Photo Play (for Families)
Family photo fun to encourage caregiver-kid interactions.
Kids say
Based on 1 review
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Photo Play (for Families)
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this app.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Photo Play (for Families) is an app for parents to use with their young kids. Parents and kids choose a photo from their camera roll, decorate it, play a game with it, and most importantly, follow prompts to engage in a conversation about it. Altered photos can be saved to your device's camera roll. Photo Play (for Families) is part of a suite of apps designed at the Harvard Graduate School of Education to help support early literacy. Read the developer's privacy policy for details on how your (or your kids') information is collected, used, and shared and any choices you may have in the matter, and note that privacy policies and terms of service frequently change.
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What’s It About?
Start playing with PHOTO PLAY (FOR FAMILIES) by choosing a photo from your device's camera roll. Then choose from three options: Talk, Decorate, Play. Talk about it presents the chosen photo with series of prompts to spark conversation such as "Where was this photo taken?" In decorate, users can use basic drawing tools and a small collection of stickers to draw on and decorate the photo. There's a talk button here too with question suggestions like, "Why did you draw that?" Finally, with Play Hide and Seek, caregiver and kid take turns being a hider and a seeker. The hider chooses a sticker to hide in the photo, and then helps the seeker find it by answering questions such as "What is the object next to?" When the seeker taps the right place on the photo, the hidden object is revealed.
Is It Any Good?
Talking about family photos can be a great way for parents to connect with and engage with their kids. Of course, looking through old photos is something families can easily do without an app. But, Photo Play (for Families) does add a bit of extra fun. Drawing on and decorating photos allows kids to get silly and creative. The question prompts aren't super innovative or complicated, but they can help parents think of some basic ways to start conversations. Perhaps the most unique extra that Photo Play (for Families) offers is the hide and seek game. Young kids naturally love hide and seek, and hiding an object in a photo encourages families to use lots of vocabulary like next to, behind, far away, and more. As part of series meant to help parents and kids engage in conversation together, Photo Play (for Families) has the least interesting talking prompts. But using family photos is a great way to personalize interactions, help kids reflect on and remember things they've done, and talk about important people in their lives.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the photos kids choose to use with Photo Play (for Families). What do the photos remind kids of? Who are the people in the photos?
Work with your kids to create a photo book. Choose a theme such as, "people we love," or "our trip last summer," or even, "a day at the park." Have kids to tell you story about the photos you include, write the story down, and include it in the photo book.
Engage your kids in conversation throughout the day. Ask them about what they did in school, what they remember about that trip to the playground last week, what's going on with their dolls or figurines as they engage in pretend play, or what books they like best and why. Start with open-ended questions, and then ask follow-up ones.
App Details
- Devices: iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Android
- Subjects: Language & Reading: storytelling
- Skills: Communication: asking questions, multiple forms of expression, Collaboration: teamwork
- Pricing structure: Free
- Release date: April 8, 2021
- Category: Education
- Publisher: Harvard University
- Version: 1.0
- Minimum software requirements: iOS 11.4 or later; 4.4 and up
- Last updated: May 10, 2021
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