As an adult, you might not appreciate the excessive time your child spends playing them. But, the fact remains that gaming is one of the most popular leisure activity of the young ones.
91 percent. According to research conducted by CNET, that is the proportion of children who are gamers!
Moreover, according to the Center on Media and Child Health, over 66 percent of children between the ages of 8 and 12 play games for an average of 2 hours every day. The time duration keeps increasing as they grow.
Not to mention that as the world remains confined in their homes, screen time has considerably increased.
But, this doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad thing. In fact, online gaming, if done right, can help kids learn various important skills. Here is how.
Learning Languages
Many studies draw a positive correlation between improved reading skills and video games. This is because all games include instructions and storytelling through subtitles and gameplay. Due to their interactive nature, they are more likely to be read and understood by children.
This can help them in gaining expertise in their native language.
In case your child is too small to grasp the small technicalities of the language used in online games, you can start by exposing them to relevant educational games.
There are various educational games available online that can help your little ones in learning different lingos. For instance, Arty Mouse – ABC by Unlimited Gamez Mo helps in teaching children the alphabet of English by both text and phonic sounds.
However, note that this doesn’t mean that you should replace books with video games. Instead, use the latter as a complementary tool.
Boosting brain’s speed, memory, and concentration
As children grow older, their ability to focus as well as their attention span increases. According to research by Summit Medical Group, a child’s attention is approximately 3 to 5 minutes per year to the child’s age. Therefore, a five-year-old would be able to concentrate for at least 15 minutes.
And unless your little one focuses on the task at hand, they won’t be able to learn. The good news is that online games keep children engaged and attentive for hours.
You can use this to your advantage. Make your child play strategy games that require focus to solve problems. Games like these require players to remember a variety of information, which can end up improving their memory.
Popular games like Call of Duty, Civilization, and Starcraft can all achieve this purpose.
Honing Problem-Solving Skills
Are you annoyed by the sheer number of hours your child spends playing PUBG? Maybe, you don’t have to worry!
The said game revolves around achieving the art of survival. The player must find a way to become the last one standing among the other 99 players. Hence, it challenges you to solve an ongoing trial.
Researchers believe that such strategy games help people in boosting their problem-solving, planning, organizing, and flexible thinking skills.
Cultivating interest in history and culture
One of the hardest things to do, both as a parent and teacher, is to instill the interest of history and culture among kids. It is a pity that most children find such subjects boring and monotonous. However, knowledge of the two is essential for the broader understanding of the world.
There are certain games available online that can help in encouraging children to research and read. For instance, games like Railway Empire, The Time Tribe, and Civilization are based on world history.
To make sure that kids remember the history within the gameplay, it is essential that a parent helps them along the way by tying it all to books, existent knowledge, media, and museums. The combination of different media, along with online gaming is likely to best help children in learning.
Improving social skills
Socializing and online gaming often go hand in hand. Most games at least feature the chat option where players can interact with one another. Some sophisticated games now even offer real-time voice chatting options.
Regardless of how your child is conversing with others, all of it helps in building communication skills. Especially during the current socially distant times, this benefit can seldom be achieved otherwise.
Moreover, this benefit may especially come in handy for children that find it particularly challenging to make friends in real life. The gaming community can serve as their sanctuary.
However, make sure to monitor the conversations your child has online to ensure that it remains a safe and healthy experience for them.
Instilling creativity and imagination
Iowa State University conducted a psychological study to gauge the effect of video games on growing children. It discovered that there is a relationship between gaming and enhanced creativity.
This might be because games often require people to think outside the box and come up with novel solutions to challenges – this is a skill that is bound to help in real life as well.
One online game that has received a lot of praise for boosting creativity and imagination among children is Minecraft. In fact, various schools and teachers use the game to teach concepts to children.
In Minecraft, children understand the importance of resource management. They create extravagant things out of raw materials, thereby also understanding the science behind it all. The fact that they are given free rein in the game makes it ideal for unleashing their imagination.
Ending Remarks
Online games are surely helping children learn during the lockdown. As outside interaction decreases, games act as the only fun resource to learn various skills, whether it be reading, socializing, or problem-solving.
So, do your research and find online games that will best keep your kids entertained. Make sure they serve an educational purpose as well – even it is not outrightly obvious. And then watch as your child has fun while learning.
Do you think there are any other ways online games can be helpful during the pandemic? Comment below.