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Preteens

Tablets, what are they good for?

18 replies

Dotty342kids · 16/01/2014 15:39

My DS is 11 in March and we're thinking of getting him a tablet. We have a family laptop which he can use for schoolwork and he has an MP3 player for his music and a very low spec phone for calling / texting only.
We have a family Wii but nothing like an xbox / playstation. Most of his friends have higher spec phones and Xboxes but we try very hard not to get caught up in what "other" people have Smile

We know he'd dearly love something techy but don't feel he needs his own laptop yet.
So, hence the tablet!

Do your kids have tablets or do they use yours and if so, what for? He has mild dyslexia / dyspraxia and think there are some good apps for that but what else would you recommend downloading for it or using it for?

Thanks all!

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TeenAndTween · 18/01/2014 15:41

Dotty - evidently from lack of responses, tablets are good for nothing! (which is why we don't have any in our house). Smile

Seriously, I would leave buying 'something techy' until he actually has something he really wants. Can't see the point in buying for the sake of it.

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Dotty342kids · 18/01/2014 16:34

haha, think you might have a point *teenandtween". He'd really like his own laptop but think that's a step too far at 11.....

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Starballbunny · 18/01/2014 16:46

Why can't he have a lap top, DD1 had one at 11, DD2's had one since she was 6.

Far better for a dyslexic/dyslexic DC to learn to type on a proper keyboard using a real word processor. Than fight with the stupid spell check in this kindle.

Tablets are great toys, but they are toys, they aren't necessary for anything.

Also a tablet, may or may not work with his senior schools system.

DD2's (totally unnecessary nexus does, my iPhone now does, but the screens too small, Silk on this Kindle fire doesn't)

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MomOfTwoGirls2 · 19/01/2014 15:50

Our tablet (iPad mini) gets used for making videos and taking pictures. It also gets used as violin tuner, and we have apps for sigh-reading, etc. The educational apps don't get much use - spelling, maths, etc.. They also use it for games, Temple Run, and Subway Surf, among others.

DD1(11) prefers her ipod touch. She can use most of the apps as on the iPad, but it is more portable. A lot of children in her class got them around Christmas, and they send each other lots of messages/snapchats. She also uses it for internet and playing music.

DD1 does not have a phone. iPod and iPad must be left downstairs each night. DD1 will probably get a laptop next Christmas, she will go to secondary school the following September. However, she has exclusive use of a very old laptapof mine. Laptop is used mostly for internet, especially YouTube.

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Starballbunny · 20/01/2014 01:25

DD1 could do with a sight reading ap.

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Dotty342kids · 20/01/2014 08:19

that's all really interesting. I thought I must be missing some really crucial aspect of tablets that other folk knew about, but clearly not Smile. Sounds as though it'd end up being something else for him to endlessly play games on, which isn't a terrible thing, but isn't really want we want to spend a couple of hundred quid on either!
Sounds like we may as well, if we want it to be useful for him, go down the laptop route....

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MomOfTwoGirls2 · 20/01/2014 13:22

Starballbunny We have Strings Reader, by Wessar. It is not cheap - I think I paid 30 euro for Grade 1, 2 & 3 Violin (24 exercises per grade). But it is only way I can get my DDs to include sight reading in their practice. There is a free app which allows you try it out.

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Starballbunny · 20/01/2014 13:26

Thank you, DD1 sings to grade 5, but being dyslexic, finds reading music properly a struggle.

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GlobalNomad · 21/01/2014 07:58

My DD1 (age 10) has to have an iPad at her international school (from year 6) and its AMAZING what she can do on it. Definitely more than just games - presentations, videos, spreadsheets, research etc etc. There are lots and lots of educational apps, luckily we had guidance from the school on which apps to download. I was sceptical at first but now see why the school see it as such a great learning enhancement tool, and that in the future tablet skills will be really important.

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ZeroSomeGameThingy · 21/01/2014 08:08

Global Could you elaborate on the educational apps? And anything else that might be useful for a tween. My DN seems to use his almost exclusively for games.

I'm just about to seek out the sight-reading app.

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ZeroSomeGameThingy · 21/01/2014 08:15

Hmm What's a tween? I meant pre-teen.....

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GlobalNomad · 21/01/2014 09:06

Here is a list of apps that could be useful. I'm sure there are loads more out there. Some of these are free, some paid for. Hope it helps ..
Keynote by Apple
Pages by Apple
Numbers by Apple
Garageband by Apple
iMovie by Apple
BookCreator
Explain Everything
Popplet
Geometry Pad
Strip Designer by POW!
Aurasma
Skitch
Showme
Educreations
Dictionary.com
Google apps
Adobe Reader
PowerOne Scientific Calculator
Desmos Graphing calculator
MyScript Calculator
Handwriting recognition calculator
iBooks
Learn Maths with Beluga
QR Reader for iPad
Minds of Modern Mathematics
Line Brush
Recording Lite
BrainPop
Science360
Khan Academy
Evernote
Paper by Fiftythree
Penultimate

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ZeroSomeGameThingy · 21/01/2014 09:17

GlobalNomad you are a GlobalAngel.

I only knew about four of those.

Thank you so much.Flowers

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springlamb · 21/01/2014 09:27

Presuming you are in the UK and he is year 6, are you sure his secondary school isn't one of those that uses the eTeach thing so each pupil has an iPad (not free, parents pay monthly for 2 years). In which case hold fire.
DD now Yr 7 had all the gizmos and all have fallen by the wayside now since the iPad arrived. It is used a lot for school, about 90% of her homework is downloaded onto it and the school uses it to communicate with their very large student body. For DD it's also replaced her tablet and Kindle.

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GlobalNomad · 21/01/2014 11:27

You're welcome Zero :)

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Dotty342kids · 21/01/2014 14:31

Nope, our secondary school doesn't use eTeach but thanks for checking anyway Smile
Great list of apps there Global, really helpful!

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craggyhollow · 22/01/2014 10:02

None of mine have them

I don't want them to spend any more time on screens than they already do

If they had tablets they'd watch TV or play minecraft the whole time

My 11 year old has a kindle paperwhite which has encouraged her to read lots (you can't play games on it)

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Poppylovescheese · 25/01/2014 21:34

I think a laptop is fine at 11 actually.

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