A couple weeks ago, I wrote about many
different ways to connect kids with their grandparents. While I covered the big ones like Skype, Facetime, Google+ and others, I just discovered a new one that is solely designed for connecting your kids with grandma and grandpa, via PC and mobile.
DoubleScoop fosters an instant connection and
creates a private way for kids to exchange pictures, video messages,
even drawings with their grandparents. If the elders have a PC or mobile
device using iOS, sign-up is simple, just requiring an email
address.
Rest easy: all contacts that are added to the network require parental
authorization, which ensures that your kids' contacts are vetted.
There are many things I like about this, the
primary one being the app's privacy features. Unlike social networking
sites, communication is completely self-contained and archived so a
running log of dialogue is captured. Perfect for when you want to
revisit that sage piece of grandfatherly advice from the last birthday call. I
also really like that there is no spam, no ads, or anything fishy that
kids could inadvertently click on.
Older kids with their own mobile phones or PCs
can use this as a direct way to communicate with the grandparents and
those who are younger can get a little help using it on mom or dad's
device.
In fact anyone in the family can join the "network," but I have a
feeling your kids will love having a special place for just chatting
with the grandparents.
-Jeana
DoubleScoop is available as a free download on iTunes. You can try the service free for 14 days. After that, it's $3.99/month or $29.99 for a year.
