5 Useful Ways to Help Kids Enjoy Video Games Responsibly

Love them or hate them, video games and handheld consoles are here to stay and have become a major feature in many kids lives.

And even though some of the latest games have health issues at their core (the Wii Fit for example), it’s still important to monitor our kids use of handheld consoles to make sure that they’re enjoying the benefits and avoiding the pitfalls of gaming.

The benefits? Research now shows that video games can help improve hand-eye co-ordination, problem solving, visual spatial skills and scientific thinking**. Surgeons who are also proficient gamers have shown improvements in speed and accuracy while undertaking complicated surgical procedures.

Handheld consoles such as the Nintendo DS Lite can also be incredibly useful when you need to motivate your youngster to do their homework, help out in the home or to help make long journeys a little more bearable.

But long term over use of consoles does have its downsides. Here are 5 ways you can help to make sure your kids enjoy their gaming healthily.

1. Choose their games carefully.

It’s a parent’s responsibility to decide based on their own child’s sensitivity and age which games are suitable for them. Yes, once they’re with their friends you lose that control, but if you make clear what is acceptable within your own household you will probably find they will come to respect these values.

Use a site such as www.esrb.org to find out the rating and suitability of most games.

Remember, studies have confirmed earlier research that found students who played violent games tended to be more hostile, less forgiving and believed violence to be normal compared to those who played non-violent games, so try and restrict their contact with these kinds of games until they are much older.

2. Remember the Benefits.

While too much of anything is usually a bad thing and too much gaming can potentially result in your child becoming a couch potato, remember there are many benefits to using handheld gaming consoles such as the DS Lite including an improvement in fine motor skills and spatial awareness. So try not to be too strict with your child’s usage. When they know that providing they stop playing at the appropriate times (at meals, bedtime, family time etc) they can go back to it later, the allure tends to lessen. The more forbidden an activity the more appealing it becomes!

I recommend giving a 10 minutes warning before they will be asked to put the console down. This gives them a chance to finish their game and or stop at the next stage. There’s nothing worse than having to tear yourself away when you’re doing well without any warning.

3. Manage Gaming Time

While we don’t want to be too restrictive about time spent on the console, we also have to remember the risk of eye strain when using any kind of VDU (or reading too many books for that matter!)

Remind your kids to rest their eyes every 20-30 minutes by looking out of the window and refocusing on a distant tree for example to try and limit the amount of strain their young eyes will be experiencing. When you explain the risks they will hopefully understand, but it’s also your responsibility to remind them regularly as it’s very easy to get completely lost in an exciting game and lose track of time.

4. Use Consoles as a Carrot rather than a Stick!

Rather than threatening to limit console time due to poor behaviour or overuse, turn the tables and turn “Nintendo Time” into a reward.

Homework seems to get done much faster and little jobs around the home appear to be done with a lot less fuss when the reward is some time of the console afterwards.

Add extra time for good behaviour or insist that the Nintendo can only be used once the essentials daily tasks of being a kid have been completed. This way you are using gaming in a positive way rather than casting it in a negative light which immediately increases its desirability.

I always prefer the carrot to the stick approach when dealing with my children and consoles such as the DS Lite really come into their own when you need to encourage kids to do some of the less pleasant aspects of life!

5. Embrace Real Life too

As long as kids also have a healthy dose of real exercise (not necessarily just Wii Fit exercise) during their week then I think the risks of becoming a couch potato or obese through using them are fairly minimal.

Try and enrol them in other outdoor activities during their week so that you can be sure they’re getting their hearts pumping, muscles working and some fresh air into their systems.

Try and work in trips to the woods, the beach and the hills throughout the year so your children have the opportunity to see real landscapes in action. These kinds of excursion don’t need to be expensive, just quick day trips or one night away can feel as rejuvenating and life enhancing as a long holiday.

These trips create real and solid memories for your children and help you relax in the knowledge you are giving your family a well rounded experience of life.

Just don’t forget to bring the DS Lites with you to help pass the time on the long journey! Happy Gaming! xx

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Anneve Hutchinson is the owner of www.DS-Lite-CONSOLES.co.uk a website that compares the prices of Nintendo DS Lites, helping you to save searching time and to find the best deal available from top high street stores and independent online retailers.

** CNN.com