I remember getting an Atari for Christmas when I was a little girl. It was a magical day that opened my eyes to the amazing world of video games. I spent many nights playing ping-pong until my eyes crossed and my fingers cramped. A few years later my siblings and I got a Nintendo (with the upgraded duck hunt version!). It was the holy grail of the house. Back then everyone thought that the plug-in track and field mat was way ahead of its time. Fast forward to 2009. There is now a video game for everyone. There is the Wii for the active folks. There is the Xbox360 or PS3for the graphics connoisseurs and online junkies. There are any array of handhelds and cell phones for people on the go. And of course we can’t forget about the little ones. After all they are the money makers. At five years old, you still have the ability to command the toys you desire by simply flashing your puppy dog eyes. It is not until 8 or 9 that your are subjected to the “Ask for it at Christmas” line.
There are now video games for even the youngest member of the family. The V.smile Baby has an age range of 9 months-3 years old. Some babies aren’t even talking at nine months! But this new era of video games offers something our video games of yore did not. Education. On their website, V.smile describes their baby product as ” A Baby Infant Development System that goes beyond passive developmental videos with a breakthrough, interactive approach to learning.” V.smile has several other gaming systems that fulfill age ranges up to 9 years old promising superior learning experiences. Leap Frog offers a similar line of products with similar promises.
My kids have several products from both of these companies. Are they fun? Yeah, my kids have a blast. Are they educational? Not to the extent that the manufacturer would like you to believe. I think that these games require young kids to think so hard just to get it to work right, that there is not much attention span left to absorb new learning material. To be honest, my kids learn a lot more from watching Noggin and playing games at www.nickjr.com or www.playhousedisney.com. If you are on the fence about buying a gaming system for your little one, here is my advice. If you are looking for something fun and entertaining and you don’t mind the price tag, then go for it. But if you think that this is an investment that will help your child skip first grade, you will be greatly disappointed.
