Early Connections: Technology in Early Childhood Education
bar
Child Care Preschool Kindergarten Primary
Grades		 Before/After
School
space
Learning &
Development
Learning &
Technology
Technology
&Curriculum
Classroom
Arrangement
Software
Selection
Health &
Safety
Hardware
Resources

Selecting Software for Young Children

For young children to use computers successfully, it is critical to select software that is developmentally appropriate, that is, consistent with how children develop and learn. Researchers agree that software for young children should:

  • Encourage exploration, imagination, and problem solving
  • Reflect and build on what children already know
  • Involve many senses and include sound, music, and voice
  • Be open-ended, with the child in control of the pace and the path

These characteristics fit the way that young children learn, and their need to interact with their environment.

Adult participation and guidance are important.

  • Involve children in selecting software that matches their interests
  • Monitor the amount of time they spend at the computer
  • Talk with them about their activities
  • Try not to overwhelm young children with too many choices

Select Software with a Purpose in Mind

Software should support the learning and curriculum; it does not provide the learning. Even young children can use children's drawing and writing programs or visual reference materials to be active and creative. Word processing, drawing programs, and integrated software packages (which typically combine word processing, drawing, spreadsheet, and database) are examples of software that rely on the child to do the creating.

Select software that:

  • Supports your goals and your philosophy of teaching
  • Enhances the curriculum
  • Helps children solve problems independently

Think about the experience you want children to have or the learning you want to build on, and select software to encourage those types of learning experiences. Creativity and productivity software and reference materials are well-suited to educational use.

Computer games and "edutainment" programs—software that claims to educate while entertaining—do not add to the educational experience of a child and are not necessary in this setting.

Preview software if possible to see whether it is appropriate and supports instruction in your classroom. Free or inexpensive software may not be good for educational use.

School, university, or community libraries may have software available to try. Companies that sell software to educational users often offer a trial period. Some programs are available on free "demo" disks, which allow the user to try out the software before purchase.

Children can be good judges of what entertains them and which programs are easy to use, but are not always the best judges of educational value. The teacher has responsibility for selecting software that matches the curriculum and the learning goals. Sources of recommendations for good software choices include:

  • Teachers and knowledgeable colleagues
  • Professional journals or magazines
  • Conference sessions on using computers in the curriculum
  • Organizations that evaluate software for appropriateness; some of these organizations are listed below

Software Evaluation and Review Resources

These organizations provide helpful criteria and/or reviews for evaluating and choosing software for children.

Children and Computers
This site offers information on developmentally appropriate software and Web sites for young children, including the Haugland Developmental Scale for evaluating software, the Haugland/Gerzog Developmental Scale for Web sites, and the Developmental Awards.
http://www.childrenandcomputers.com

ConnSENSE
ConnSENSE (Connecticut Special Education Network for Software Evaluation). The Assistive Technology Training Center
at the University of Connecticut reviews software, with a
focus on software appropriate for children with special needs.
http://www.connsensebulletin.com/software.html

Northwest Educational Technology Consortium
NETC provides information about software selection and links to online software review sites.
http://www.netc.org/software/index.html

Return to Top
Back to Early Connections Home [ Child Care | Preschool | Kindergarten | Primary Grades | Before/After School ]
bar