of neurodivergent children.
I hope, Dear Reader, that I have provided you with some ideas for educational and wholesome content for your kiddo's tablets.
Let me know in the comments if your kiddos use any of these apps or if you've decided to try a couple at my suggestion!