1. Video Games and Children:
What is appropriate today?
Kyle Taylor, Instructional Technology Coordinator
Anne Terwilliger, School Counselor
January 8, 2019

2. What we hear from parents/kids:
Concern from parents
Violence
Screen time
Addiction
Lots of talk from kids (ALL grade levels)
FORTNITE (Teen)
Minecraft (Everyone 10+)
Sports Games (Madden, FIFA19, NBA2K19, NHL18) (Everyone)
Warcraft (Teen)
Clash of Clans
PUBG (Teen)
Animal Jam
Pokemon Go
Call of Duty/GTA (Mature 17+)
Halo (Mature 17+)
Roblox (Everyone 10+)
Overwatch (Teen)
WWE2K19 (Teen)
Spiderman PS4 (Teen)
H1Z1 (Teen

3. What we see/hear at school:
Gaming is a BIG part of popular culture (“cool”)
Clothing
Dances (floss, Loser dance, disco)
References (“noob”)
Celebrations (taunting)
Need/Want for screen time
Prefer shorts videos over read alouds
Tend toward iPad when it’s an option (even if it’s using it as eReader)
True digital natives

4. What do you see/hear at home?

5. What we know: Not all video games are created equal
We ALL have the ability to evaluate video games
Video
We are in charge of our households/devices
Parenting in the age of the age of the internet/gaming is NOT that different than what we already know/do

6. What can/should we do?
Know what your kids are playing and who they are playing with
Common Sense Media:
Play with them and EVALUATE the games
Put gaming consoles/computers/laptops in common areas
Monitor/assess screen time
iOS Screen Time Feature
Set clear limits/expectations/consequences
From the AAP: For children ages 6 and older, place consistent limits on the time spent using media, and the types of media, and make sure media does not take the place of adequate sleep, physical activity and other behaviors essential to health...
...Designate media-free times together, such as dinner or driving, as well as media-free locations at home, such as bedrooms.
...Have ongoing communication about online citizenship and safety, including treating others with respect online and offline. (AAP)

7. A phone is not just phone...
It can be many things, but one of them we are seeing more and more is the phone as a video game console.
Games that were previously limited to platforms like PC’s, Playstations and X-Box’s are now available for Android and iPhones.
It needs the same level of moderation and adult involvement as a desktop computer in a child’s pocket.

8. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=li15MYnsqgk
Search Term: Parents play fortnight with children for the first time
The video was too large to post within this presentation.

9. Resources
Family Media Plan and Media Time Calculator:
iOS Screen Time Feature
Common Sense Media:
2019 BBC Article on Screen time:
Fortnite Article:
Play with your kids video:

10. Resources
Common Sense Media Article on Fortnite:
Parental Control App
No Fornite February #nofortnitefebruary
Article on Internet Gaming Disorder: