Reimagining the Child Tablet as a Coffee Table
In many households, tablets are used as a babysitting device to keep children preoccupied when parents are busy. This isn’t a bad thing, but because tablets are mobile, this leads to children being on iPads in the car, the dinner table, and elsewhere.
This project explores what interactions would be like if the child/family tablet is transformed into a coffee table. I designed 3 scenarios to help children better spend their time and help parents be better involved in their kids’ digital lives.
Plan Play Sessions:
Kids can play forever, and every day is a struggle to get them to stop. Planning helps them be more responsible and also builds up a habit for the future. Kids plan what they want to do and for how long. When the time comes, they have to stop. No negotiation and no tantrum.
Play Together:
Sometimes, kids just want to play with their parents. Play Together takes away the friction — parents can just jump in. By sitting next to their child on the couch, they too can play whatever their child is playing, creating opportunities to connect.
Catch Up:
When kids use electronics, they have a whole life out there that parents don’t know about. Parents want to be involved. They want to talk to their kids about what they’re experiencing and feeling. Catching up should be effortless. As parents sit on the couch, they can get passive updates on what their child has been doing.
This project explores what interactions would be like if the child/family tablet is transformed into a coffee table. I designed 3 scenarios to help children better spend their time and help parents be better involved in their kids’ digital lives.
Plan Play Sessions:
Kids can play forever, and every day is a struggle to get them to stop. Planning helps them be more responsible and also builds up a habit for the future. Kids plan what they want to do and for how long. When the time comes, they have to stop. No negotiation and no tantrum.
Play Together:
Sometimes, kids just want to play with their parents. Play Together takes away the friction — parents can just jump in. By sitting next to their child on the couch, they too can play whatever their child is playing, creating opportunities to connect.
Catch Up:
When kids use electronics, they have a whole life out there that parents don’t know about. Parents want to be involved. They want to talk to their kids about what they’re experiencing and feeling. Catching up should be effortless. As parents sit on the couch, they can get passive updates on what their child has been doing.