YouTube Kids app comes to Amazon Fire TV

Amazon Fire TV owners can now make sure their children can only access kid-friendly YouTube videos with the launch of the new app on the device. YouTube Kids offers a curated, children-centric content separate from the main YouTube app. And it comes with parental control features to let parents block specific videos and channels from showing up on the app. It's useful to help curate what your kids see while they use the app.

Source: Engadget

YouTube Kids to release three new child safety features this year

YouTube is working on making sure kids won’t get exposed to inappropriate content on its Kids service. The company is rolling out more safety features in the coming months. The first one that’s coming out this week is going to let parents limit their kids’ use of the app to specially-curated channels, like Sesame Workshop and PBS Kids. There won’t be a need for parents to tweak the app to make sure the content has been vetted.

But if parents want more control over what their kids see beyond what YouTube selects, the option to handpick channels is coming later this year. And the last feature is that video playback will be limited to verified videos and channels when parents opt to turn YouTube search off. For those who are satisfied with how YouTube Kids is now, parents also still have the option to open up a wider selection of video content for their children.

Source: Android Authority

YouTube Kids introduces new features like child profiles and more parental controls

YouTube is looking to give more control to both the kids and parents with the new update to its YouTube Kids app. The app now supports multiple users, letting your child set up their own profile and have optional passcodes added to keep their brothers or sisters from messing with the profile (parents can still override the passcode). This also ties their profile to the same Google account and lets them switch between devices (including smart TVs) with ease. For the parents, the setup process has been improved as well. When you enter your child’s age, the app will adjust its look to suit the age range (the app does get a fresh new look to it). The app will also now let parents now information you put in during the initial setup process will impact what your child can watch.

The YouTube team is quick to remind users though that they are still working on making sure mature content gets filtered out. In the blog post announcing the changes, they encourage parents to block and flag videos that do get through the cracks and they promise they are working and “looking at ways to build an even better experience for families.”

Top playlists on the YouTube Kids App for Family Day

By Sonya Davidson

As we head into the Family Day long weekend here in Ontario and other Canadian provinces (and bracing for bitterly cold weather), families are all now looking for things to do with their kids. Where do we often do our research? It's no surprise that we often reach for our devices and Google "things to do" whether it's adventures outdoors, indoor activities or what's open during the long weekend. 

Families with kids, like us, often find we need some downtime in between outings...okay truthfully, I really don't want to go outside and there are so many cake pops we need to make! 

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