Want to be a Brain Builder? There’s an App for that!
Parents and family members are especially important Brain Builders because of their influence over a child’s environment at home and/or in daily routines. One of the goals of the Brain Building in Progress campaign is to support parents and families in the healthy development of their children. There are many ways that parents and families can be brain builders, from pointing out shapes and colors in the grocery store to counting the stops while riding the bus or T.
Brain Building in Progress, a statewide public-private partnership led by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care and United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley is partnering with the Seattle-based organization Vroom to bring free, downloadable daily “brain building” activity tips to parents and families with young children. Brain Building in Progress is partnering with Vroom to bring a free, downloadable mobile daily app to children and families in Massachusetts. Vroom, funded by the Bezos Family Foundation, develops creative materials and tolls to help families turn everyday moments into brain building moments.
“Engaging interactions with adults positively shape children’s brain development which provides them with a strong foundation for learning,” said Early Education and Care Commissioner Tom Weber. “Brain Building in Progress provides resources to engage and support the important role that everyone can play in helping children to grow and succeed.”
“In order to reach as many parents as possible, we need to meet them where they are,” says Karley Ausiello, Senior Vice President for Community Impact at United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley. “We’re excited to deliver fun, daily ideas for activities literally right into the hands of parents who download the free app. It’s one more way that we can empower parents to best support their child’s development.”
Vroom offers an App that send age-appropriate tips daily to mobile phones encouraging ‘brain-building moments’ between parents and their children. Each tip is easy to do and based on the latest early childhood scientific research. Parents also receive a reminder to check their phone for the daily Vroom tip. The Vroom App is available on three mobile platforms: Android (through the Google Play store), iOS (through the Apple App Store) and Fire Phone.
The Vroom App can be downloaded by visiting the featured partnership section of the Brain Building in Progress website.