Strollerderby : online games

Learning to Read through Video Games

Hannah Tennant-Moore — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 22:30:00 GMT

Increasingly, books for children and young adults are being released with related video games. Since 97 percent of children ages 12 to 17 play computer and video games, this seems like a surefire to draw at least some reluctant readers into books. But when libraries host gaming tournaments and elementary schools incorporate video games into English lessons, you have to wonder, “Is this still reading?”

A large number of writers, publicists, and educators believe it is—and that, in the age of digital media, computer skills may be more important than proficiency with print media.

PJ Haarsma is a former advertising consultant who now designs online games about his science fiction novels for preteens. He argues that pairing video games with young adult literature “brings the book into their world, as opposed to going the other way around.”

But, as I pointed out in my tribute to Roald Dahl, the mark of a good book is precisely the ability to get lost in it, to live inside a world of which one has no experiential knowledge. This is particularly important for children, who largely learn empathy, respect for the imagination, and the value of introspection through reading. When one is being tested about a book’s plot in order to advance in a video game, the quiet, self-forgetful pleasure of being lost in a good book gets obliterated completely. Children learn that the only character who matters is the one holding the controller.

Photo: New York Times

Banned Books Week

Chore Wars: Online Chore Game Motivates

Karen Murphy — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 11:38:00 GMT

Getting kids to do chores can be, well, a chore. They might have good intentions but get sidetracked doing other things, fun things, ANY thing except the chore. It happens. Kids hate being told what to do. Don't you?

So there's a free new online game that lets families track who does what. Kids earn gold and character points for doing chores and for doing certain types of chores. Then they can compete online against monsters using the traits they've built by logging in the chores they do. I'm thinking this new game, Chore Wars, is a cross between Runescape and D&D, and gets your kids to do chores at the same time.

Of course, then you have the problem of too much time being spent online, but I figure it's a small price to pay for having the beds made and the cat box scooped.

[via Boing Boing]

Falling Sand Game: A Glorious Timekiller

Patti — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 14:17:00 GMT

I have a conference call on Monday and a fifty-fifty shot that my four year old won't still be napping when the phone rings. And I've just found the solution to keeping her quiet and occupied while I finish the job: Falling Sand Game consists of different particles and elements that can be controlled via the mouse or trackpad to create different environments. It's like watching an ant farm or one of those crazy glycerin-filled desk objects from the early 90s--totally mesmerising, and manipulating the screen is a zen exercise.

It'd be an easier pastime for a child who can read, but the different elements are color coded and a younger child with some mousing skills should be able to get the hang of it quickly.

(via Bella Dia, who also links to another of our family's favorite online timesucks, alphabet/art/animation site Bembo's Zoo)

Advent Calendar - Gamer Style!

Patti — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 18:30:00 GMT

Here's a fun little holiday timewaster for kids of all ages: Nintendo's got an advent calendar game, Mission In Snowdriftland: one new level opens every day through the 24th of December, but you can play all the previous levels up to the current day.

It's a classic platform game, starring a little snowman who runs and jumps through the levels, catching snowflakes and trying to catch a bad guy by retrieving stolen data. The graphics are reminiscent of the good old days before game characters grew tits that would be realistic if they weren't so freakishly huge, and before game systems became something grown men called in sick to their jobs and camped out for a week to buy and resell for thousands of dollars on eBay. And it's really well done, too.

Well...the introduction and level one are really well done, anyway; I suck at games and can't get any farther than that. But, after naptime I'm going to sit the four-year-old in front of the keyboard and see if the rest of the levels up to today's are any good.

(Update: Levels two through six are pretty cool, too. The four year old is taking a snack break before tackling level seven. Her little sister had a great time just watching and cheering us on.)

Even taking my game suckage into account, this is a hell of a lot more fun than opening a cardboard door and getting a piece of cheap, stale chocolate every day for twenty-four days.