Video games can be a headache for moms and dads because children want to spend many hours in front of the screen playing them; Better follow these tips to know how to allow your child to use video games, with healthy limits.
Video games can have certain advantages such as increased mental and motor coordination, spatial location and good memory for our children.
They also develop imagination and many are even educational. However, it is necessary to establish rules so that things do not get out of control. The parental control application now included in various consoles can be of great help.
Claudia Ortega, pedagogue from the Universidad Panamericana de México, addresses the role of parents when choosing the right degree for minors:
“It is important to identify what type of video games are playing and not demonize them, because there will be those who develop thinking skills, but others give a message of violence or have explicit language,” said the specialist.
“Children and adolescents do not stop at that, but it is the role of the adult to review and allow the children to use it and then put in the time they are going to occupy it.”
Another specialist, Erika Acosta, who is also a pedagogue, confirms that care must be taken not only that minors do not choose harmful titles, but also that they do not see adults using them.
“When they are older, from 8 to 10 years old, put an agreement of 45 minutes, an hour or a half, what the parents authorize, and that in smaller children it should not be negotiated how long it will be used” suggested the pedagogue.
On the other hand, psychotherapist Laura Gil, says that the use of video games as entertainment for preschool children should be avoided since they can delay their maturational development.
«The child under 6 years old must play with other things, they must make use of their motor systems, they need to run, learn to jump, coordinate their movements, all of this is done naturally when playing. For their brains to mature, children need to play with their bodies, to play actively, “he said.