Gaming and parenting

Gaming and parenting. You can mix them for a delicious life!

From violence against others, violence against ourselves, moral compasses pointing in the wrong direction like a badly coded GPS system and just plain GAMES MAKE YOU STUPID type of stories. But what about the good side? Who is talking about the educational properties of gaming and how it helps many kids to learn in different and exciting ways? What about games bringing families together with a new range of family game nights? WHAT ABOUT POKEMANS!? OK no, not Pokemon but some kids are amazing at Pokemon and have developed a deeper understanding of strategy and numbers through it. Yes. Kids can learn how to use math properly through Pokemon.

Some kids learn at a different pace and what learning strategies work for some kids might not work for others. Some kids are visual learners and others learn from simply "getting it" without the use of learning aids. This is where I believe gaming can help. You might not believe it but sometimes kids need a reason to use the things they learn so they remember it better. Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Give a kid a game and they learn WHY and HOW to use math in everyday scenarios. Give them exciting ways to learn and kids not only absorb this information but learning isn't boring anymore. They'll crave learning without realising it.

I'm a gamer and have been since 4 years old (Hello Amiga computers and Commodore 64s) so introducing my kids to gaming was an exciting and important time for me because as I got older I stopped playing with dolls and cars (my imagination has wandered a little with adult responsibility) but games are easy to play with my kids! Eg: playing Rock of Ages against my 8 year old was a great night.

I have a few ideas on how to introduce fun ways to learn with my kids through gaming. I didn't hand them a controller and expected them to jump into gaming without supervision nor did I allow them to play any game they wanted. All games were picked for their learning value and as entertainment for the whole family. This is where some parents fall on letting their kids game. They forget to be involved with the process and to understand what games can be right and wrong for younger kids to play. It doesn't have to be all educational games. You can't hand a kid a game from a shelf and allow them to play without knowing what the game is about. Play the game first. Look up 'let's play' videos on Youtube and discover what the game is like for yourself. It's a fun way to see what your kid will be playing.

Any game from the Lego franchise has been played and replayed in our house and still continues to be entertaining for all. I actually accept that a Lego game helped my kids to learn to share and take turns. Both kids became better at communicating and working together to solve problems. Play time now extends to game time and yet it doesn't take over their time for more important things. You can limit game time and still kick them outside to play happily.

My 5 year old use to think reading was boring. Sitting and reading out loud with me for 20 minutes everyday made him fidget, lose focus and refuse to continue. With the help of videogames (and my daughter and I) he realised he needed to learn to read. We had all agreed to stop reading him what was on screen and he knew the words he couldn't read meant he couldn't play the game. He decided to read more because of that. This is something that, even with time and effort from me, he was going to refuse to forced into doing. Learning to read fluently and fast meant he could game more. Now, that's not to say I left it purely up to a game to teach my son to read but it was a way for him to know why he should read and work hard at practicing sounds and letters.

This is what being a parent is about. Teaching your kids the why and not just the how. You'll be asked why the sky is blue, why you need to learn numbers and how cars move. Sometimes explaining science and math is boring and won't soak into their minds. Showing them with games, letting them BUILD a virtual engine or defeat space invaders with quick math solving makes it easier to learn. Not everyone can learn straight from a book.