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LeapFrog, the makers of the popular LeapPad tablet for kids, has made an activity tracker for kids. It encourages kids to "walk like a crab" or "leap like a frog", earning points. With these points they unlock unique, customizable pets like a unicorn or robot. Like a Tamagotchi but the kids get some exercise in while learning about nutrition by feeding their pets healthy snacks.
At first, when I read that they had made an activity tracker for kids, I thought "Do kids really need to obsess about what they eat and how much exercise they're getting?". While child obesity is a big problem, so are eating disorders. In both cases children have unhealthy relationships with food and a "fitness tracker" would just exacerbate the problem.
But after taking a deeper look at the LeapBand as it's been called, I quite like the idea of exercising through play and gaming. Being a gamer myself, I like the idea of learning through gaming. But one of the main concerns with kids and gaming is that they spend more time in front of screens than physically playing outside. So I welcome this gadget. Another feature of the LeapBand is that it comes with parental controls to designate “School Time”, “Night Time“, and “Quiet Time” that lock the game and pet play so that your child's screen time is limited.
What do you think about a fitness tracker for kids?
At first, when I read that they had made an activity tracker for kids, I thought "Do kids really need to obsess about what they eat and how much exercise they're getting?". While child obesity is a big problem, so are eating disorders. In both cases children have unhealthy relationships with food and a "fitness tracker" would just exacerbate the problem.
But after taking a deeper look at the LeapBand as it's been called, I quite like the idea of exercising through play and gaming. Being a gamer myself, I like the idea of learning through gaming. But one of the main concerns with kids and gaming is that they spend more time in front of screens than physically playing outside. So I welcome this gadget. Another feature of the LeapBand is that it comes with parental controls to designate “School Time”, “Night Time“, and “Quiet Time” that lock the game and pet play so that your child's screen time is limited.
What do you think about a fitness tracker for kids?
