Crabmommy: Do you let your kids play video games?

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  Posted by desiree Mon Feb 2, 2009 1:25pm PST

  my 4yr old child is so technical it amazes me. he has a wii- well him and his dad play guitar hero. he also had learning system video game system that he didn't really understand till he was like 3 1/2 but he was learning, and he plays the the playstation with dad again. he also got a handheld leapster 2 for christmas which he loves to play with in the car. but don't get me wrong my child will play all day outside and play with his toys and read books and pretend to be his fave superheros all day and not touch a video game. and he is learning to read, he is in a great pre-k(shout out to St. Paul Christian Academy!!- ox, ca ) school that is preparing them for kindergarten. we are working on sight words right now, he knows his abc's & numbers both visually and will say outloud, days of the week, and he does math problems. he will deifinitely be smarter than me some day!!

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  Posted by Sha-ka Mon Feb 2, 2009 2:40pm PST

  My youngest is almost 2 and he isn't into games yet. His older brother plays them religiously and they are great for learning. We got him the Leapfrog Didj for Christmas and it is really cool. The games stop at certain points and in order to continue they have to answer math or spelling or grammar questions. I highly recommend it!

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  Posted by trxiegirl71 Mon Feb 2, 2009 4:18pm PST

  my 5 year old got a Leapster 2 for Christmas that she is suppossed to share with her 3 year old brother and doesn't she is learning so much from it! We have tried to teach her how to play video games but she has not gotten the hang of it yet. She is not alowed to play by herself, I and her Daddy play with her. As for tv, I feel that both of my children watch way too much. I don't think that Super Why!, Handy Manny or Sid the Science Kid is going to rot my 3 year old Son's brain though. We (I and Daddy) watch iCarly, Drake and Josh and tons of SpongeBob SquarePants with both of the children (as we are doing right now). I do wish that they watched less, but unless it is something harmful, then I am not too concerned with it. Both of the children do other things and most of the time the tv is on for background noise.

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  Posted by HotCrossBuns Mon Feb 2, 2009 5:43pm PST

  At the age of 4, Kid2 was installing software on my computer, and had her own folder (that she knew how to access by herself) for all of her online games. My 6 year old is now a techno junkie as well!! When he's not reading, writing his own stories, or coloring, he's either playing or strategizing his next move on his Xbox or Wii games. He's even beat his experienced dad and uncle on a few of his racing games!My girls love to get on the Wii and either box, bowl, or play tennis. We also have a nintendo DS, but they have to pry that one out of my own hands before they can play on it! We're not much of a tv-watching family, but I guess after answering this I can see we've just replaced it with video games! I'll even admit that I've used video games as a "babysitter" on occasion, too.

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  Posted by kgirl Mon Feb 2, 2009 6:10pm PST

  I think all kids should have access to a computer as early as they can. By the fourth grade my kids had to do powerpoint presentations and all final drafts had to be typed. Every kindergarden class had multiple computers that the kids learned on daily. If they do not have the opportunity to become familiar with the computer beforehand they will be at a disadvantage in the classroom. There are so many games that are educational as well as fun for the kiddo's that there is no reason to hold them back. As far as the internet goes... wait as long as you can!

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  Posted by paige_n_jordans_mom Mon Feb 2, 2009 6:45pm PST

  Both of my children have been playing on the computer since they were around 2 or 3. We began by guiding them to Sesame Street games and Nick Jr games. My son learned every letter of the alphabet by his 3rd birthday and began reading later that year. He is in his second year of school (Pre-K 4) and because he is so advanced they have tried to push me to advance him a grade level. I have refused because of maturity issues more than anything.

  My son and daughter each have their own folders for their games and can navigate the internet fairly well by themselves. My husband and I are always in the room watching them to be sure they don't find something unpleasant. My son has even begun using my husband's iTunes to listen to music while he plays games. Funnily enough, he taught his dad how to search for the songs he wants from his playlist.

  In addition to computer time, they each have their own educational video game system and share a Wii with the entire family. We have the Wii fit which both LOVE to play. Living in Texas, active games are essential for those too hot summers where little ones are trapped indoors. We spend very little time watching TV and not too much online. Being young neither of my children can be still at the computer or TV for more than 20 - 30 minutes anyway. ;)

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  Posted by Stéphanie Tue Feb 3, 2009 1:11am PST

  As a tech writer I can't pretend video games don't exist for my kid. But I've found a solution : she can play - not for very long (20 minutes) - in broad day light to some game not violent (Lily Rose is great on DS), or play with me or her father on the Wii.

  Same for TV, she can see a cartoon or two (or a rerun on Youtube) if someone is beside her and not for too long.

  However, in the same day, it's either TV or video games. She's still too young to stay too long in front of a screen.

  Better than totally ban them, I prefer to teach her how to use them and how to play with regular toys and books too.

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  Posted by Christa Tue Feb 3, 2009 6:02am PST

  Well, we have a Wii, Playstation, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, Sega Genesis, 2 computers, and 3 Nintendo DS' (I have been collecting them most of my life). All my kids are avid gamers and use them as just another tool to learn with and play with throughout the day, much like their other toys, books, and bikes. We wouldn't have it any other way!!

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  Posted by Billysmom Tue Feb 3, 2009 7:08am PST

  My son is in Kindergarten, and they have computer class once a week. I allow him to play age appropriate games at home. He especially likes Thomas. He also received a Leapster2 for Christmas with a Wall-e game. It has the constellations and planets on it. He can identify them better than I can. I think technology is great. He is going to be using it for the rest of his life, and he is learning so much from it. As long as it doesn't replace unstructured playtime and outside fun. I don't see anything wrong with the TV or games.

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  Posted by C Tue Feb 3, 2009 7:38am PST

  Hmmmm....I don't consider the computer and video game systems to be one and the same, just for starters.

  We don't own a VGS. Niether hubby nor I really enjoy them, so why bother? We have been consciously cutting back on TV, though this winter has been difficult because its so cold and because we have a tiny one, and as a result of those two items we're feeling a tad house-bound. But the little one literally zones into a trance when he can get his eyes on the TV, which fairly wigs me out. I think that not allowing him supervised computer time as he gets older would be a disservice to him.

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