On April 6, 2010 Genna and I went to the Apple store on Chestnut Street to check out the iPad. I had checked it out on launch day, but it was Genna's first time checking it out.
Inspirational iPad Video of 2.5 Year Old & 66 Year Old
I think this first video is very compelling because it illustrates how engaging the iPad is. I think most people are visual learners and the iPad makes learning fun and intuitive...
Charlie Rose Takes A Look At iPad
with Walt Mossberg
Charlie Rose is 66 years old and he seems to be as smitten with the all-new iPad as the 2 year old girl in the above video!!! I think this huge age delta just goes to show how universal the iPad's appeal is!!!
One of the objectives we have is similar to Nicholas Negroponte's the One Laptop Per ChildProgram, except our idea is to have One iPad Per Child. I believe the iPad form factor is much better than the OLPC XO laptops because it has no mechanical or moving parts and is even more portable and lighter in weight. Also the iPad has a much higher definition screen that is much more immersive and successfully competes with the 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper.
Remember how when you were a kid you used to carry around a back-breaking backpack filled with school books and notebooks and pens and pencils? I believe the iPad will completely eliminate this need for future generations and an iPad will not only be able to play multimedia like audio and video, but have the ability to record teachers voices so you don't even have to take notes.
I am sharing this particular video, because the reviewer shows a book on the periodic table of elements and points out that when he was a child if he had this book, he probably would have been much more engaged in science. In the final analysis, I believe the best way to engage a child's mind is to make the education entertaining and thus engaging. You can even call it Edutainment.
Spark is the only youth empowerment program in the country that addresses the dropout crisis by re-engaging at-risk students through hands-on, individualized apprenticeships.
These workplace-based apprenticeships—in professions each student has identified as a “dream job”—are complemented by a leadership curriculum, workshops, and field trips.
The Spark experience creates a powerful sense of relevance for students, while providing the skills and confidence necessary to find success in school and in life.
Spark offers this program to 7th and 8th grade students, through summer and after-school programs, in the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles.
