By Sharon Duke EstroffI’m beginning to understand why kids are so obsessed with Club Penguin. It’s a posh ski vacation via DSL connection. There’s snow tubing, ski lifts, and an ice hockey rink; a coffee shop, pizza joint, and discothèque; even a beach complete with surfboards, sun umbrellas and an outdoor fire pit (photo links below). And they’re all packed like sardines with friend-seeking … [Read more...] about Undercover Mom in ClubPenguin, Part 3: Anybody here speak English?!
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Undercover Mom in ClubPenguin, Part 2: Let’s get this party started!
by Sharon Duke EstroffI have to admit I’m pretty darn cute. My avatar, ChillyLily437, that is. I’m plump, perky, and very pink. Only one more hurdle to jump before I can make my cybersocial debut on Club Penguin: an emailed permission slip from my parents. Rather than submitting my real email address (this is a stealth operation after all!), I open up an alias email and have the CP powers-that-be … [Read more...] about Undercover Mom in ClubPenguin, Part 2: Let’s get this party started!
Undercover Mom in ClubPenguin, Part 1
The first installment of contributor Sharon Duke Estroff's inside look at kids' virtual worlds (here's last week's intro).... by Sharon Duke EstroffThe first time my eight-year old asked me how to spell "penguin," I felt a wave of pride (a spelling bee champion in the making!). The second time I just felt curious (hmm, an Antarctic unit at school?). But the third time - in the midst of a playdate … [Read more...] about Undercover Mom in ClubPenguin, Part 1
Mom undercover in kids’ virtual worlds
How would you like to go in-world and experience ClubPenguin's igloos, icey games, and penguin pizzeria first-hand (well, almost first-hand)? You can, if you haven't already, with ChilyLily437, aka writer, former elementary teacher, child development expert, and mom of four (ages 6 to 16) Sharon Duke Estroff in this month's issue of Good Housekeeping. Her article, "I Was an Undercover Penguin: … [Read more...] about Mom undercover in kids’ virtual worlds
200 virtual worlds for kids
That's virtual worlds for youth that are now "live, planned, or in active development," according to Virtual Worlds Management. In its coverage, CNET reports that "the under-7 market (if there is such a thing) is the most heavily targeted with 107 worlds aiming for market share," with "the teen market ... relatively wide open." Virtual Worlds Management also found an increase in virtual worlds … [Read more...] about 200 virtual worlds for kids