eReaders for kids, what age is appropriate?
Special guest post from Karenna Glover, Senior Marketing Project Manager at The Roanoke times.
Are there any parents out there who have thoughts on eReaders for elementary school children?
My daughter has just finished 4th grade and is an avid reader. This year she’s been into Harry Potter, the Roald Dahl collection and classics such as Little Women and Secret Garden.
I’m wondering if this is the year to buy her a Kindle, Nook or other type of eReader.
Our school introduced a summer reading program that is technology based. You can access the program either through an eReader or any computer. This got me wondering if she’s at the right age for an eReader. Many of her peers have iPod touches or phones, but we haven’t gone that route, so this would be her first device. In school they use iPod touches and iPads regularly. I would rather invest in an eReader than a gaming and music device, and I think she’s too young for a full tablet.
I also learned that you can rent eBooks from Roanoke County library, so that will allow her to get books without tapping her piggy bank.
Do you have an opinion about the right age for one of these readers?
And since there are lots of different kinds of devices, what’s the best – Kindle, Nook or something else? Which features are critical for young readers? Please share your experiences.
June 20, 2012 - 8:00 AM
Beware that, unlike the iPad, this device and the Barnes & Noble library search offer no parental controls or filters of content. Try for yourself by going to the B&N site, creating a free account, and searching the library for the word “free”. The amount of sexually explicit and free to download content is surprising. The only safeguard they have is to require a password for all downloads but that doesn’t help the abstracts viewed in the search. I hope they catch up with the rest of the market with this feature because it’s very disappointing.
For just reading, I would recommend a simpler device (like a Kindle Wi-fi) – you don’t have to worry about “apps” and things so much, plus it is much lighter than anything with a touch screen. (And very reasonable right now).
We just got one for my mother-in-law, and the only thing that I would use caution with is young children (6 or 7) who tend to be rough with toys.
I’m anticipating getting both of my children one for an upcoming trip (with a LONG airplane ride). Here’s my plan for watching content… Keep Wi-fi turned off except to load books. It saves the battery and hopefully prevents unwanted content. I’m also planning to use my own email/Amazon account to set up their devices so I get email notification of purchases.
Of course, my other rule will be that me or my husband knows when they are looking for books and is handy for any questions.
But I understand “Parent”s concern. There are no filters in place for either B&N or Amazon that I know of.
It would be worthwhile for ereader companies to taylor an ereader for the youth market…something really kid friendly.