How do I relate to my child with the gaming?  I have never been a video game person.  I do not enjoy it.  However, my 9 year old son loves it.  How do I encourage his likes but not have to play the games?

How do I relate to my child with the gaming?  I have never been a video game person.  I do not enjoy it.  However, my 9 year old son loves it.  How do I encourage his likes but not have to play the games?

This is a great question. I guess we could relate this to other areas of his life that you might not enjoy but he does. Skateboarding, bike tricks, bugs, you see where I’m going….

I think the key thing is to:

1. Offer lots of activities (see this post for a pretty huge list)

2. The other key thing for a 9 year old is to create clear rules about computer use (see this post for some ideas)

3. Play the game with your son! I know you don’t like gaming, but you might find this hilarious and very fun. I remember playing a racing game with my half-brothers - I was horrible at it, and we laughed very hard. This will also give your son a chance to teach you something he is excited about. A cool reversal for him.

4. You may want to, in the spirit of fun, challenge him to a game!  If you’d like to get a list, I can get you a list of fun family games you can play with your kids.

Thanks for the post!