Category: Kids

Google -- along with several partners -- has just unveiled their new Family Safety Center. It's a collection of resources designed to help people better understand things like cyberbullying and abuse, malware, and controlling access to inappropriate/explicit content. The site focuses on information like videos and tips from parents who work at Google -- the only actual "tools" provided are ...

When it comes to video chatting options, you've got the app for the tech-savvy (Skype) and the web app for talking to strangers (Charoulette). But what if you need your privacy, and also don't want to install any desktop software? Gabble is a new web service from HP that tries to fill the void between Skype and Chatroulette. Gabble has Chatroulette's simple web app setup, but with the ...

Ricochet Kills 2 is a splendidly violent physics-based puzzle game. In the game, you need to kill all the "bad guys" on the screen in each level. Nobody moves, including you, and the only way to do them in is to shoot them directly, ricochet a shot off of something else, or influence an object to fall on or explode near them. The early levels of the game are very easy, and in my opinion, the game ...

When Lee posted about Fantastic Contraption back in 2008, I literally lost multiple days playing through it, mastering it, and then retrying levels in interesting and creative ways. It was, and still is, one of my all-time favorite physics-based games. So I was delighted today when a friend sent me a simple link over IM, and when I clicked it to find out what it was, I was greeted with its sequel, ...

Swerveball is part of a new game called SuperMe. If you think it sounds a bit new-age self-helpish, don't worry: it is. With the rather hopeful headline of 'Be better at life', SuperMe is a collection of mini-games, quizzes, inspirational interviews and 'cheat codes for life'. And, despite it being angled at teenagers, I think there might just be something for everyone on SuperMe. Anyway, ...

The UK Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (Ceop), in association with a bullied and submissive Facebook, has launched a new app that aims to safeguard the burgeoning population of child surfers. The app's called ClickCoep and it takes the form of a bookmark or tab on your Facebook profile page. According to the BBC, Ceop and Facebook have been at loggerheads for some time. ...

OpenDNS is a great service for a number of reasons, and today there's one more. If you're a concerned parent, they're now making it super-easy to block porn from all the computers in your home. The new offering is called FamilyShield, and it's just as easy to get working as the original OpenDNS service. Full instructions are provided on the official site, and they'll walk you through setting ...

Technology provides today's school with numerous avenues to provide quality education to kids while making learning fun. With schools increasing the use of technology to deliver learning, parents are faced with embracing technology to provide learning and fun experiences for kids growing up in a technology saturated world after school. As a concerned parent, I want to do my part in making sure ...

I'm a sucker for physics-based time waster games. Cover Orange is one that's new to me, and it's unique in that the goal is to protect your little orange and green pumpkins (or are they apples?) from acid rain. You can't move or control your little guys. Instead, you need to creatively place objects within each level to protect them. Sometimes this just means building a shelter for them, but more ...

By now I would hope you've all seen the amazing, adorable and humbling video of a two-year-old interacting with an iPad for the first time. If not, go watch it now (it's after the break, too). In just five minutes I had my entire world view shift; I started humming Children of the Revolution; I got to pondering the possibilities of a future where babies interact with computers before they learn ...

When I think of air combat games, the first thing that comes to mind is certainly not turn-based games. However, SteamBirds is a turn-based game that manages to make the game both suspenseful and action-packed. In SteamBirds, you command one or more "steambirds," which are fusion aircraft that were invented in 1835. Oops, did I forget to mention that SteamBirds is based on an alternative ...

Jetpack Jackass is a Flash game by Adult Swim. The object is to get your character, Sam, to the moon so that he can prove his love to Stacy, who thinks he's just an idiot. He blasts off with a jetpack, and in order for him to go higher, you must aim him toward the various objects in the sky that he can bounce up from. Some objects, such as falling buildings or satellites, give Sam a bigger boost ...

Shuriken Showdown is a classic shooting physics game, where the object is to hit various targets. In this case, you must hit all of the targets first, clearing them, and then hit the gong. However, you have a limited number of shurikens (ninja stars) with which to do it. There are also other objects that you can hit, such as one that gives you three more shurikens, and others that shoot out ...

Have you ever tried to draw a picture with a spilled liquid? For me it's coffee; I seem to spill coffee far more often than an adult ought to, but when I do it turns into a little sketchpad. Gross? Yeah, a bit. But admit it, you've done the same thing. If you'd like to have the same experience without getting wet or making a mess, head on over to Blobs Redux, a Flash site that simulates playing ...

I love the genre of physics-based puzzle games, but in particular I love the clever ones that really stand out. Home Sheep Home is one of those standouts. In Home Sheep home, your goal is to get your three sheep, Shirley, Shaun, and Timmy, back to their barn. To do so, you must navigate them through 15 increasingly challenging levels. You can only control one of your sheep at a time, and each ...