ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses how the physical aspects of each media constrain and elicit what children chose to symbolize in their play. The concepts of self-object distance, aflfordance, and reflectivity can generate new uses of computer graphics to stimulate thinking in young children. The chapter identifies how interactive video encourages children to pause and reflect. A three dimensional medium makes an interesting contrast with the video medium for several reasons. The video icon moves across a screen several feet away from the hand actions that produces the movement. Because a video icon can be moved anywhere on the CRT children were constantly creating arrangements that not only violated gravity but also violated the usual. In fact a majority of a child’s symbolic acts are over-learned rituals or merely an instrumental response to obtain some immediate objective. The self record and objective replay is yet another means of increasing self–object distance.
