All About Kids' Gaming: Addiction, What Age Is Suitable, etc

[clarabella]

:salute: to buds

And :salute: to your girls! I'm very impressed by all the kids who don't get addicted to their handhelds.

For me, my objection stems from the fact that I keep seeing kids playing while WALKING (how do they do that?!), playing at the dining table, playing while their parents are talking to them, playing in the bath (ok, a bit extreme, but I witnessd that during a family holiday!) etc. It really freaks me out when I see my kids' cousins sitting in a row clicking away. :shock:

[buds]

We can learn from the mistakes others have made.

It is really up to us how we nurture our children..
whether we want ours to be like others.. for example
in this case of discussion : the handheld addictions...

But i actually thought initially it was to discuss what
age was PSP suitable? :? Just like FB where adults
help to create accounts for their children... there is
really no benchmark to when parents decide that it
is ok to start on something. It's a matter of when
they prefer it reali. And it's a matter of individual
and personal decisions... when one thinks their
children are ready i suppose..

The rules, the principles, our preferred practices are
all ours..... and that said we also need to remember
to walk our talk.

Whatever it is one decides to provide...
We can provide freedom within limitations.
Our limitations..

........and that's something subjective;
depending on each family's ways of life.

[JonC]

Don’t buy at all.


You will have to pay more by buying / upgrading spectacles for them later. Because they should rest at intervals but they can play whole day without rest.

Has seen many cases, including mine.

[KingRascal]

Haha, mine is another example. It all started with the basic Wii set. Next came the Wii fit board. Then we bought the Motion plus remote... Heard there's Wii fit board plus! Endless.

JonC:

Don't buy at all.

You will have to pay more by buying / upgrading spectacles for them later. Because they should rest at intervals but they can play whole day without rest.

Has seen many cases, including mine.

[tamarind]

ks2me:

But sometimes I wonder if playing electronic games help to build the kids reflex better since they are always challenged in that area when playing the games.

The answer is NO, it will not develop better reflexes. Otherwise we don't have to employ table tennis players from China to win medals for us. I spent many hours playing computer games, but my reflexes are still very bad, I had to take the driving practical test 4 times before I passed.

tankee:

tamarind:

This is what my 6 year old daughter do when she has to wait.....

i'm VERY IMPRESSED !!!!! :shock: :celebrate:

If we don't give PSP or other electronic games to the kids, they will naturally think of something to do to occupy themselves.

To other parents,
Even if they have nothing to do, it is absolutely OK to just day dream. I day dream a lot when I was young, and I was in the top 10% in RGS. When I started playing computer games in university, I was in the bottom 10%. Computer games erodes a person's motivation to study, I am not only speaking from personal experience. Now I have so many young adult students who are more motivated to play computer games than to study. They are failing many modules and they don't even care if they fail. It is a very worrying trend, the problem is more serious than anyone can imagine. I really hope that parents will wake up and do the right thing.

[tamarind]

clarabella:

tamarind:

Do you remember that we all grow up without PSP ?

Hahaha, I just said that to DH! He wanted to get DS1 a PSP for his birthday and I objected. We are still arguing about it. Last year, he got DS1 a DS Lite and it's largely unused because my son would rather spend all his time swimming or on his Lego and Zoob sets. But DH, being an avid gamer, is undeterred and persists in trying to get our kids hooked on Wii, DS etc.
In fact, he keeps mentioning research along the line of http://archsurg.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/142/2/181 and tells me that playing electronic games actually help him improve his techniques in computed-assisted surgery. :roll:

Electronic games will only be helpful in the type of computer skills that you mentioned. It will not help in software programming, database design, etc. Playing electronic games for many hours is also a great way to stifle a child's creativity. Better to stick to Lego and ZOOB.

buds:

But i actually thought initially it was to discuss what
age was PSP suitable?

My answer is after the kids graduate from university and start working. They can buy PSP using their own money.

[metz]

buds:

Eh but seriously i hafta go with Sashimi, EN and mathsparks that with
good time management & proper time and place... it is really fine.
Anythin' taken in moderation is fine, ain't it?

Count me in! :celebrate:

\"Good time management & proper time and place\" is indeed something parents must cultivate in their kids if they intend to allow their kids any electronic gadgets. Can't speak for the majority but I have seen cases whereby there's no negative correlation between studies and play. Both my in-laws' kids play xbox at my mil's place on weekends. One just got into GEP and a P5 is the top 10 in his school (also selected to participate in various GEP programmes). Not just relatives, but I also observe the similar trend among friends' kids. But, but, but I'm sure there are also kids who are adversely affected by the devices. So yeah, if parents decide to give, make sure you guide them to handle the devices in a healthy way. (Erm, but isn't that already part of our job scope?) After all, it's just one of the many alternatives they can have. As they get older, electronic gadgets might be the last thing we have to worry. Sorry, but I heard the in-thing for upper sec kids is the electric guitar. They will spend hours jamming away on the guitar, either alone or as a group. Oops, it's still an electronic gadget, isn't it?

Hi KingRascal,
It's a very common to see the young ones playing electronic gadgets during the weekend gatherings at my mil's place (think they are only allowed to play on that day). But somehow, it's not really anti-social thingy for us. The older kids will play against each other, teach my kids to play etc. But most of the time, my son will be providing \"commentaries\" for them as they play and everybody will be laughing away. :lol: Perhaps, it's not the device but the attitude that needs some working on? If my kids choose to be anti-social at my mil's place, they would probably find a corner and read their books, ignoring the rest. And you can bet nobody dares to approach them.

[KingRascal]

Yes, it depends on how the situation is managed. Guess I would only be able to conclude more when I go for the next gathering...which is for year-end countdown.


Well, the situation is also not made easy as I'm not in the position to make any rules or regulations for the children as they are in-laws...if you know what I mean...

chamonix:

Hi KingRascal,
It's a very common to see the young ones playing electronic gadgets during the weekend gatherings at my mil's place (think they are only allowed to play on that day). But somehow, it's not really anti-social thingy for us. The older kids will play against each other, teach my kids to play etc. But most of the time, my son will be providing \"commentaries\" for them as they play and everybody will be laughing away. :lol: Perhaps, it's not the device but the attitude that needs some working on? If my kids choose to be anti-social at my mil's place, they would probably find a corner and read their books, ignoring the rest. And you can bet nobody dares to approach them.

[tankee]

tamarind:

....My answer is after the kids graduate from university and start working. They can buy PSP using their own money.

I don't think any kids these days need to wait that long to save enough for a PSP. Holiday jobs aplenty too.

[metz]

KingRascal:

Well, the situation is also not made easy as I'm not in the position to make any rules or regulations for the children as they are in-laws...if you know what I mean...

You bet I do... but I learnt to bite my tongue and make the best out of the situation.

Psst...Haha, you won't believe that I was uptight like you about the xbox/handheld devices/TV watching during dinner at my mil's place initially.
Even got my kids to bring along books to read. Come to think of it now, I nearly made them antisocial towards their cousins. :!:

[quote]Yes, it depends on how the situation is managed. Guess I would only be able to conclude more when I go for the next gathering...which is for year-end countdown. [/quote]Maybe they are treasuring their limited play time. After all, holidays will be over soon!