“Pick a card, any card.” That sentence sits deep in my childhood brain because I loved doing card tricks when I was young, and I would always say this line.
Today, in the final TTT about non-triggering conversations with our kids and students, a new line is arising in my mind, “Pick a topic, any topic.”
I offer some intriguing stories related to video gaming that I am confident you will want to discuss with others — beyond just kids. Data reveals that more and more people over the age of 50 do some sort of video gaming.
Have you heard about the growing trend of “Cozy” games? These games have cozy scenes, like, in a home with a cup of hot chocolate. The hallmark of these games is that they don’t have aggression or violence in them.
One recently released called Cozy Grove is “a game about camping on a haunted, ever-changing island. As a Spirit Scout, you'll wander the island's forest each day, finding new hidden secrets and helping soothe the local ghosts. With a little time and a lot of crafting, you'll bring color and joy back to Cozy Grove!”
Other games in the Cozy category are Animal Crossing and Spirit Farer. In this video with many Cozy games called “Best New Cozy Games Of 2021,” I liked the one titled Cloud Garden.
Questions to ask: My friend’s sister creates the art for the backgrounds of video games. When you look at the art in the Cozy Grove trailer, what do you think about the backgrounds and the art in general? Would it be fun to see your art used in a video game?
There are many ethnic groups in Nigeria and a remarkably high number of languages spoken – around 500. Ethnic tensions are very real. So what to do?
In an interesting BBC story, I heard about a Nigerian researcher Eugene Ohu from Lagos’ Business school, addressing this issue by focusing on helping high schoolers build empathy.
He and his team do a randomized controlled study in which some students help design a virtual reality game. In the game, players get more points for the seat they sit in, but sometimes the seat is near a person who might be mean to them.
Before a researcher helps a student design a game, they have the student tell the “story of their name.” This activity gets the students thinking in an empathic way about others before they start building the game.
Questions to ask: Do you think having students do these things could build empathy? How does designing a VR game compare to having students design a non-VR video game? A board game?
We all know that playing video games with others can be a way to connect positively. In the most recent Screenagers Podcast, I loved when Mira and her mom talked about Mira teaching her grandma to play Roblox.
Yesterday, a friend told me that her 8-year-old son loves to play Minecraft with his uncle, who lives far away.
Meanwhile, human skills get practiced when playing video games. For instance, in many games, you need to cooperate or make and stick to a plan. Video games can provide chances for working on regulating strong emotions that can arise in a game (think holding back from blurting out remarks born from frustration).
Questions to ask: In what ways are bonds being strengthened via video game playing? What are some positive human skills getting strengthened?
In this TTT, the ideas for conversation starters are at the end of each topic.
Here is a video from the Screenagers YouTube Channel that talks more about this subject
“Pick a card, any card.” That sentence sits deep in my childhood brain because I loved doing card tricks when I was young, and I would always say this line.
Today, in the final TTT about non-triggering conversations with our kids and students, a new line is arising in my mind, “Pick a topic, any topic.”
I offer some intriguing stories related to video gaming that I am confident you will want to discuss with others — beyond just kids. Data reveals that more and more people over the age of 50 do some sort of video gaming.
Have you heard about the growing trend of “Cozy” games? These games have cozy scenes, like, in a home with a cup of hot chocolate. The hallmark of these games is that they don’t have aggression or violence in them.
One recently released called Cozy Grove is “a game about camping on a haunted, ever-changing island. As a Spirit Scout, you'll wander the island's forest each day, finding new hidden secrets and helping soothe the local ghosts. With a little time and a lot of crafting, you'll bring color and joy back to Cozy Grove!”
Other games in the Cozy category are Animal Crossing and Spirit Farer. In this video with many Cozy games called “Best New Cozy Games Of 2021,” I liked the one titled Cloud Garden.
Questions to ask: My friend’s sister creates the art for the backgrounds of video games. When you look at the art in the Cozy Grove trailer, what do you think about the backgrounds and the art in general? Would it be fun to see your art used in a video game?
Games like Roblox and Fortnite, which are especially popular among younger video gamers, may seem highly appealing due to their free-to-play model. Of course, they are not truly free. Young people are powerfully compelled to purchase in game currencies using real money, which in turn are used to purchase virtual items like costumes (skins) and weapons. Learn more about how this works in practice and what we can do as parents to help guide our kids.
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For a long time, people have been talking about how video games might be linked to extreme acts of violence, such as school shootings. The fact is millions of youth have played violent video games, and far less than 1% will ever do any such acts of violence. Today I look at two studies that shed more light on the ACTUAL effects that violent games can have on youth behaviors.
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In today's blog, I delve into the darker side of gaming, from the aggressive exchanges and trash-talking in first-person shooters like Call of Duty and even Minecraft and Roblox. This discussion is featured in my latest podcast episode, where I interview a gamer and Dr. Kishonna Gray, an assistant professor in digital studies at the University of Kentucky. Dr. Gray, who explores the human dynamics in video games and assists parents in navigating challenging aspects of gaming culture, provides valuable insights and solutions.
READ MORE >for more like this, DR. DELANEY RUSTON'S NEW BOOK, PARENTING IN THE SCREEN AGE, IS THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE FOR TODAY’S PARENTS. WITH INSIGHTS ON SCREEN TIME FROM RESEARCHERS, INPUT FROM KIDS & TEENS, THIS BOOK IS PACKED WITH SOLUTIONS FOR HOW TO START AND SUSTAIN PRODUCTIVE FAMILY TALKS ABOUT TECHNOLOGY AND IT’S IMPACT ON OUR MENTAL WELLBEING.
