Family Game Night
By Dr. Randy KulmanThe tradition of families playing a board game is well engrained in American culture. While it happens far less frequently than in the past due to busy schedules, demands of school and work, and the lure of electronic diversions, the concept has been reintroduced in television ads by Hasbro. There's a twist to these ads: family game night is now touted as using electronic versions of classic Hasbro games on the Nintendo Wii. While Hasbro is quick to tell consumers that they can still play the traditional board games, family members, including grandparents and younger children, are displayed as having a great time and fully engaged in the electronic versions of these games.
This is a great idea. The major dilemma that parents of digital-age children have is that they are not part of their children's involvement in video games and other digital technologies. Our own studies at LearningWorks for Kids and the Pew Internet & American Life Project indicate that less than one-third of parents play video games with their children. As a result, they are often unaware of the types of games that children are playing, the amount of time they play video games, or the potential positive opportunities that might present itself in a child's video-game play.
The value of playing video games as a family was further articulated in a recent Wall Street Journal editorial by Jonathan V. Last on Friday, November 27, 2009. Mr. Last described his "83-year-old Uncle Walter," who had never touched a video game before, learning how to play Wii Bowling. He described family video-game play as "one of the best evenings we've ever had together." While the Nintendo Wii has positioned itself through its motion-based controller to be an easily-acquired skill by adults, parents, and even grandparents, there are many other opportunities for parents to play video games with their children. The majority of video games are designed for two or more players, and hand-held consoles such as the Nintendo DSI and iPod Touch are designed so that two or more players can link their machines to compete or cooperated in game play.
Playing games with children is a great way to talk with them about their interests. It's a way to be "cool" (to them and their friends) without trying to be cool. Playing video games with your kids helps you to be able to set more appropriate limits about their game play and better monitor what they are doing. Perhaps most importantly, it helps you to use your child's video-game play as a teaching opportunity. Many games require problem solving, decision making, and other critical-thinking skills that, if taken from the game and applied to the real world, can become a huge asset for your children. So playing games with your kids can become a learning experience for both of you, and fun as well.
Dr. Randy Kulman is the founder and president of Learningworks for Kids. As a licensed clinical child psychologist, he has been working directly with kids and families for the past 30 years. Dr. Kulman has become a leading expert on the use of digital technologies for improving thinking skills in children. You can learn more about him on the About page of LearningWorks for Kids.
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