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Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Video... and a radio star

Look, I have a five year old who is very cool. super. cool. frequently a bit oversensitive but cool as a jackrabbit, cool. And when he gets his hands on a video game, he turns ugly, like his brain can't process the speed of the flickering lights. SO, I ask you techno junkheads out there, when he goes to a friend's house and they play videogames of the Mario persuasion for a couple of hours and then I have to deal with a returning demon, do i need to let him go back to that maelstrom the very next day? what do you do when they beg and plead and will not be consoled ... and its something you do not believe to be a good influence?  The kid is FIVE, not eight. . . he has years and years in which to turn into a fat sofaslob teenager. . . and years and years in which to work his way back out of that hole...
We don't have handhelds, the last game i played was a pokemon something on a trainride across the country... before children... I have let him play games on the computer at http://www.pbskids.org/ and that is fine, but i have to literally pull him off of it, or he'll play all night. . .
is this the new crack- the new meth we are giving our kids? keep em quiet and 'busy'? the new benadryl? OR is it just my kid that can't handle the stimulation of that sort?
OR is my quest for simple making this an unsupportable action and so i'm coloring all the events around me to support my quest?

WHAT?

5 comments:

tifandtheboys said...

I have one son who can give or take any technology medias... but one that becomes a monster... very much like yours, if he is not monitored (and he is now 7). I dont know what to tell you? We had to eliminate it for a while, telling him how horrid he had become... then we added in increments of time, 15. 20. 30. and when he acted up- we would bring to his attention how "insane" he was acting. He now gets a total of 45 minutes a day of any sort of technology (use to be 30 min. until he turned 7)... but once he acts out in defiance or rude behaviors- he looses the opportunity for the next day's time. That is what we have had to do.....
but, it took him a while to see how the medias were warping his abilities to get along with others. Also- when he goes to other homes, the parents have to agree to hold to the alloted time that we have allowed O to use.... or he cant go over. I know- it sounds micro managed... but, he is 7, and he has plenty of time in his life to play games.

Kate Hall said...

Thanks Tif, I appreciate it, does not sound too micromanaged... my 5 cant assess his own behavior yet, but you do give me ideas for the future....

Jen said...

We call the Wii and the Nintendos, "the crackpipes." We see a significant change in behavior when either of the boys play these systems. I HATE it. They don't listen, they talk back, they can't come up with their own creative play. We have a new rule of "earning" time on these types or even time on the computer. It's really quite disgusting and I regret bringing the video games into our home. Good luck.....I like Tif's ideas.

Kate Hall said...

ack, jen... so maybe i should never bring them into the house? i have been wondering if he's not crazy because he hasn't been slowly introduced to them... ack... maybe, no?

Mama Mama Quite Contrary said...

I think your kid is totally normal and I'd say stick to your guns about the video games. I hate the things and I have a freakin' Wii!