Online gaming is easy to dismiss, but there are more advantages than you might think. Some games aid in the development and refinement of skills such as communication, teamwork, collaboration, strategy, and hand-eye coordination. When you talk to your child about gaming, try to understand what they enjoy about it. This will improve your comprehension and make them feel as if you care about something important to them.

And please!

LISTEN to them. Usually when talking to Kids parents are way too eager to provide information, half of the job is done by listening to your child, focusing and giving your child time. It helps amazingly.

Why does my child enjoy playing games?

They may enjoy the following aspects of E-Gaming:

• The challenge of devising a winning strategy.
• Playing with others in a group setting.
• conversing and interacting with other players.
• A sense of accomplishment following victory
• Playing in an online world requires a lot of creativity and imagination.
• Goal achievement requires autonomy and independence.
• Being good at something and seeing their progress over time.

WHAT SHOULD I DO TO ENSURE MY CHILD PLAYS SAFELY?

Your actions to keep your child safe will be determined by their age and stage. Younger children will require more supervision, whereas teenagers will require less. You can also play your child's game with them to learn more about it and why they enjoy it. Although online games can be entertaining and educational, it is critical that you provide guidance so that their gaming does not interfere with other aspects of their lives such as schoolwork, sleep, or physical health.

4 checks to run before you download a game for your child:

• Check the age rating and read reviews from experts like the folks at Wranga or ask o other parents before allowing your child to download any game. You could also consider playing the game first to get a sense of the online player community and become acquainted with any reporting or blocking procedures.
• Using parental controls: Both mobile and traditional gaming platforms have parental control features that require you to approve any game your child downloads. It is worth investigating this depending on your child's age and any other factors that may come into play (for example, religious or cultural beliefs). If the game requires an email address, it is recommended that you provide your email address so that you can receive any correspondence.
• Set some ground rules: Before your child begins playing, talk to them about the game and establish some ground rules, such as how many hours they should play. It's a good idea to go over the fundamentals of online safety with them and remind them not to share personal or private information with anyone they meet online, including not using personal information in their username.
• Make a contingency plan in case something goes wrong: It is critical that you go over any terms of service or community guidelines with your child. Discuss with them the types of behaviour they may encounter from other players while playing the game. Make sure they understand how to use the block and report features, and let them know they can always talk to you if something makes them feel uncomfortable or upset.

Got more questions, you can reach out to us on our website, social media channels or directly through our app, happy to help 🙂

About the Blogger: Amitabh kumar is a child online safety expert, on a mission to make the internet safer for children. He has an out of the box approach towards practical implementation of safety standards on the internet. He works in diverse capacities with big tech companies, like Meta, Twitter, Byte Dance, Netflix, Disney and many more. He is also the CEO and Co-Founder of Wranga: Digital Parenting Platform.