Sponsored By: PopUp Play
As a parent, I’m usually conflicted about how much computer/app screen time to allow my children. I know they need to be up-to-date with the latest technology so they can grow into “with it” adults. At the same time, I really want the other side of their brain developed — the imaginative side that grows from outdoor playtime, arts & crafts and verbal connection. A testament to my desire for creative play is the huge pink plastic play-kitchen still in our playroom (my kids are 10 and 7….). Even though they only play with it a few times a year, I can’t bear to donate it.
Yet, the end might be in sight for that plastic monstrosity. I just heard about a new, developed-in-Austin play experience called “PopUp Play.” PopUp Play lets you and your kids build a customized playhouse (and ‘til New Years – a Gingerbread house!) on an app called the “Build Lab.”
When I downloaded the free iPad app, my kids and I developed our own, personalized playhouse: 1 drawbridges, 2 castle roofs, cut-out windows in all the right spots and cute graphics that each kid selected. The playhouse will be here within the next week and will be their fort this holiday season. There’s a pile of stuffed animals and pillows growing in the living room that will “live” in the new playhouse.
What I loved about PopUp Play is that it combines an online and offline experience for parents and kids. It let my kids become mini-engineers for a few minutes and really think about how to create their ideal house. While it’s targeted to kids aged 3-9, my kids enjoyed the entire process this toy facilitates.
I love this toy because in a very nurturing way, it let me interact with my kids online. It exposed them to the possibilities our future holds with 3-D printing, computer programming and more. Yet, it gets them offline for creative play and imaginative play. For me, this was a great combo. After all, if you’re not “in the know” with the high tech world, you’re falling behind. Yet, if you haven’t developed a creative brain, you’re not going to be the inventor of the next coolest idea in tech!
For ages 3-9.
Build Lab is free on the Apple App store.
Each playhouse is $99 plus a flat $10 for shipping.
Learn more at www.popupplaytoy.com
