I am mighty proud of the fact that in these 2 years (almost), I’ve kept my son away from any kind of screen time (barring a few short video calls a week to family). He’s been actively involved in reading (read – flipping pages and pointing at objects or drawings), outdoor activities (our park visits and walks), indoor games (from football to stacking to helping around the house) and spending time with family.

However. I do realize that sooner or later, I will need to bow down to the technology God as it has taken over almost all aspects of our life. Fortunately, I can control what and how much exposure do I give to my child, well until a certain age at least! I recently received Play Shifu – Jungle Safari for my son which proved to be the perfect initiation.

What is Play Shifu?

Play Shifu is an augmented reality game that integrates audio-video digital input with the user’s real-time environment. It is an interactive game that allows kids to navigate and engage all the while adding to their learning bank. These are games designed for kids between 2 to 10-year-old and focuses on early learning in the most engaging manner. It combines the physical and digital world through augmented reality. It helps kids learn about animals, their habitats, sounds they make to communicate and the food they eat.

The kit contains a set of 60 flashcards, a device stand, a pouch to store and carry the flash cards and the activation code for the application.

The game requires a mobile or a tablet – IOS or Andriod based. The app is easily available on Play Store or Apple store. No in-app purchase required, it’s free, and requires a one time download. The activation code is valid for three uses so the app can be installed on three different devices.

How to install: Its easy – peasy!

Simply go to the play store, type Play Shifu and search for it, click on install.

Run the app and it will ask you for the activation code. Enter the activation code. The app will take a few minutes to set up for the first time. Once done, you’re all set to go on a Jungle Safari!

How to Play?

It’s child’s play.

• Place the device on the stand and start the application.
• Place a flash card within the camera focus and to see the animal/bird/sea animal
• Tap on the animal or the bird to see and hear them come alive in their natural habitat.
• With the touch of a finger, they become your virtual pets.
• You can see them in their natural habitat, their movements, etc. Shifu Safari reproduces the habitat, the eating habits, the sounds of each animal on the mobile screen so that the child can have a holistic understanding!

Why would I prefer it over the idiot box?

• It’s a learning-based game.
• Enhances General Knowledge.
• Helps increase vocabulary and develop language skills. Helps grasp spelling for older kids
• Boosts imagination with free play
• Does not need internet connectivity, absolutely safe for the child
• The act of stacking the card in front of the phone and ensuring it is in focus develops hand-eye coordination in children
• Fine tunes motor skills
• Hones skills like recognition and interpretation
• Widens attention span
• Strengthens memory through interactive approach and 4d experience
• Is education-based game that promotes learning game.

To introduce the game to Rey, I started off by first introducing the flashcards to him. He is able to easily identify close to 18-20 objects/animals/birds from flash cards at a stretch, hence I was glad the pack contained 60 Animal kingdom cards for an extended engagement. So we don’t always have to rely on my phone battery for the game.

Though I briefly initiated the app, Rey seemed more interested in the flashcards as of now. The game is designed for 2 – 10-year-olds, but the interest level completely varies from child to child. I will slowly and gradually introduce the app to him,

Its a blessing in disguise for when you want your child to be in tune with the technology changing this world yet retain the innocence as well as get something to learn out of it.

The only opportunity I felt was the load on the mobile, my phone screen heating up after a while. It may not be the case with tablets though.

A good activity-based game for a child, economically priced, a great gifting option. Cant wait for Rey to turn two so I can inculcate the learning based game in his schedule.

Website: https://www.playshifu.com/safari

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/playshifu/

https://www.amazon.in/Shifu-Safari-Augmented-Reality-Learning/dp/B01IMV06U2/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1512131545&sr=8-4&keywords=playshifu

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Everyone has it, yet it works differently for different people. It receives input from the sensory organs in the body and sends coordinated output to the muscles.

Even though we are all born with the five senses, we do not start fully exploiting them all at once. Babies see and feel more from their fingers. Maybe that’s the reason, they want to grab and hold everything that comes their way from mommy’s hair to stuffed toys.

Kids love to feel new textures as it’s fascinating for them, for better or for worse. They love to feel and explore objects with their hands. It’s their way of inferring the world around them. It comes naturally to them owing to their curious nature. Taking advantage of this and letting kids experiment with textures through thoughtful activities and play can help set a solid foundation in many areas like language familiarization and developing motor skills.

In my previous blog post, I wrote extensively on Early learning, STEM concept and the impact of toys on the young and the impressionable minds. Recently we got our hands on one such toy that helps and aids early learning.

The Sandpaper numbers from Skola Toys.

The kit comes in a beautiful doodle box with a small set of crayons inside. It contains 10 placards made out of wood with numbers 0 to 9 textured on it with sandpaper. There’s also a small placard tray to stack them up. This toy looks deceptively simple, yet a great way to introduce numbers to your kid.

• The wooden placard has the number symbol with a rough sandpaper-like texture. The child starts by tracing his fingers on the symbol and calling out the name associated with the image on the card.
• This simple activity uses three senses – visual sense, audio sense and touch-feel sense. The kid starts correlating the three in tandem.
• This move also helps hone their hand-eye coordination which is the ability for the brain to understand and communicate to the eyes and hands to work as one.
• By tracing over the textured numbers with their fingers, children improve their pre-writing skills.

So what are Pre-writing skills? Prewriting skills are the fundamental skills needed before a child starts learning to form letters and developing the writing skills. They could be strokes and lines. Scribbling, drawing, doodling, and creating marks meant to represent letters and numbers are some common forms of pre-writing. In fact, according to the National Early Literacy Panel (NELP, 2008), early writing is one of the best predictors of children’s later reading success. Prewriting readiness activities are an essential foundation for learning to write successfully.

• Playing with the toy, children learn to connect number symbols or shapes to sounds which initiates them into the number system. As children play with this toy repeatedly, they commit the name-numeral correlation to their memory increasing retention and recall.
• Once they start recognizing individual numbers, they then proceed to learn the sequential order
• Following this, children then start associating the numbers to the quantity. They learn that every number represents a corresponding quantity.
• And while they’re learning the essential pre-learning skills, they can practice colouring on the doodle box!
• Skola sandpaper numbers are a fun way to introduce the number concept to children above 2.5 years of age. What better than for them to learn numbers through textures.

One Two – buckle my shoes, Three Four – shut the door.

This and many more such rhymes make up our and our kid’s childhood moments. Listening to such rhymes, Rehaan already knows a few numbers and their sequence and can point to them when prompted. Although he is not yet 2, we are happy to be on Stage 1 already. He likes to spread the cards out and point to the numbers when asked to and wants Mommy to recite the rhymes one more last time.

So here’s to happy counting!

Skola Toys:

Website: www.skola.toys

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/skolatoys/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skolatoys/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SkolaToys

The post Fun with Numbers appeared first on Raising Rehaan.

I clearly remember my school days. 7.30 AM – Maths. 8 AM – English. 8.30 AM – Science. 9 AM – Arts. The topics and books as easily forgotten as the ring of the gong that announced the end of that subject, only to be remembered again the next day when the teacher walked in. As I grew up, I often wondered if and how will this help me live and thrive in the real world. There was just no connection.

Thanks to the research in the field of education, we are now better equipped to utilize these crucial years into developing the child.

WHAT IS STEM?

STEM – One of the most talked about topics in education. It stands for four specific disciplines — science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It is a unique approach to teaching and learning, that focuses on a child’s individual style of learning. It not only keeps the young mind interested and engrossed but also helps develop creativity and problem-solving skills in real-world scenarios.

The STEM methodology integrates concepts that are usually taught in silos, as separate subjects or as individual lessons. STEM puts more emphasis on the connection amongst these four disciplines in a way that they would relate to each other. It is an educational framework that brings reality into the learning experiences.

STEM is not just about Maths learning or technology learning, but it is a combination of any of these 4 areas that combined produces more logical thinkers and creates adults who can in their life ahead be employed in jobs that are related to science and technology. In other words also creating innovators and doers.

STEM learning starts at the age of 7. However, the foundation for the formal learning is laid down much before then.

Early START to STEM

• The important thing to remember is that children are natural learners. The key to starting early is by tapping into their curiosity by allowing them to explore and investigate the real world, to instill a lifelong interest in these fields.  It does not have to be a subject. It can be an activity or a game or a toy.
• Immerse them in everyday activities and explain how they work. Then explain the concept behind it.  Make it interesting, let them have a hands-on experience where ever possible.
• Plan DIY’s and get your child to assist you. Reward them with knowledge and appreciation. Focus more on the process and less on the outcome.
• Play activities that stimulate creativity and reasoning. Begin with learning about how things work by letting them test, explore and investigate with their tiny fingers, watching them change, listening to sounds, and feeling textures.
• Get them toys which promote STEM learning.

Being a mother to an inquisitive toddler, I am always on the hunt for ways to keep his sharp mind engaged. Outdoor play isn’t a year-round option for us owing to the extreme weather experienced by the city we live in. Hence more often than not, I rely on indoor activities, games, and toys.

And when it comes to selecting activity toys, I prefer to pick toys that not only keep my son engrossed but also add value and prepare him for what lies ahead. For example, the popular toy brand Skola create toys that encourage STEM learning. Skola’s ultimate purpose is to improve fine motor skills which certainly helps engineering, but more importantly using fingers helps children think clearly and enhances concentration and cognitive ability which is directly a STEM requirement.

For example –

Cascade cars help a child to understand cause and effect. This is where a child is exposed to science. It helps a child to register, process and comprehend.

Colour wheels encourage children to use fingers to rotate wheels and then find the matching colours which involves examination, observation analysis, and discovery.

This process is true for all Skola Toys and hence creates thinkers.

Learning is a never-ending process. It’s never too soon or too late to begin. But it’s always better to start early to build a strong foundation. Give your children the right resources and tools to get them started.

What do you think about early learning and building a solid foundation?

The post Early START to STEM appeared first on Raising Rehaan.

It’s the festive season with Diwali (one of India’s biggest and most celebrated festivals) just around the corner. Diwali or Deepavali – meaning a row of lamps, known as the Festival of Lights is celebrated with great aplomb and fanfare in India.

• Promote development of fine motor skills making them more independent and confident
• Explore alphabet and words in a fun manner setting a solid foundation to read, write and communicate during their formal education
• Create an understanding and recognition of shapes, sizes, colors etc through sensory experience
• Introduce the concept of Numbers and counting and arithmetic calculations with the aid of tangible objects
• Help in building focus, analyzing situations, solve problems putting their own little minds to work.

• Perfectly safe for the little ones. Let’s face it, babies put anything and everything they can grab in their mouth. With toys made from unreliable plastic, that’s a big health hazard.
• Wood is a far robust material than plastic, hence lasts longer. So no matter how many times it’s thrown or smashed, it will survive the blow and tantrums. It can be passed on to newer members of the family.
• Wooden toys like puzzles, building blocks and games encourage imaginative play and help children with developing their fine-motor skills.
• Wood can be recycled, so in a way, you are securing your child’s future by not contributing to the growing piles of non-biodegradable plastic on our planet.

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