Kindle a Love of Reading for Your Kids

Kindles, Nooks and other electronic reading devices are quickly gaining in popularity. A few years ago, only the biggest of bibliophiles had an e-reader. Today, more and more people are purchasing devices or installing apps onto their phones.

Digital sales are steadily increasing and publishers, recognizing the changes in the marketplace, have begun releasing a greater variety of books into e-book format. While the technology is still new and there are a few bumps along the way, such as the Amazon pricing scandal and the debate over DRMs, e-books are here to stay and many people may find that they’re much more versatile than traditional books.

Kindles for Parents and Kids

The Kindle provides a great opportunity for your whole family. No matter the age of your child, everyone can benefit from some aspect of the e-reader’s technology. Kindles allow kids nearly unlimited access to books, making them a convenient form of entertainment while on car rides, at the doctor’s office, waiting in line at the grocery or other occasions where kids may become bored and restless.

Unlike regular books, the Kindle is small, lightweight and surprisingly durable; you don’t have to worry about tearing book covers, dog-earing pages or cracking the spine. Of course, e-readers are more valuable than books, so parents may be concerned about the risks of dropping them, having sticky liquids spilled on them or other kinds of rough handling. Some e-reader companies are creating kid-friendly versions, so that may be a good alternative for some people.

What Are the Benefits of e-Readers for Kids?

• You can store nearly unlimited numbers of books so avid readers always have a selection to choose from
• You can download any public domain book for free, so classics are instantly available
• In addition to reading books, kids can play games, solve puzzles or even surf the web on some e-readers
• Most e-readers have an option to read the book aloud or download audio books for younger readers
• You can adjust the text size to aid reading comprehension
• Books can be divided into reading lists so a family can share a device
• You can load Kindle or Nook apps onto your smart phone
• The reading device comes with a built-in dictionary to look up unfamiliar words

What are the Drawbacks of e-Readers for Kids?

• Expensive technological investment to buy an e-reader
• Technology is fairly fragile
• If something happens to the e-reader, you may lose all the books you own or be unable to install them to another device
• You must keep the e-reader charged
• Not as many children’s books are released to the Kindle as adult books
• Many e-readers don’t support full-color illustrations and picture books
• Parents may be tempted to give a child an e-reader instead of spending time reading with him

Overall, e-books can be a great addition to a child’s life and education, but they’re not the right investment for everyone. Focus on providing the best solution to your family, and don’t forget that reading with your young child is always better than relying on digital babysitters.