Little Red Hen

Centre for Early Childhood Care and Education
8 Lower Shantalla Road Galway
Email: katielrh1@gmail.com

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Many researchers do not recommend that children under three years old use computers.  Computers simply do not match their learning style.  Children younger than three learn through their bodies: their eyes, ears, mouths, hands and legs.  Although they may return over and over again to an activity, they are full of movement, changing focus frequently.  Computers are not a good choice for the developmental skills these children are learning to master: crawling, walking, talking and making friends.

Children of three plus years of age are developmentally ready to explore computers, and most early childhood educators see the computer center as a valuable activity center of learning. In our service, children over the age of three have access to computers and developmentally appropriate software.   Their learning is supervised but the children themselves control the learning experience; Children learn together, and we encourage peer tutoring.   Children need plenty of time to experiment and explore and we respect this need by affording the child as much time as they need.  Young children are comfortable clicking various options to see what is going to happen next.  Teachers may want to intervene when children appear frustrated or when nothing seems to be happening.