Families today find themselves adapting to a new norm brought about by the coronavirus pandemic. Homebound, parents are working from home and kids are learning online. ‘Stay home, stay safe’ is now the theme of 2020, and pandemic forecasters predict the current situation to last for some time.
Set in the backdrop of the ongoing restrictions in place, shared facilities such as playgrounds and entertainment areas are cordoned off or closed to the public, leaving parents to struggle with keeping their children occupied and entertained within the confines of their homes.
A drastic increase in screen time for children is, therefore, an inevitable consequence.
Despite sounding like the enemy, an increase in screen time has its advantages as kids aged two and above can benefit from this, when exposed to age-appropriate content that aids in their development. Given the sheer amount of online interactions our children will have, perhaps it’s time to embrace it and understand how to best use it to your kid’s advantage.
But how do we go about harnessing the power of screen time in a fun, safe and educational way?
Say Hello to Samsung Kids, your child’s very own digital playground.
Samsung Kids
Samsung Kids is a feature that is built into every Samsung tablet or smartphone. It is equipped with kid-friendly news and current affairs, games, and activities, that encourage children to learn, develop and flourish in a safe and monitored environment curated especially for little minds.
Availability and Ease of Access
Turning your Samsung device into a safe zone for your children to explore and connect with the digital world is easy. Simply swipe down and activate Samsung Kids via the Quick Panel drop-down^.
Once a PIN or fingerprint lock is set, your children will not be able to exit Samsung Kids and access other apps on the device, thereby safeguarding them from inappropriate content.
Tools To Keep Your Mind At Ease
While Samsung Kids allows your child to have fun and learn at the same time, it also enables parents to ensure their digital consumption is not just safe, but also appropriate.
The parental control feature on Samsung Kids allows you to help your children cultivate good digital habits by setting limits on playtime and overall usage. Essentially, you are able to take charge of the activities that are allowed or prohibited in your child’s device by enabling and disabling certain apps and contacts.
You will also have full access to existing media files and usage reports to review your child’s screen time and all actions executed or performed on the device.
A Treasure Trove for Children
Beyond providing enhanced web-safety for your children, Samsung Kids opens up a world of learning. Samsung Kids characters - Crocro, Cooki, Lisa and Bobby - will take your children on a journey of learning and fun, introducing them to challenging, age-appropriate and content-themed games that will help them develop new skills and satisfy curious little minds..
Among the many apps available on Samsung Kids, one that is not to be missed is Crocro’s Adventure. The game helps to develop your child’s analytical skills through a fun block coding experience that will enable your child to comprehend and grasp basic elements of programming and algorithms.
Let your child’s imagination run free through creative drawings that can be made with My Art Studio. This app features several drawing tools that will allow your child to draw and paint, and even turn their art into augmented reality (AR) stickers.
These AR stickers can be utilized in the My Camera app, specially curated for the young photography enthusiast. Your children can snap photos to their heart’s content without flooding your media as My Gallery within Samsung Kids is kept separated from your phone’s media gallery.
Other than games, apps like LEGO® TV also provides official LEGO® videos and selected downloadable movies*. Now, you and your kids can stream and download LEGO® content easily. Additional apps** can also be downloaded among over 3000 child-friendly apps available on the Galaxy App Store for Kids accessed via the parental control menu.
Samsung Kids makes learning easy, by truly immersing your children in a digital playground that enriches through play.
A Safe Digital Environment for Children
As we are in this pandemic situation for the long-haul juggling remote work responsibilities, online schooling and chores around the house, it is best that we settle in with these new norms and focus on habits that are sustainable and practical.
Instead of feeling guilty for allowing increased screen time, let us try to embrace this with the right tools available to us, that will allow our children to learn and have fun while keeping them safe online. Learn more on how Samsung Kids can help you achieve this at samsung.com/sg/apps/samsung-kids/.
^ Requires Android 9.0 or higher in order to access Samsung Kids from Quick panel. For devices with lower version of Android 9.0, you may access similar features available under “Kids Mode” application which can be downloaded or updated through Galaxy Store.
* Charges may apply.
**Availability of content may vary depending on country, device, and ongoing maintenance.
Images are simulated for illustrative purposes only.
