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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Wwyd. Would you buy a kindle fire for a 2 year old?

240 replies

UmbongoUnchained · 20/07/2016 08:16

Just out of interest.

OP posts:
MissingDietCoke · 06/05/2018 21:33

Yep. Both my kids have had a kindle fire each from age 2. They also love books, colouring, outdoor activities and imaginative play. Tablets are part of the modern world. Screen time is limited, and bedtime is stories not tablets except on special occasions.
I'm totally not adverse to letting them have them when I have chores to do and need some time. Tablets are absolutely not allowed at meal times and don't generally leave the house unless we're going on a long journey.
I'm a great Mum, and not ashamed of any of this.

elliejjtiny · 06/05/2018 22:25

Not at 2. My older dc have had them since they were 8. My younger ones (aged 7, 4 and 3) borrow mine occasionally but mostly in hospital waiting rooms and other boring places. My dc prefer to be running around than watching tv, playing on tablets etc anyway.

Mantaforce · 07/05/2018 00:39

the fact you lot use terms like dd and dc is more worrying than a 2 year old using a tablet!

Kokeshi123 · 07/05/2018 01:49

Look, 2 is really really young to decide that your child "hates books"she's not a schoolgirl, she's barely more than a baby. Loads of my friends' kids weren't interested in books at that age! They grew into them as they got older. Just keep trying her with them. See if your local library has book-sharing sessions-it may inspire her to sit with other children while they listen to a story. Doesn't her daycare read books to the kids?

I would not want my child getting into the tablet habit this young, and I would worry that a small child will break such an expensive piece of equipment.

KC225 · 07/05/2018 01:54

This thread is the possiby one of the most depressing things I have read on here.

Kokeshi123 · 07/05/2018 01:58

It's 2016 and technology is a normal part of everyday life and will become more more so over the near future. I want my daughter to learn everything about it from an early age.

The whole point of modern devices is that they are so ultra-intuitive that their usage methods can be picked up in almost no time at all. Kids don't need years of practice, any more than they require years of practice to learn how to eat bags of crisps or whatever.

"Let's get the kids practicing with the technology so that they can learn how to do it" made sense in Ye Olde Days of big-box computers where you typed long strings of letters and numbers into a plain black screen to make the computer do things. It actually was very complicated (requiring practice) and because it was so bare-bones, the process of practicing really forced you to learn how computers worked.

Playing with iPads, Kindles etc. will teach a child literally nothing about how a computer works. Nothing. And the interfaces they use will all be obsolete by the time your child enters the workplace.

If you want your child to actually learn about computers, put her into coding lessons when she is older or get her a deliberately retro device like a RaspberryPi. Both those ideas are actually genuinely useful. Kindle Fires and similar digital popcorn do not help children learn how computers work.

Most of the Silicon Valley tycoons heavily limit their own children's use of technology and even tend to send their children to private schools that boast how little technology they use in their classrooms. There are reasons for this.

AhoyDelBoy · 07/05/2018 02:59

@KC225
Why is that? Sorry have only read first and last page Blush Are most people saying they would buy the device? Personally it's a NO from me! @Kokeshi123 is talking sense

Mantaforce · 07/05/2018 08:59

Did someone actually just suggest putting a two year old to compute coding lessons instead of letting them have a shot of a tablet to watch videos or play with apps?

There’s nout wrong with a 2 year old using a tablet, it’s up to you to not be a shitty parent and let them use it 24/7. A few minutes every so often is fine.

Mumsnet users seem to have a tendency to take everything to an extreme. You all also seem to be really boring.. and technophobes

Kokeshi123 · 07/05/2018 09:11

I said, if the OP wants her to learn computing skills (which she doesn't have to do, it is a personal preference) she could "put her into coding lessons when she is older " Of course not when she is two years old!!

Please read people's posts carefully before responding.

Kokeshi123 · 07/05/2018 09:17

I don't think it's so bad for a child to have a tablet, but I think it's better if people are honest with themselves about why they are doing this.

If people can just be honest about the fact that yes, it helps my stress levels to have my child quietly occupied for a few minutes here and there, it's not such a problem, because one is much more likely to limit the amount of time spent on the device in that case.

I think the problems start when people start deluding themselves that playing with a device means their child is "learning about computers." It starts to become really tempting to let the kid spend very long periods of time on the tablet.

My post was directed at the myth that children will learn computing/technological skills from whizzy devices. GeorgetteHeyer has already posted about this--she knows what she is talking about.

DaddyBeer · 07/05/2018 09:22

Got our son a kindle fire for his 1st birthday.

Screen time is limited.

There I said it.

ICantCopeAnymore · 07/05/2018 09:42

I've done masses of research into the effects of gaming and tablets on educational attainment and it's very positive indeed.

Go for it, OP. You sound like a decent parent who realises that it's all about balance. I'd be encouraging books too though. If she hates books that needs addressing.

My DS played on my tablet from 18 months. He was reading fluently at 3 and the literacy apps definitely helped with letter recognition and phonics.

Notso · 07/05/2018 09:46

I thought for a second Artandco was back. Then realised it was a zombie thread Hmm
I'm always baffled as to how and why these get resurrected.

Mantaforce · 07/05/2018 10:07

Not entirely sure what OP’s kid getting a job working in computer intelligence at the CIA in later life has to do with them using a tablet right now

Mantaforce · 07/05/2018 10:08

People googling things and mumsnet being the top result

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