Brandman University

Technology Decision Making Grid for Early Childhood Professionals

Names
Norma Barakat and Megan Grable

Decision Making Grid for Adopting Technology for Young Children

Questions Answers

What is the technology tool, ABC Mouse

application, website or
technological process I am
considering?

What is the cost? 9.99 a month for access on a desktop, tablets, and phones as an app.
What are the long term
costs?

Who will benefit? (Teachers, The children, parents and teachers

directors, children, families,
others)

What is the purpose of using The purpose of this technology is to teach children different language, literacy,
this technology? math, science, health and social studies concepts through the use of interactive
games and activities.

What child learning outcomes ● Reading and Writing;

will this technology support? o learning spoken words,
o recognizing sounds in words,
o knowing letter sounds and names,
o Sight words
o Understanding stories and books.
● Art and Music
o Art and colors
o Songs
o Music
● Social Studies
● Science
● Health
● Math
o Numbers
o Shapes
o Measurements
o Patterns

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Dr. Julianne Zvalo-Martyn jmartyn@brandman.edu www.brandman.edu
 Level 1 Developmentally Appropriate Practice Screening
Screening Questions
Is it isolating?
Is it passive?
Does it replace creative play,
physical activity, and/or
outdoor activity?
Is the media content biased,
violent, misleading or
otherwise harmful?
Level 2 - Developmentally Appropriate Practice Support
DAP Question
Is it playful, interactive and
hands-on?
Is it engaging AND
empowering?
Does it support the child’s
relationship with self?
Does it give the child control?
Does it provide scaffolding to
ease the accomplishment of
tasks?
Does it support/promote
language interactions and
socialization? How does it
support the child’s
relationship with others
(teachers, other children)?
Dr. Julianne Zvalo-Martyn jmartyn@brandman.edu
Yes/No
no If the answer is yes to any of these questions, then you may not want
to adopt this technology.
no
no
no
Yes/No How will it do this? How do you know this?
yes The application is interactive with the children
yes with a variety of activities and a scale of difficulty, children are able to
be engaged in the activities as well as be successful in their
completion.
Children are able to select their own activities and since it is self-
guided they are not rushed and have a sense of accomplishment at
the completion of an activity.
As children finish an activity they can move up to the next level, and
once they move to the next level they can earn a ticket which allows
them to buy a fish and this in turn teaches them math. This sense of
achievement empowers and supports their relationship with self.
yes Children can select what activities they would like to work on within
the system.
yes Adults can play with the child and help scaffold the learning. The
activities are self-guided and created for the children to succeed in
them with the proper amount of challenges.
yes
The child can see and hear what it is said in the game or activity and
follow directions, and at the same time they can interact with the
teacher and peers. According to one of the videos the teacher was
doing the activity in class with the kids on a big screen.
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 Does it support creativity,
exploration, pretend play,
and/or active play?
Does it support inquiry and
cognitive skills?
Does this technology support
Dual Language Learners and
their families?
Does this technology promote
digital literacy and access?
Does it support access for
children with special needs?
Does it help build the
home/school connection?
Does it nurture families?
If satisfied that this technology is cost effective and supports learning goals, then it may be one to consider!
Dr. Julianne Zvalo-Martyn jmartyn@brandman.edu
yes
Creativity comes from the art activities provided, and as for
exploration there are “interactive zoo, interactive farm and aquarium”
and the active play could come from the songs. The child can dance
and do the moves. – This wasn’t explained in the information about
this websites but I am connecting songs to pretend play and creativity
supported by adults-.
There is a section for mathematics with subsections for numbers,
shapes, measurements, and patterns. There is a section on science
and Health. There is a games and puzzles section.
These activities are interactive and the adults and peers can engage
and play with the children which supports inquiry and cognitive skills.
There is an option to have the system be in Spanish, but no other
languages are listed. From what I can see there isn’t a section for Dual
Language Learners, though there is a quite a bit for learning language
and literacy in English.
There are books and a reading program. For example for the pre-k
age it teaches beginning reading knowledge which includes
vocabulary, upper and lowercase letters and sounds.
Depending on what the need is. Since it is a visual application, if there
was a visual impairment, the child would not be as successful without
a large amount of adult involvement. With the touch screens, a fine
motor impairment could also make it challenging for use.
Since the activities are level based instead of age based it can be
adapted based on where the child is developmentally and the child
can complete activities in their own pace.
yes
It aligns with what the curriculum of the school and families can
access it from home and follow their child’s progress. It can be
accessed from both locations so that the lessons are consistent and
the parent’s area partner in the education process.
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 What is your final decision about
integrating this technology? Explain your
rationale clearly and precisely.
It can be a great addition to learning about different concepts and
I would integrate it in my classroom it is interactive and it can be used
with the whole group during circle time. It has a progress tracker
where teachers and families can see how much the child is
progressing, which in turn helps the teacher plan specific class
activities that target and support the child.

Reference

ABCmouse.com. (2019). Early learning academy. Retrieved from https://www.abcmouse.com/abt/homepage

If the technology is for adults….

Screening Questions Yes/No How will it do this? How do you know this?

Does it support education and training of teacher decision-

makers?

Does it build relationship and collaboration skills?

Does it build technology and/or digital media skills?

Does it support assessment and evaluation of teaching, Yes for There is an optional product you can add to the
programs and/or children’s progress? additional membership fee that will include assessments
cost and targeted activities. According to the site
this additional feature offers;
Detailed performance data on each skill
assessed
Reports on how the children are progressing
over time
Custom lessons to address areas where the
child needs more practice.

Does it support communication of children’s progress and

activities to families?

Does it help build the home/school connection?

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 What is your final decision about integrating this technology? Explain your rationale clearly and precisely.

Questions for analyzing media messages with young children. (adapted from Rogow, Faith, Media Literacy in Early Childhood,
Donohue, 2015)

Who made up this story? Who created this? What was their motivation?

What does this want me to do?

Who makes money from this?

Is this good for people like me? Is this good for other people?

How does this make me feel?

What could I do about it?

What does this want me to think?

What do they want me to notice?

How do they know this is true?

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Dr. Julianne Zvalo-Martyn jmartyn@brandman.edu www.brandman.edu