Video Games for Toddlers

When I was pregnant with my first son, I swore I would limit television time for my child, only allow him to eat healthy meals and snacks, and spend hours teaching him everything I knew... It lasted about six months, and now we're normal. And I've actually decided that educational television is WONDERFUL at this age! He has learned so much from PBS and Disney shows.

A Three-year-old's Mastery

But what is even more amazing, is his video game ability at the ripe old age of 3 years old. We started him on the PlayStation 2, letting him drive the race car on Need for Speed Underground. He was not very good at first, crashing into everything in sight, and getting frustrating that he couldn't do what he had seen daddy do with the game. Then, about his fourth or fifth time playing the game, I noticed he wasn't slamming the car into every wall and he wasn't going the wrong way down the streets of the city. He had even learned how to adjust the view, and sometimes he'd play with the game where he could see the entire car, and other times he'd switch it so it looked like he was in the car looking out the windshield. Before I knew it, this little 3 year old was able to race the car. His hand eye coordination was amazing! We then started letting him try a few other, nonviolent games, like SSX Snowboarding, and Gran Turismo, and his all time favorite, ATV Offroad. He could do a can-can or a one-handed something or other within minutes of trying the game for the first time.

Santa's Video Games

So for Christmas, I had decided I should buy him age appropriate games. I found two games featuring Elmo of Sesame Street - learning about letters and learning about numbers, both for ages 3 and up! I thought, PERFECT! When my son played these games for the first time, we were BOTH disappointed. The graphics were ridiculous compared to the games he had been playing. In an effort to make the game useable by 3-year-olds, the designers limited the control of the character so that as my son tried to move him left and right, nothing actually happened. Pressing the up arrow would move the character in the direction the game wanted you to go. This made my son angry of course, since he knew that the left and right arrows should have moved Elmo in that direction! The other game I purchased for Christmas was a Winnie the Pooh game, and this one is adorable. It has 3 levels of play, with the easiest level designated by a baby stroller on the menu. My son loves this game, (although not as much as ATV Offroad!) and is learning how to follow directions because as he plays with the Pooh character, the other Hundred Acre Wood friends are giving him instructions on where to find different objects, what to do with them, and how to advance to the next level. So, even though I originally thought television was evil for children, I have since decided that it's actually a wonderful educational tool when used correctly -- and video games that are non-violent and encourage hand-eye coordination, strategy and problem solving are wonderful for toddlers. [[[Playhousedisney.com]]]

It lasted about six months, and now we're normal.

And I've actually decided that educational television is WONDERFUL at this age! He has learned so much from PBS and Disney shows.

A Three-year-old's Mastery

But what is even more amazing, is his video game ability at the ripe old age of 3 years old. We started him on the PlayStation 2, letting him drive the race car on Need for Speed Underground. He was not very good at first, crashing into everything in sight, and getting frustrating that he couldn't do what he had seen daddy do with the game.

Then, about his fourth or fifth time playing the game, I noticed he wasn't slamming the car into every wall and he wasn't going the wrong way down the streets of the city. He had even learned how to adjust the view, and sometimes he'd play with the game where he could see the entire car, and other times he'd switch it so it looked like he was in the car looking out the windshield.

Before I knew it, this little 3 year old was able to race the car. His hand eye coordination was amazing! We then started letting him try a few other, nonviolent games, like SSX Snowboarding, and Gran Turismo, and his all time favorite, ATV Offroad. He could do a can-can or a one-handed something or other within minutes of trying the game for the first time.

Santa's Video Games

So for Christmas, I had decided I should buy him age appropriate games. I found two games featuring Elmo of Sesame Street - learning about letters and learning about numbers, both for ages 3 and up! I thought, PERFECT! When my son played these games for the first time, we were BOTH disappointed. The graphics were ridiculous compared to the games he had been playing. In an effort to make the game useable by 3-year-olds, the designers limited the control of the character so that as my son tried to move him left and right, nothing actually happened. Pressing the up arrow would move the character in the direction the game wanted you to go. This made my son angry of course, since he knew that the left and right arrows should have moved Elmo in that direction!

The other game I purchased for Christmas was a Winnie the Pooh game, and this one is adorable. It has 3 levels of play, with the easiest level designated by a baby stroller on the menu. My son loves this game, (although not as much as ATV Offroad!) and is learning how to follow directions because as he plays with the Pooh character, the other Hundred Acre Wood friends are giving him instructions on where to find different objects, what to do with them, and how to advance to the next level.

So, even though I originally thought television was evil for children, I have since decided that it's actually a wonderful educational tool when used correctly -- and video games that are non-violent and encourage hand-eye coordination, strategy and problem solving are wonderful for toddlers.