PBS Kids
pbskids.org is a site for an array of educational games which your
child can play. It ranges from games that ask the children to create new things
to games that bring your child along on a virtual adventure. Each game
specializes in different subjects and topics. Games like Freeze Dance Rhyming
and Sandbox Search test your child’s abilities in words that rhyme and alphabet
recognition while games such as Vegetable Patterns and Cat’s Math Safari test
your child’s skills in identifying shapes and patterns.
The site provides for learning in
all kinds of topics including values. There are a few e-books you and your
child can read-along to which has great lessons to teach your child like the
story Big Brother Daniel. It even categorizes the games into different subjects
and groups.
Appearance-wise,
the website did a good job in designing their interface. Information is easy to
find since the games are grouped according to their common features and the
site has a few links on top of the page that would help users find what they
are looking for easily. The text is easy to read and the graphics do not appear
cluttered or distracting as the site has a simple blue background. The only
concern I had with the site is that it takes quite a bit of time to load so
children may become frustrated waiting for it to load especially if the
internet connection is bad. To avoid this, parents can pre-load the games so
the child does not have to wait long. It can also serve as a way for parents to
screen the games the child is exposed to.
The
website contains a huge variety of online games children can play with so they
are given a lot of options to choose from and a lot of opportunities to learn.
Each game has a specific concept it targets ranging from physical, intellectual
to social and emotional skills so the user is really exposed to a good range of
learning experiences. In addition to this, the games are very engaging and have
a wide range of skills it can target from simple to the most complex. Each game
has its own level of difficulty which is a good way to gauge the child’s skills
in that area.
What’s
interesting with the website is that it encourages parents, caregivers,
teachers and other adults to be engaged in the children’s learning experiences
within the site. It has a sister site which they teachers can visit to learn
how they can use the site’s resources and activities they can further provide
for the children. Parents can also contact the game producers and site managers
through the help page to ask questions and learn more about the site.
I would recommend all parents and
caregivers, including teachers to go visit the website and make use of its
resources to further enhance the children’s learning since pbskids.org provides
curriculum-based entertainment that gives opportunities for the use of media
and technology to build the children’s knowledge, critical thinking,
imagination and curiosity.
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