Kidpix Blows Online
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I'm not even going to try to tell you that Kidpix has anything to do with children's books. It's just that a lot of people arrive on this site seeking coloring books and online coloring pages, and as I mention elsewhere...
I can't stand online coloring. And my mom couldn't stand coloring books.
So I'm on a bit of a crusade. And I've had some hands-on experience. And that experience showed me...
Kidpix Rocks
It does! My daughter's computer lab teacher uses it to introduce the students to computer concepts. Kids who weren't yet reading were finding and saving files. Using a mouse like experts. And...
Making art like you wouldn't believe.
Coloring books are good for developing eye-hand coordination but not so great for developing creativity. The pictures are already drawn.
With Kidpix though, kids start with a blank slate. They can computer draw whatever they want.
In addition, they can use all the drawing tools to create images that look like they were drawn by grown-up artists.
That's why I think of Kidpix as self-esteem on CD.
The mouse work still allows them to develop hand-eye
And the software allows them to depict images limited only by their imagination.
And here's the really good news: this little packet of software, which probably would have been worth a couple hundred thousand bucks fifteen years ago, can be gotten for less than twenty bucks now.
In fact, if you have a Mac, you can even download an early black and white version for free.
If you don't have a Mac, there's still a gonzo deal to be had as I write this (July, 2006). I know from personal experience that the latest version of the software, Version 4, isn't nearly as user-friendly as the previous, Version 3.
Until the company comes out with Version 5, I'm recommending Kidpix Version 3. And because it's dated, it comes cheap.
One other thought
Coloring books may not be great, but free-hand drawing still is. It allows children to explore their imaginations in a way that stay-inside-the-lines coloring doesn't.
On another page of this site I outline a great parent-child reading-writing-coloring project. It requires a great deal out of you, the parent. It asks you, actually, to write a pictureless picture book...for your child to illustrate.
It's one of the best bonding experiences you could ever hope for. And while it's pretty labor-intensive on your part, I walk you through the whole book-writing process.
Imagine: a book you and your child make together! How great a memory will that be?
I can tell you it's one my own daughter and I will always remember fondly.
Write a pictureless picture book for your child to illustrate.
More on coloring books.
