

Ask HN: what do you think of these flash cards I made for young kids? - epi0Bauqu
http://www.kangadoo.com/

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markcmyers
Very nice. I'm guessing little kids will love it. I found some of the labels
hard to read because there was too little contrast with the pic. To me the
robin didn't look like a robin.

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Adrenalist
I have a 3 kids between the ages of 2 years and 11 years. My youngest would
definitely enjoy these and I think it's a good start.

It's a very simple idea, so I think you'll need to add some features (pause
button, music, more card sets, etc.) to encourage parents to visit often.

Also, I love the domain name and can see that this project was created while
scratching your own itch (which is a great way to stay motivated).

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epi0Bauqu
Thanks. Yeah, I have about 20 ideas for new card sets--if you or anyone else
has any I'll add them to my list.

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nico
They look really nice, good job!

Maybe it's my connection, but the cards are going by a little fast, it skips
to the next card before the image has finished loading. You could add a speed
option and/or a pause button.

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epi0Bauqu
Yeah, once they load once, they should be cached thereafter. I've seen this
issue too though. A pause would certainly be good. I'll put that on the list--
thanks!

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tokenadult
What is the rationale for making flash cards at all? (This is a serious
question; I've never seen a need for flash cards, in my youth or in my
children's youth.)

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epi0Bauqu
A few reasons. First and foremost, I want to offer my children the opportunity
to learn as much as possible, up to their interest and abilities. Studies show
kids learn best via repetition and pick up language faster the more you talk
to them (surprise surprise). Flash cards address both those learning modes by
both repeating words and giving you prompts to expound about them, i.e. "a
beaver swims in the water." Quite simply, by using them I find I talk to my
son more and in a more directed (learning appropriate) way.

Second, as a stay-at-home dad who also works on startups, I am searching for
good (educationally-oriented) ways to entertain and occupy my son. I have a
two-28"-monitor setup. I found I could put these up on one and still get some
casual things done, e.g. reading email, on the other monitor.

Third, I really like big full screen images, and haven't seen any flash cards
to date that use them effectively.

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jacobolus
Why don't you buy some good children’s books with images of animals in them? A
story is significantly more interesting than a flash card.

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epi0Bauqu
I already have tons of them :). It is a completely different mode of
entertainment/learning. What you think is "significantly more interesting"
isn't necessarily such to a baby.

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epi0Bauqu
Works best full screen (F11 on Win).

My son (4mo) and his cousin (14mo) really like these. However, I'd love to get
some feedback from a wider audience before I start making a bunch more.

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michael_dorfman
Nice! How about adding a spoken version of the animal name, for pre-readers?

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m_eiman
Tiny tips for a better user experience: load the pictures in the background
and display a spinner while they're loading; load the next/prev images while
the user is looking at an image to minimize waiting.

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PostOnce
The images don't need to be that big, I think. Or you could possibly have a
resolution option (small/med/large). Depending on your monitor, 30" flash
cards?

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epi0Bauqu
You can resize the window to your liking. However, the bigness was sort of the
point--attracts and keeps my 4mo old's attention. Have you tried it big vs
small with your young kids? I'd be very interested to know what happens.

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alex_c
Should be "caterpillar"? Don't want to teach kids the wrong spelling ;)

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epi0Bauqu
Absolutely, will switch :). It should also be 'opossum' I've realized.

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ujjwalg
I think if you can add colors, numbers, alphabets with spoken versions will be
great. You should check out the apps on iPhone for kids. Some of them are just
off the hook.

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rawr
Things kids are forced to do (flashcards) they will hate.

Things kids are allowed to do (watch National Geographic) they will enjoy.

Do you really want your kids to hate nature?

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epi0Bauqu
Wow, my son and every kid I've shared these with loves them. Do you have kids?
If so, please try it out and let me know.

Maybe flash cards is the wrong word to use?

The idea is not to make them memorize anything, i.e. not fun. The idea is to
show them pictures of stuff they like, i.e. fun. The vocab building is just a
by-product of the activity.

