New and emerging technologies have always been associated with the younger generations. Older people tend to be set in their ways, leaving tech-savvy millennials in the forefront of discovering and embracing new devices as they arrive on the scene. Younger people learn more quickly and that goes for technology in the same way it goes for everything else.

A major question posed by the Research and Development Unit of Yudala, Nigeria’s fastest growing online and offline e-commerce outfit is: what age is suitable for kids to be exposed to technology?

This is a question all parents have to answer during their children’s formative years: the decision on when a child can be allowed access to technological gadgets such as laptops, tablets and smartphones.

Instructively, recent studies show that active or interactive technology and screen time can actually help develop and improve your kid’s learning, when used appropriately. After a review of the Kids Legacy Tab, a new product designed by Nigeria’s foremost technology company, Zinox Technologies Ltd., the Research and Development Unit of Yudala arrived at a number of ways children can benefit from early exposure to modern technology:

1. Develop Maths Skills: Research show that younger children are more interested in the short-term goals of games, which are essential in problem solving. Logic games, obstacle courses and other applications on tech devices go a long way to help build your child’s basic mathematic skills by imbuing them with the capacity for quantitative reasoning. For parents, this is very important as the phobia or apathy often expressed by most people for Mathematics is often a result of wrong or late to exposure to its usefulness in the analysis and interpretation of real-world quantitative information.

2. Improve Language Skills: The benefits of technology for kids especially at an early age are numerous. One of such areas is in the aspect of developing their language skills. Designed as a critical foundational tool targeted at children from the ages of 3 – 13, the Kids Legacy Tab ranks as one of the most fitting gadgets to introduce kids to technology and new ways of learning such as word pronunciation. There are many such applications and games to help boost their vocabulary and teach them to look for word meanings when they come across an unfamiliar word.

3. More Visually Attentive Kids: Exposure to games and other relevant applications on tech devices can help raise a generation of more visually attentive kids. This is because a significant amount of attention to detail is required on the part of kids when exposed to visually-stimulating contents on tablets and other entry-level gadgets. A device such as the Kids Legacy Tab which comes pre-loaded with over 50 educational and fun games can help build the requisite attention to detail and capacity for visual attention in children.

4. Emotional Intelligence: Emotional intelligence is a buzzword that is becoming increasingly relevant in the contemporary work-place. Most organisations today prioritise the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one's emotions and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically. This quality can be developed in your child right from an early age through exposure to technology. There are numerous emotional intelligence apps pre-loaded on tablets which teach kids what emotions are, how they work, and how to use them and manage them for social interaction and learning. Among other things, these applications teach a child how to recognise other people’s emotions, to discriminate among the different feelings, and to label them appropriately. Armed with this insight, your child can learn from an early age how to refrain from emotional outbursts and undisciplined loss of self-control, thus leading to a well-rounded personality.

5. Build discipline and self-motivation: Exposing your child to technology from an early age is a sure way of building discipline and self-motivation, two qualities that are ultimately crucial to your child’s future development. A lot of games and activities on tech devices such as the Kids Legacy Tab often require the user to complete a task in order to progress to another level. To complete the entire course requires a huge dose of mental discipline and personal resolve. As a result, exposure to these learning apps inadvertently challenges a child and pushes him/her to strive to go the extra lengths in order to enjoy the thrill and satisfaction that comes from achieving. Your child, therefore, develops a disciplined mindset that sees challenges as surmountable as long as he/she keeps trying to overcome them. This is effortlessly transferred to real-life situations.

6. Develop New Talents: Technology can help unearth hitherto-hidden skills and talents in your child. From being exposed to playing certain musical instruments or skills such as painting on the screen of a tablet, for instance, your child can develop a keen interest which may see him/her becoming proficient at these activities. With the aid of technology which bridges the gap, you may not even have to pay the hefty fees of enrolling your child in a physical music or painting class to learn. There are loads of apps that your child can take advantage of to learn and become the next Mozart or Leonardo da Vinci. Early exposure to technology has the potential to unlock amazing new interests in your child which, coupled with the natural curiosity in kids, can transform your child into a whiz-kid.

A note of caution: It is important to mention that parental supervision is key. A child should not be given a tablet without supervision. Handing over a tech device to your child requires a great level of responsibility so, as a parent, be sure to trust your instinct. However, the fact is allowing children have access to tech devices can benefit them in many ways. As a parent, you may understandably be nervous at first, but there are some real, tangible benefits to be had from exposing your child to tech devices such as tablets. Most experts recommend not more than a half hour of screen time per sitting for a child. This is bearing in mind that tablets may be addictive for children because it allows quick, instant access to everything in the real world. As long as parents do their best to monitor, protect, and prepare their children and usage doesn’t get out of hand, technology exposure can provide great opportunities for children to grow and develop that you may not have anticipated.

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