Parents can now set educational goals for their kids, and make sure their kids have met their goals before switching to cartoons and games
 

Manage screen time with additional Time Limits features: set different limits for weekends vs weekdays, and use "Bedtime" to set a curfew
 
LUXEMBOURG — 9th December — Amazon today announced a new version of Kindle FreeTime on Kindle Fire tablets that brings new educational features built from the ground up for parents and kids. FreeTime is a new free feature available exclusively from Amazon, and these educational features will be delivered automatically to any Kindle Fire tablet that has the FreeTime app in the coming weeks, just in time for Christmas. Customers can order the new £119 Kindle Fire HD, Kindle Fire HDX 7" and Kindle Fire HDX 8.9" at www.amazon.co.uk/fire-hd.

"We think Kindle Fire is the best tablet for kids and families, and now we're making it even better," said Jorrit Van der Meulen, Vice President, Amazon Kindle. "We know kids spend a lot of time every day looking at screens, and we're excited to add new tools that help parents make this time more educational. Parents can use features like 'Learn First' to ensure study comes before play and set daily educational goals for reading and learning. These features make Kindle Fire the perfect Christmas gift for families."
 

With new Educational Goals, parents can now set additional goals for their kids — for example, a parent can set a goal to read 30 minutes every day in FreeTime. Parents of younger children who can't yet read can set goals to use educational apps such as those that help teach counting, learning letters, and matching shapes.
 
Additionally, parents can now choose to make sure their kids have reached their educational goals before they can watch cartoons or play games. Simply tap on "Learn First," and all non-educational content is removed from the child's FreeTime library until they have met their daily reading or educational goals. The most popular kids' books and apps on Amazon have been categorised as education or entertainment, so when a parent sets goals for Learn First, the work of identifying which content is educational vs. entertainment has already been done for them.
 
Parents will also love these additional new options for Time Limits:

  • Bedtime: No more cartoons in the middle of the night — set a Bedtime so FreeTime only works the time of day you choose — for example, between 8 am and 8 pm.
  • Weekend and Weekday Time Limits: All days of the week aren't created equal — configure educational goals and screen time limits differently for weekends and weekdays.

 Coming soon, Prime members with access to Kindle Owners' Lending Library will be able to add their borrowed books to FreeTime.
 
Here's what reviewers are already saying about Kindle FreeTime:

  • "Amazon took a big step forward in improving things for families with Kindle FreeTime." – CNet
  • "Amazon seems to know that a tablet is a device for the whole family, and has done a better job than anyone of making its devices work for everyone." – The Verge
  • "Amazon has absolutely nailed its family target audience with its more robust parental controls..." – Laptop Magazine
  • "FreeTime is a must have." – PC Magazine
  • "[FreeTime] eliminates the 'just one more level, Dad' nightly debate." – Wired
  • "This feature makes the Fire the best tablet for young kids, in my opinion." – Babble

 
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