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As a parent of a typical kid who LOVES video games and technology, I find that my son occasionally comes to me asking for a particular app or game or gadget that I’ve never heard of before.

Usually a quick Google search or check into CommonSenseMedia.org can give me the guidance I need to be able to make a decision.

But there are certainly times when a particular item has reviews that aren’t in the “parent sphere” so I have make an educated guess as to whether it’s age-appropriate, how it may be useful for our family, and just what does it do again?! 

I’m sure we’re not the only family out there that has been overwhelmed with keeping up with the pace of the latest, greatest technology tools and gadgets available, so this fall we are launching our “What the Heck is..?” workshop series, aimed at parents and kids exploring technology together.

Our September sessions will cover Minecraft – what it is, why it is so popular (and why is that a good thing?) and what are the possible issues with it that parents should know about.  

These hands-on sessions will allow parent-child pairs to explore Minecraft by playing it together here at the library, and we will cover the various things you may have heard your Minecraft-players mention: redstone, seeds, mobs, mods, maps, griefing, etc. 

While you may not be ready to fight the Ender Dragon by the end of the workshop, you’ll certainly have a better understanding of what Minecraft is about, and perhaps your interest will be stoked enough to go build something fantastic in Minecraft with your child at home.

Registration for our Sept. 15 Minecraft workshop opened yesterday; since this is a hands-on workshop with each participant at a computer, we have only 12 seats available (6 parent/child pairs) per session; registration for the Sept. 22 Minecraft workshop (which will be a repeat of the first workshop) will open next Tuesday, the 15th.  We anticipate that this will be a popular workshop so don’t put off registering!

Upcoming workshops will cover littleBits (Oct. 13 and 20) and GoPro (Nov. 10 and 17); registration will always open one week prior to each workshop. I also welcome suggestions for future workshops if there's a particular technology topic that you're interested in us covering, so please comment or email me if you have a suggestion.