Today’s Spotlight is on Pint-Size Technology – Iowa’s only provider of Discovery Kids Puterbugs. Their mission is to help take kids natural tech abilities to a new and impressive level essential for their future success. Their program is Fun, Innovative, and Tech Saavy!
About Discovery Kids Puterbugs
Discovery Kids Puterbugs is a weekly 45-minute enrichment program geared towards children ages 3 – 8. They bring their computers into local preschools and teach the enrolled kids the technology skills they need to be prepared for kindergarten.
This program is more than just teaching the kids keyboarding. They dive into so many different areas of technology. Email, smartphones, Apps, Webcams, Internet Safety, what a files is, the list goes on. All this is done with the missions having been developed with focus on S.T.E.M (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) skills.
New this month, Pint-Size Technology is pleased to be offering classes outside of the preschool setting. They are now offering classes at 411 Safety Shop & Training in Valley Junction, on Wednesday evenings and Friday mornings.
About The Owners
Jennifer is a local mom and together with her husband, own Pint-Size Technology. Jennifer has been in the child care business for over 13 years in various roles from social worker to preschool teacher to management at a local preschool, which is what she does currently. Her husband works in the technology field so they bring a well-rounded point of view and credentials to the business.
The Program has been in the Des Moines area for about 5 years, with a primary focus on preschools. Since The Rykers acquired it a year ago, they have been working to expand their services in the schools as well as outside of the school systems.
Jennifer states, “Recognizing that we weren’t offering an option for children from non-participating preschools, stay at home families and home schooled children, we searched an option outside of our normal preschool settings. We connected with Kiki Joslin, owner of 411 Safety Shop and Training and knew it was the perfect place to hold classes.”
Our Classes
Our classes are weekly for 45-minutes and run in 8-week blocks. Each 8-week session runs $95.00 and each child is automatically re-enrolled into each session unless the family discontinues. Whats great about our program is that a child can enroll at any time and we just prorate the cost. We take weeks off around the holidays so that families don’t miss out on a week do to being out of town for the holiday or vacations.
Giving you options to work best with your family’s schedule, you can sign up for classes on either Wednesday evenings starting at 6:15 p.m. or Friday mornings starting at 9:30 a.m. You can see the examples of scheduling on our website.
The Importance of Starting Young
Kids today are born into a true digital era, it is important for them to get an early start on learning the proper use of technology.
Jennifer says, “The first time we went to school to watch our 1st Grader present her book report, it was done alongside a PowerPoint presentation that she had put together. It was at that moment we knew, as parents of 4 young children, that technology knowledge had officially crossed over to a mandatory skillset. I didn’t start learning how to type until middle school. We truly live in a connected world. It’s no longer a catch phrase. Oh, and that PowerPoint my daughter did was better than what I can do.”
Connect With Pint-Size Technology
For more information about classes, enrollment or how to bring the classes to your local preschool, visit Pint-Size Technology’s website.
Be sure to follow them on Facebook for all kinds of fun!
Website: www.pintsizetech.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pintsizetech
My daughter is in the Puterbugs pogram and she loves it! She is now four and has been involved in the program for the past year. She looks forward to her class and has really learned a lot. Its not just about the fun of playing on the computer, but the missions all involve some sort of skill or knowledge. I really like that we get to also work on the missions as home. My daughter actually teaches us the weeks mission!