Kids and Video Games

What is it with video games? They are the bane of existence for so many kids.  Who am I to say differently because I was one of those kids.  I remember looking forward to coming home from middle school just to play Duck Tales and Zelda on my Nintendo.  My situation was the best though. I am a twin so my brother and I always had a competitor and teammate, depending on which games we were playing.

I have a video game system now and I actually can't remember when I didn't have one of the popular systems.  I had Nintendo, Sega Genesis, Nintendo 64, Sega Dream Cast, and now the Wii (this is my favorite).

Now that I am working through my memories and thoughts, It really does make sense why games are so addictive.  They are fun, you can be something that you are usually not (like a Marine or an Olympic Snowboarder) , and they help you forget about anything stressful (until the game stresses you out and you want to throw it through the window).

Kids love games and because of technology so many types of video games are available.  Ipod games, Nintendo DS, other portable systems, laptops/computer games, and all those crazy systems, gaming is and will always be the #1 love of kids.

Think about it.  What other things do kids have to look forward to.  School...uhhh. no.  Homework...uhhh....no, social events...uhhh. maybe.... but what else is there.  Relationships...uhhh. I really hope not.  Sports...sure but still not as popular as video games.

A prime example is my boy, Matt.  He's six and can rock the socks off of Mario Galaxy on the Wii and Lego Indiana Jones.  This is no doubt that this is what he enjoys the most especially when I play along side of him.  The problem is that, just like when I was a kid, it is addictive and we as the parents have to pull the plug when necessary.

Today we had a snow day. We were snowed in.  We read some books, played some board games, built some tents, but the entire day revolved around, "daddy, is it time to play the Wii."  Seriously, we had a great time doing other stuff but we know where the obsession lies. 

It's good that he enjoys it but my wife and I really have to monitor his playing and make sure he balances his time well with other activities and not only video games.  Enough was Enough today when there were certain boards he couldn't beat and he continuously came up to me to ask me to help beat the board, every 15 minutes for an hour.   I would help him and then he would come get me. When I said I couldn't anymore, he said "but you never help me."  HA, really?????  That was the cue to unplug.

Anyway the point is to monitor and moderate the time our kids spend on video games.  I believe it has helped him mature and develop in areas he had been struggling with and the learning games are phenomenal.  They could help your kids too but we definitely do not want to deprive them of the other important aspects of life like spending quality time with the family.





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