advice on game systems?

We have 2 boys, almost 4 and almost 8. So far our kids have only done
any kind of electronic game playing on the computer with educational
games we own or online ( Blues Clues, Magic School Bus, PBS Kids,
etc.). For a long time I was dead set against having a video gaming
system (the kind that hooks up to the TV), but I am now coming around
to my husband's point of view that if we want to continue to exert
strong influence over the types of games our kids play, it might be a
good idea to have a machine of our own so our kids can play the games
we approve of at home and hopefully their friends will play here,
too.

So now I'm considering looking into a unit for their birthdays, or
maybe next Christmas. Of all the different game systems available, is
there any one system any of you have found to offer a large variety of
educational or non-violent games appropriate for kids under 10?

And for those of you who will say they'll still play the games we
don't approve at their friends' homes, so far the older one has shown
a lot of maturity and integrity in that area and has declined to play
such games at the neighbor's house, even asking me to tell the mom he
didn't want to play them. (The younger neighbor son had gotten into
the older son's games, apparently.)

Thanks for any advice or guidance.

Karen

On Wed, 2 Jan 2008 15:36:35 -0800 (PST), KLE wrote:

We have 2 boys, almost 4 and almost 8. So far our kids have only done
any kind of electronic game playing on the computer with educational
games we own or online ( Blues Clues, Magic School Bus, PBS Kids,
etc.). For a long time I was dead set against having a video gaming
system (the kind that hooks up to the TV), but I am now coming around
to my husband's point of view that if we want to continue to exert
strong influence over the types of games our kids play, it might be a
good idea to have a machine of our own so our kids can play the games
we approve of at home and hopefully their friends will play here,
too.

So now I'm considering looking into a unit for their birthdays, or
maybe next Christmas. Of all the different game systems available, is
there any one system any of you have found to offer a large variety of
educational or non-violent games appropriate for kids under 10?

Gamecube is more geared toward kids and it's affordable, $49 last time I
looked. They don't make games for them anymore, but you can still find
games.

Wii is expensive, but it is also family friendly.


And for those of you who will say they'll still play the games we
don't approve at their friends' homes, so far the older one has shown
a lot of maturity and integrity in that area and has declined to play
such games at the neighbor's house, even asking me to tell the mom he
didn't want to play them. (The younger neighbor son had gotten into
the older son's games, apparently.)

As a child, I also pretty much played by my parents' rules even when they
weren't around. Parents are a more powerful influence than most people
realize.

FWIW, I was against video game systems, but I finally caved in and bought a
Gamecube. DS is allowed to play 30 minutes after homework is finished
everyday and he can play for a whole day as a reward after collecting
enough stars. It is a good motivator. I found out later they also did
this with the game system at his daycare.

toypup wrote:

Gamecube is more geared toward kids and it's affordable, $49 last time I
looked. They don't make games for them anymore, but you can still find
games.

Wii is expensive, but it is also family friendly.

...not to mention it can be challenging to come by, but
my kids enjoy the Wii. They also enjoyed the Gamecube (and still
play some of the Gamecube games on the Wii). Almost any of these
systems will be challenging for the almost four year old, though.
A lot of the games are too challenging coordination-wise for that
age (though they learn quickly). I would expect to have to sit
down and play *with* the younger child for most games, thought the
older one will likely be off and running quickly.

Best wishes,
Ericka

"KLE" wrote in message
...
So now I'm considering looking into a unit for their birthdays, or
maybe next Christmas. Of all the different game systems available, is
there any one system any of you have found to offer a large variety of
educational or non-violent games appropriate for kids under 10?
Karen

The people I work with were just talking about this today and they all said
Wii is the way to go.

Another thought - We have a Lego's Star Wars game for the computer. We
bought the hand held controller thing and my kids (6yo and 8yo) love that
game so you might consider doing some computer games that are more 'game
like' and hold off on the purchase of a system until they are a little
older.

My 6yo was dying for one to hook up to the TV so we got a Play Station 2.
I'm thinking it was sort of a waste of money and we should have just gotten
him some different computer games and waited until a) we could afford
something 'better' and b) kids were older to really be able to play the
games well.

--
Nikki, mama to
Hunter 4/99
Luke 4/01
Brock 4/06
Ben 4/06

On Jan 2, 9:44*pm, "Nikki" wrote:
and we should have just gotten him some different computer games and waited

Altho I can see where Wii would be good to keep kids active,
computer games are far superior in graphics to console games with more
stories to them than just jumping around or shooting.
There are many great adventure/puzzle/interactive games for stand
alone or online computer games for all age groups.
Like browse thru your local Best Buy and see how many games for
younger kids there are nowadays, not just educational ones
but also fun stuff (Nickelodean comes to mind). I think introducing
young children to computers thru games gives them a headstart to using
a computer
which the consoles dont of course - keyboarding, mouse skills, etc. -
gets them more able to use school computers (the wave of the
future where all classes will be taught/typed online).
Have a look at an online game site like this one where you can
download samples of games:
http://videogames.yahoo.com/


joanne

"joni" wrote in message
...
On Jan 2, 9:44 pm, "Nikki" wrote:
and we should have just gotten him some different computer games and
waited

------"Altho I can see where Wii would be good to keep kids active,
computer games are far superior in graphics to console games with more
stories to them than just jumping around or shooting.
There are many great adventure/puzzle/interactive games for stand
alone or online computer games for all age groups.
Like browse thru your local Best Buy and see how many games for
younger kids there are nowadays, not just educational ones
but also fun stuff (Nickelodean comes to mind). I think introducing
young children to computers thru games gives them a headstart to using
a computer
which the consoles dont of course - keyboarding, mouse skills, etc. -
gets them more able to use school computers (the wave of the
future where all classes will be taught/typed online).
Have a look at an online game site "-----

PC based games are great, yes, but as games increase in complexity so do
their demands on your system. Nothing is more frustrating than buying the
latest video game only to find out that your video card won't support it,
you don't have enough RAM, or you have the wrong DirectX version. Console
based games are simpler for the novice user.

Children do get exposure to computers in a school setting, but I don't see
them taking the place of learning to write or replacing a classroom setting
anytime soon.

"joni" wrote in message
...
On Jan 2, 9:44 pm, "Nikki" wrote:
and we should have just gotten him some different computer games and
waited

Altho I can see where Wii would be good to keep kids active, snip

I think the current research is that Wii doesn't use much more energy than a
standard computer game. Yes, it's better than no exercise, but it's nothing
like real exercise.
The girls had a go on one over Christmas, and thewy did enjoy it and I think
#1 was probably the quickest to pick it up. But, I'd say that the energy she
exerted in doing it was probably less than she would in the same length of
time doing normal things round the house.
Debbie

On Jan 4, 2:12*am, "deja.blues" wrote:

Children do get exposure to computers in a school setting, but I don't see
them taking the place of learning to write or replacing a classroom setting
anytime soon.

My 4yo son spends a lot of time playing web-based video games for kids
on our home computer and otherwise fiddling with it, and I don't need
him to get further exposure to computers at school. Some people have
touted classrooms where every child has a laptop computer with an
internet connection, but I think that is a disastrous recipe for
distracting kids from what the teacher is trying to present. There was
an NYT story about this last year.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/04/ed.../04laptop.html
Seeing No Progress, Some Schools Drop Laptops
Winnie Hu
New York Times, May 4, 2007

A school should have a computer lab, though.

Welches wrote:
"joni" wrote in message
...
On Jan 2, 9:44 pm, "Nikki" wrote:
and we should have just gotten him some different computer games and
waited

Altho I can see where Wii would be good to keep kids active, snip

I think the current research is that Wii doesn't use much more energy than a
standard computer game.

Depends on the game and the kid. Some games are much
more active than others, and the way some kids play is much
more active than the way other kids play the same game. I
wouldn't invest in a Wii as a main form of exercise (though
I guess there are some folks who use it that way with a reasonable
degree of success), but it is a fun interface. That said, there
are only a couple of Wii games that my 4yo is successful playing
on her own. Most are still a bit out of her reach (whether
because the game requires reading, or too much coordination,
or whatever). She's still at a stage where the only games
she can really play independently are the ones designed for
early childhood, and there aren't huge numbers of those for
the console systems.

Best wishes,
Ericka

"Ericka Kammerer" wrote in message
...
Welches wrote:
"joni" wrote in message
...
On Jan 2, 9:44 pm, "Nikki" wrote:
and we should have just gotten him some different computer games and
waited

Altho I can see where Wii would be good to keep kids active, snip

I think the current research is that Wii doesn't use much more energy
than a standard computer game.

Depends on the game and the kid. Some games are much
more active than others, and the way some kids play is much
more active than the way other kids play the same game. I
wouldn't invest in a Wii as a main form of exercise (though
I guess there are some folks who use it that way with a reasonable
degree of success), but it is a fun interface. That said, there
are only a couple of Wii games that my 4yo is successful playing
on her own. Most are still a bit out of her reach (whether
because the game requires reading, or too much coordination,
or whatever). She's still at a stage where the only games
she can really play independently are the ones designed for
early childhood, and there aren't huge numbers of those for
the console systems.

The demo disc had a racing cow game that #1 (age 7) got fairly good at, and
#2 (age 4) was doing to her degree of enjoyment and success.
Debbie