It sometimes seems like online gaming has a bad rep, with claims ranging from it causing feelings of aggression to being an isolating experience. If your child is glued to a PlayStation or staying up until midnight playing on their PC, it is likely you are already feeling stressed about the situation without the added guilt that comes from negative news headlines. Online gaming can teach children valuable lessons, so next time you are beating yourself up over your child’s reluctance to do anything other than play on Minecraft, remember these benefits.
Technology Skills
In the modern world, having technology skills is a must. Online gaming helps your child become more tech-confident and develop skills that will help them at school and in their future workplace from downloading to using a keyboard.
Hand-Eye Co-Ordination
Developing co-ordination and quick responses is a well-known benefit of online gaming, with many games requiring split-second reaction times. Great for improving sports skills!
Socializing
Contrary to popular belief, online gaming can be a social arena. As well as playing with friends, there is the option to interact with people from all over the globe. So long as this is supervised, it can be a fantastic way to discover more about the world and unfamiliar cultures. Thin gaming ultrabooks are ideal for this as they have the RAM required to run multiple programs seamlessly.
Knowing Where Your Child Is
Another advantage of online gaming is that it happens within your own home, meaning you know your child’s whereabouts and can check up on them. This can be reassuring for you as a parent, especially after dark or during the winter months.
Tangible Goals
All games have a goal, whether it’s to be the last man standing or to reach a destination. Striving to reach a target is a transferable skill which will appeal to future employers, especially in the goal-driven sales and marketing sector.
Spatial Awareness
Building games are great for improving spatial awareness and these skills will help your child navigate the real world. From moving out of the way of someone passing on the sidewalk to knowing how to keep a safe stopping distance from other vehicles when driving, developing spatial awareness will help your child both now and in the future.
Working as Part of a Team
Collaboration is often cited by employers as an essential skill and online gaming can help your child learn how to work as part of a team. Discover games that will encourage your child to work with others and help them get ahead.
Desire to Succeed
In the competitive world of online gaming a desire to succeed is a must. This determination is sometimes considered a negative, but a winning mentality can be a good thing, pushing your child further than they would otherwise go.
Hopefully reading about these benefits has reassured you that online gaming has positives and can teach your child valuable life lessons. Make sure you provide a safe environment for online gaming by setting parental controls and spot-checking the games they are playing to ensure they are age appropriate.
