My Kid's Library

How could My Kids Library be more useful, easier-to-use and more fun?  We want My Kids Library to be as helpful and enjoyable as possible, and it is your experiences using it that wtell us where to take it.

MKL Editor wrote:

How could My Kids Library be more useful, easier-to-use and more fun?  We want My Kids Library to be as helpful and enjoyable as possible, and it is your experiences using it that wtell us where to take it.

I think that there is some really great functionality here.  However, I DO have a few suggestions...

1)  The font on the pages are small.  Also, maybe a more kid friendly look could be applied...bright colors, larger fonts (perhaps a proprietary font that could be used in the design that looks "kid like".

2)  This might be the biggest request on my part:  I am a childless weird auntie (in a good way) to many families (friends) all who have kids of various ages.  Sometimes I am itching to get them Nancy Drew or the Hardy Boys...but I can't remember what AGE I was when I started reading those books.  Or if those books are just way too outdated for today's young hipsters.  I know I was twelve with Mark Twain, but many kids report hating that book now.  What the heck changed?  Anyway, if there were ways the editors and members could tag and categorize books to age ranges...that would be so great!  And maybe provide ways to discuss books in today's cultural context versus...well, ours.  So we can figure out what the kids might truly love without losing touch with introducing them to the classics.

3) What about a partnership with Powells or some other store to help folks buy these books?  Maybe you have this, but also, what about a regional book exchange/recycle/resale program for parents? 

4)  Why stop at books?  Could little games built around the books be developed and offered on here in a kids section?  So kids and parents could both get something out of the site?  Kids are always looking for games on the net with the parents watching over the shoulder (hopefully) and well, they both could find this wonderful place.

5)  What about kids who are of age to read Judy Blume books, etc.?  What about nervous parents who wonder when the time is right for such things?  Perhaps areas specific to these issues could be started in the forums to get a discussion going.  Or ratings developed around suggested ages for reading...

6) Here's one: What about kids writing and publishing their OWN books online and submitting them here and sharing them with other kids and parents?  I know this one 6 yrd girl child who recently made a book at her school and it really rocked!  The art work and the writing was so good.  And she was so proud of it.  What if there was a section where kids could make books or art in response to their favorite books they've just read?  They could come back and share with other kids?  A virtual arts and crafts and publishing room?

7) Teaching aids for some of the books?  Ways to read to your child to help them build vocabulary (if the parents have the energy).  But hey, maybe teachers could use this site.....

I'll stop here for now.  Great site...super clean.  Oh, one more nit pick...make the icons larger.  It took me awhile to figure out how to respond to your post with the original quote.  I didn't see the icon for awhile.

Best,  Oedipa

Hi, Oedipa. Thanks for making so many excellent suggestions. I am thrilled to find someone taking an interest in MyKidsLibrary.  I'd like to respond to each of your ideas.

I agree that some of the fonts are small, and that's not because I have great eyesight or I am eager to make visitors have eyestrain. It's really more a question of balancing the need to pack a page with useful context while not putting so much of it in a place that one has to scroll to that it is missed by someone who is "speed-reading" on the site. I'm going to take a good, hard look at the design of the pages and see what I can do to make the more usable. Along those lines, since the site is designed for adults (parents, teachers, librarians, childless wierd aunties...) I chose a cool, simple color scheme that wouldn't be too jarring. I'm not really sure that a brightly-colored, highly-contrasting set of colors would really serve the intended audience of the site.

Books are already categorized with information according to age range. On the page for any book, the suggested age range is right underneath the author's name. Also, you can browse for books according to age range.

Many of my PNW friends rave about Powell's. I've no idea how I'd go about partnering with them, but MKL already gives our users the ability to buy books that are featured on the site through Amazon. Take a look at any book page, Lazy Little Loafers, for instance, and you'll see that right underneath the book's cover image is a bolded link, Buy this Book from Amazon!

I would really, really love to offer a games section, something to intruige kids and get them involved in the site, but game development is far-beyond my experience, and I run this site on a budget of zero dollars per month -- it's my passion, not my business -- so paying someone else to make games in Flash or Java is an impossibility for me. Perhaps you would like to volunteer?

I am always happy to create new sections in the forums, but I should note that any logged-in user can create a new section themselves. MKL's Forums are intended to be by-the-users and for-the-user. Obviously, I participate here as much as anyone else, but there's no reason that you can't create categories and specific posts for things that interest you.

I would, of course, love to have MKLers scan and post any kind of artistic works created by their children. Perhaps I will have to seed it with my own little writer/artist's creations.

All of your ideas are excellent, and I am planning to act on the ones that are actually within my capabilities. Thanks so much for taking the time to share them with us.