When Mr. B. gave me an iPad for our anniversary in March, he made me promise that I wouldn't let the girls loose on it like I have done with my iPod. The trouble with that promise is that there are so many great learning and fun apps for children that I simply can't resist letting both Lara and Holly play on the iPad so this protective Apptivity case from Fisher Price for the iPad seemed like the perfect way to let Holly play with my piece of tech without the risk!
The Fisher Price Apptivity case is a very sturdy and thick rubberised case that fits over the whole of your iPad. It is secure because it is locked shut with two fasteners on the back. There is a big handle with brightly coloured rattles so even when the iPad isn't in it, Holly still finds a little bit of entertainment in it. I like the fact that when it is inside the case my iPad is protected at the corners from Holly dropping it on the floor but the screen is still unprotected from serious damage.
The screen does have a thin flexible protective covering which prevents sticky fingers and scratchy fingernails and unpleasant bodily fluids from getting anywhere near the screen. There is also a harder strip along one end of the screen protector which I assume is meant to prevent your child from being able to press the button on the ipad... though I'm not sure why you would want to do this as it would also mean that you couldn't press it either. I do find it a bit frustrating that once in the case, I don't have access to the volume control or the power button. I also found the screen functions harder to use once behind the screen. However, when I am consciously using the iPad for Holly then I think it is worth my investment in time to slip it into the Apptivity case for her, and then take it out again afterwards for me.
I first downloaded an app for Holly when she was about 2 months old - The Fisher Price Laugh & Learn Lets Count app. It is a really bright and bold app which plays music, shows bright dancing animals and teaches first numbers. Holly has been fascinated with it on the small screen of the iPad but now she can see it on the larger screen she can't stop smiling.
Even Lara still enjoys some of the free apps from Fisher Price. The Laugh & Learn Puppy Play app features some short musical videos with the Fisher Price Puppy and his friends which introduces first letters as well as bright and fun stories with big bold graphics.
The other app that Holly keeps going back to is the Fisher Price Roly Poly app which is also free to download. It can be integrated into some of Fisher Price's toys but it is just as fun on the iPad. Little Fisher Price animals float and bounce around the screen and they react to the way that your child moves the tablet, moving left and right and adding new animals when they touch the screen.
And so, by 12 months old Holly is tech-happy (what more do you expect when both parents write software for a living?) and put her in front of any screen now (not just a tablet), she tries to swipe it and interact with it!
