Please sign in to post.

Educational Apps & Experiences for Primary School Children

Posted by on

I have been invited to participate in a two-day conference in Bruges, Belgium 9 & 10 February. We've decided to make it a family trip for two full weeks. This will be my husband's first time abroad (non-military - he's a vet) and my 8-year-old son's first time. I have spent 7 months collectively with my Rick Steves book in hand (1998, 2000 & 2003) in my early 20's. We are spending four days in London, UK; four days in Bruges, Belgium and four days in Paris, France.

Two questions:
1) What are some ways of engaging a primary school child in Europe? In a cost-effective way? There are scavenger hunts the Louve for $500 for two hours that is well over our budget. I need to be creative and strategic and cost-effective. My son loves to read and is more of the Lego/Engineer/Technology/Learner type more than the Sports type.

2) What are some primary school age appropriate iPad (Apple) Apps? I would love to get him started now and use our travel time to at least engage his interest in the history/social studies of Europe?

Thanks!

Katie

Posted by
12313 posts

Why does it have to be structured? Your interest will inspire him to be interested. As an example, when my daughter was 7, we visited her first major art museum in Europe. We stood close enough to the paintings to see the brushstrokes reflected in the light and imagined that, many years ago, the master stood in front of that same painting. The brushstrokes we were looking at were created by their hand and the colors were carefully chosen and mixed by them.

Did her teachers think it was educational? Some did, others didn't. I think it was both educational and inspirational. She's 20 now and earns money doing commissioned digital art, in her own idiom, for people she's only met online, all based on (digital) word of mouth. In high school she was making CGI videos that had upwards of ten million views on YouTube without taking public school art classes (she took music instead).

Exposure to other cultures, languages, food, art (including music and dance) and architecture beats the canned education they're probably getting at home. If nothing else, having been somewhere that uses a different language will make them pay more attention in language class. Touring a medieval castle will make history lessons seem more important and real. Hearing a talented symphony or street musician will make them more likely to be interested in music.

Posted by
10598 posts

The Louvre website has information for you on activities and « trails » you can do with children, all for free.

Because my children grew up before all this was computerized we got children’s books on building castles and cathedrals, life in Medieval times, banquets and life at Court, knights, etc. from the public library. There are some superb resources on paper. I’d go that route to begin because it gives you more control over the content. Your children’s librarian will be able to help you and then lead you to some electronic resources, too.

Posted by
43 posts

I've been planning a trip that includes London with kids 6 and 9.

I came across the Time Explorers app (free) for kids put out by the Historic Royal Palaces - it covers Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, and Kensington Palace. It's meant for use onsite, so I haven't seen it in action yet, but from what I can tell it looks quite well done.

Also, many museums in London offer activity backpacks for kids. I plan to try them out.

Have a great trip!

Posted by
3642 posts

Check out Amazon for guide books.with titles like, “London for Kids.” Also, there is a very child-friendly Museum once called “The Museum of the History of London.” I believe the title has been changed slightly. Your son will probably also enjoy the toy museum in Bethnal Green.

This topic has been automatically closed due to a period of inactivity.