The Pros And Cons Of Letting Your Kids Play With Video Games

Almost all children love to play video games and most parents wonder if there is any harm in it. Here you can learn the pros and cons of letting your kids play with video games.

The Pros

Playing video games does not mean that children have to play alone. Multiplayer games let kids interact with each other and give parents the chance to do something with their children that they will both enjoy. Kids learn to work as a team and still develop social skills by spending time with others while playing.

All kids need outdoor time, but on rainy days or during inclement weather, video games are a good way to pass the time while still developing hand eye coordination and simple motor skills. If the games have motion sensors, like Xbox Kinect and Wii, kids can still get in a little exercise. While video games are a good supplement to exercise, it should not be their main source of physical activity.

Many hand held video games and video games in general, offer educational games as well. The Nintendo DS has games to help kids learn another language, practice math facts and even learn to read. To get the most out of game play time, look for games that are fun but also help your child learn something.

The Cons

Children who spend too much time glued to video games lack social interactions do not develop the personal skills they need. Even though there are games that let your children play along with motion sensor, they only burn less than half the calories that they would playing in “real life.”

Just like adults, children can also suffer from addictions. Video games are a toy and that is how they should be treated, not as a necessity. Parents find video games as an easy option to spending time with their kids or they use them as an electronic babysitter. Each child needs to have a time limit to their video game play or some form of parental control.

Video games and consoles are not cheap, every child wants them but they may not be mature enough to have them. Game systems like Leapster are a little more sturdy than a PS3 or Nintendo DS 3D, but each one is a pretty hefty investment. A kick ball or a jump rope are quite a bit cheaper and quality time with the family does not cost a thing.

Why You Should Cook with Your Kids

Kids love to be engaged in activities, especially those that involve spending time with their parents or grandparents. When children are young, they are fascinated with new things and always take pride in being a “little helper”.

Cooking is one activity that children enjoy doing with an adult. Their first response after the excitement of being asked to help is most likely “let me do it”. There are some important benefits to allowing your young child to cook with you.

Identifying Role in the Family

When young kids are encouraged to take part in preparing a family meal, it gives them a sense of belonging. Even if he or she is an only child, participating in the comforting preparation of a meal allows the child to feel a part of the family.

Many times a child is only allowed to play with their toys, for example. This is entertaining for the child, but it doesn’t identify his or her role in the family. Working together on a task allows for this role identity.

Feeling of Belonging

As a child begins to grow and understand certain roles that everyone plays in the family, there also exists the yearning of belonging. Cooking together and encouraging a child to actively participate in the preparation of the meal makes him or her feel that he or she belongs – that he or she is part of the family.

Cooking together with a child and allowing him or her to do even the simplest things, such as washing and tearing the lettuce to create a salad, causes a child to feel the sense of belonging. This is a critical part in a child’s development and self-esteem.

Understanding Household Tasks are for Everyone

By not identifying cooking to one person’s role in the family, it allows a child to develop in a manner that does not identify certain tasks to certain genders. For example, by allowing a male child to cook with his mother, he learns quickly that not only females cook, but males cook as well.

Wanting a child to see the two sexes as equal is supported by the simple task of daily cooking. The child will then start to understand that the household chores are to be shared with everyone. This can further develop into the understanding that there is no limit to what he or she can do in life with no dependence on his or her sex.

Increasing the Learning Curve

A child learning to assist with cooking the family meal can also be a learning experience in math and reading, which are the two most critical educational contents in today’s world. Showing a child how much a cup of flour is, how to double the recipe, or even how to adjust cooking times for certain meals teaches a child the basics in math.

Having the child read a recipe along with following the steps of the recipe teaches reading, comprehension, and sequential importance. These are all important aspects needed to allow a child to read at or above his or her grade level.