Social media app for children and families – a review

During the coronavirus pandemic when daycare closures were the norm, I came up with the idea of developing DiGiKiNDi, an Android app that I designed as a social network for kindergarten children and their parents. Now that the pandemic is over, it's time to look back and take stock.

by Lukas Twardon

I had just finished my PhD in computer science at Bielefeld University when the coronavirus pandemic hit the world. With daycare centers closed and my wife working full-time, I quickly realized that my primary job would now be childcare. During this time, I came up with the idea of a digital kindergarten, and I decided to bring together my experience in software engineering and as a father.

The idea

Our children and I soon became aware that digital media was often the best and sometimes the only option for connecting with friends and family. However, most platforms are not designed to meet the needs of young children whose communication is in many ways different from that of adults.

For children of kindergarten age, it is very important to be able to do some things all by themselves. In online social networks for adults, however, not only their lack of literacy but also the information overload that children cannot cope with stand in the way of this desire. In addition, most parents agree that young children should not spend long periods of time alone on their smartphones. The following elements have therefore emerged as the main pillars of DiGiKiNDi:

1. Child-friendly interaction: A clean user interface, easy-to-understand pictures, and spoken explanations give children a playful approach to the digital world.
2. Parental guidance: DiGiKiNDi is not just an app, but a platform that parents and children use together and on which parents can also communicate with other parents.
3. Lots of inspiration with little screen time: The app is designed to stimulate children's creativity in the physical world with limited screen time by allowing them to see what their friends have created.
4. Data protection and security: Encryption, security questions, and data minimization protect children's privacy. Moreover, only friends with a private invitation code can see the children's profiles.

Technical implementation

In order to create a solid technological foundation, a LAMP stack consisting of Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP was chosen on the server side. On the client side, I went for a native Android app. With a market share of around 70 percent on smartphones, this seemed like a pragmatic decision to reach a wide user base. In addition, I already had experience in app development for Android which made the development process more efficient. The decision against a web app resulted from the poor and inconsistent media support in common browsers at that time which would have impaired the user experience.

Topology of the social network

A crucial step in the development of a social network for families was the definition of a suitable topology for the platform, meaning the types of connections that can be made. Established social media present different topologies, ranging from 1:1 relationships (friendships) to unidirectional 1:n connections (followers) to groups with strangers (n:n). For a platform used by children, the option of networking with strangers was excluded for safety reasons.

Instead, DiGiKiNDi provides the option of creating private groups, e.g. for sports teams or kindergarten classes. Within such groups, all members are connected to each other, so in principle it is an n:n network. However, I have deliberately avoided any features for giving feedback (including positive feedback) such as likes or comments so as to avoid social pressure. Also, connection requests are only possible outside the app using private invitation codes in order to create a safe and secure environment.

App features

I have chosen the features of the app to help realize the ideas mentioned earlier. Here are some of the key features:

• Creating groups, inviting friends, adding siblings
• Say hello: sending short voice messages to friends (end-to-end encrypted)
• Letting friends know about completed activities (teeth brushed, vegetables eaten, etc.) by tapping on pictures
• Child-friendly birthday calendar
• Painting and looking at pictures or drawing characters together with friends
• Starting or participating in photo challenges with crafts and similar ideas
• Jigsaw puzzle of the month as a social game (swapping pieces with friends)
• Creating parent board notices

The early days

The launch of DiGiKiNDi at the beginning of 2021 marked a promising start. The app was a success with hundreds of users and very positive feedback overall. The traditional media also showed interest: A TV report on Sat.1 NRW featured the app prominently and even gave my then five-year-old son the opportunity to share his experiences. This highlight came after a detailed presentation on the front page of the Bielefeld local section of the Westfalenblatt and articles in various online magazines.

The success stories experienced by our own and other children were particularly fascinating: photo challenges stimulated creativity in crafting and building ("Make a paper guitar", "Build a coronavirus model"), voice messages limited to ten seconds encouraged communication ("Happy birthday! I want to see you again soon."), and the jigsaw puzzle of the month became an absolute favorite.

Challenges and lessons learned

As the coronavirus measures were relaxed, interest declined significantly. DiGiKiNDi had its origins in the reality of the pandemic and with the gradual return to normal life, the initial enthusiasm began to fade. But there have also been technological developments and some fundamental insights since then that have led me to think differently about a few things today. Or to put it in the words of Kyle Broflovski from South Park: I learned something today.

• Being platform-independent is important but difficult: Limiting the app to Android has probably hampered its expansion. So it would have been advisable to focus on platform independence right from the start, but supporting many systems, versions, and app stores with constantly changing terms of use is a major challenge. Therefore, Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) are an attractive alternative with increasing browser support.
• The demand for parent-child platforms is uncertain: The question of how relevant a shared platform for parents and children is outside of pandemic times remains unanswered. Many parents reject the use of social media by their children as a matter of principle or prefer separate media use (parents surf on their smartphones while their children watch cartoons).
• The "lots of inspiration with little screen time" approach is good. However, there is a possibility that some parents may not see any benefit in this because the children are not kept busy for long enough. Also, the usual conflicts and disappointments ("But I want your smartphone now!", "Why can't I swap a puzzle piece?") cannot be completely avoided, even with short periods of use.
• Privacy comes at the expense of usability: Data protection measures are of course particularly important for apps that are used by children and are therefore also required by law. However, complicated registration procedures and frequent security questions can severely affect usability. This may result in most parents either not using social media with their children at all or allowing them to use less secure platforms designed for adults. A gradual introduction to social networks in school or pre-school environments may, however, gain wider acceptance.

Conclusion

Looking back, I am convinced that DiGiKiNDi was the right idea at the right time. Nevertheless, the question remains as to the need for social media platforms for kindergarten children and parents after the end of the pandemic. However, I am particularly happy about the positive response from some children around us who still enjoy using the app. I've also thought about the possibility of spinning off individual ideas or social games into standalone apps. Furthermore, the valuable insights I have gained so far during the development and operation of DiGiKiNDi serve as inspiration for the design of future applications. The app is still available for download on Google Play. More information about DiGiKiNDi can be found here.