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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

are nintendo ds bad for children's development?

36 replies

mollynp · 13/11/2009 22:05

i am considering buying my 6 year old son a nintendo ds for christmas (and maybe my 4 year old son too so they don't fight over it). He has problems with social and communication skills (possibly aspergers, we are waiting for assessment) He would really like one, but i'm not too keen on him playing with it all the time. i like the idea of him playing more educational games like big brain academy or brain train, but i'm not sure that is what he has in mind! have parents noticed any worsening of their kids behaviour after buying them one, or am i being over anxious?! has anyone bought one with only educational games? will kids still play with it much?

OP posts:

Earlybird · 13/11/2009 22:24

I got one for dd last Christmas. I told her upfront that she could play with it whenever she wanted over the holiday break and for about a month after.

From that point on, it became her 'travel toy' and is used whenever we have a long car/airplane journey (we go away about 1 weekend a month, and also travel during half term breaks). By limiting the use, she has never 'overdosed' on it, and it is always 'fresh' when we travel and she needs something to occupy her for long periods.

Long way of saying - I don't think it should be a problem, but would be very clear upfront about how/when the toy can be used.

Oblomov · 13/11/2009 22:38

My sil who is a sn co-ordinator in norfolk, say that they recommend them.

limited use obviously.

ellokitty · 14/11/2009 10:24

Agree with Earlybird. My DD has one, and she is allowed to use it for 'dead time' - waiting for her sister to have her ballet lesson, in the car, waiting at the doctor's surgery etc etc... She does not normally have it at home. That way, she enjoys it, but does not over use it.

And yes, she loves the educational games on it. I think more so than the kids games. She has got junior brain trainer, which is her fave game. She also likes touchmaster, which is an adult game but has simple logic games and things like hangman etc.

mimsum · 14/11/2009 12:23

we got ds2 one when he was going on a long haul flight with his dad - dd got one for her birthday (she's just turned 7). They tend to want to play with them loads when they first get them, then the novelty wears off, and now like ElloKitty and Earlybird we let them use them either for 'dead' time or journeys.

To be honest I don't think the 'educational' games are any more worthwhile than some of the others - ds1's favourites are Lego Battles, Club Penguin and 42 all-time greats (lots of little games like skittles etc)

Original poster

mollynp · 15/11/2009 16:51

thanks, i like the idea of them having one when we drive from london to the lizard in february! we've currently borrowed one to try and if left tho their own devices they would play mario kart all the time! that's a good idea to have it only as the travel toy, or when you want to take them somewhere boring to occupy them

OP posts:

pugsandseals · 15/11/2009 16:58

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

What's wrong with a leapster? Much more age appropriate! DD (age 7) turns into the devil after half an hour on a DS- the games are designed to be addictive IMO!

BloodRedTulips · 15/11/2009 16:58

i firmly believe that video games are a fantastic thing, in small doses obviously.

they help with co-ordination, logic skills and help teach kids the benefits of practicing at something to get good at it.

both my older two (4 and 3) play with our ds, the touchscreen is a bit banjaxed though so dd is getting one of her own for xmas and i'm contemplating buying a second hand one from a friend for dp and myself as the dodgey screen i annoying me.

ds1 is better at supermario than me

walkthedinosaur · 15/11/2009 17:11

Both my DS's 7 and 5 have one, limited to non school days and then only after homework, piano etc are done. They really enjoy them, DS1 has possible Aspergers, and struggles with reading, memory and co-ordination, playing on the DS has improved his logic, co-ordination and because he's particularly loving Lego Battles at the moment he's been reading without realising it.

My two have had their DS's for over a year and they really are the favourite toy the novelty seems to wear off.

I would recommend one but obviously with time restraints.

sarah293 · 15/11/2009 17:14

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

moosemama · 15/11/2009 17:25

I have a 7 year old son, who has asd type problems (am currently battling dh to let me get him assessed). After a couple of years of pitiful begging, we finally gave in and bought him a ds for Christmas last year (so he was 6 years 8 months old at the time).

We restrict him to half an hour a day on it, any longer than that and he does get very red-faced, stressed and bad tempered.

We initially thought we would only like him to have educational games and bought him brain training with it. The problem we found was that there's a lot of peer pressure at school to have the same games as his friends and no sooner had we bought the flipping thing, than the begging for this, that or the other game started.

We have worked out that he is fine with slower problem solving games like eg Zelda but anything fast paced or racey like Mario Brothers tends to wind him up. Fortunately, he tends to prefer the more analytical and problem solving games anyway.

If I'm honest, given the choice again, I would probably choose not to buy it.

Original poster

mollynp · 16/11/2009 12:10

Dear moosemama, why given the choice again would you not buy it? is it because of having to get the latest games, or are you worried it might have affected him negatively?
my husband is not so keen, he is worried it is the start of a slippery slope to getting a playstation, etc. he would get rid of the TV given a choice!

OP posts:

SoupDragon · 16/11/2009 12:14

No, a DS isn't bad for children's development, it is a piece of plastic that does stuff.

What does affect their development is how it is used and that's where you, the parent, comes in.

And they're great as a punishment. Taking away the DS for X period of time works where other stuff hasn't

Original poster

mollynp · 16/11/2009 12:29

what games can you get for a 4 year old who can't read, apart from mario kart?

OP posts:

SoupDragon · 16/11/2009 12:50

DD is 3 and loves paying Peppa Pig (on my DS, she doesn't have one)

moosemama · 16/11/2009 17:09

Hi mollynp, I don't think its bad for him per se, but I wouldn't buy it again given the choice, as I feel there have been more arguments about it in our house than about any other single subject and ds1 having ASD type issues, we have found that he is a bit too obsessed with it. (Although to be fair, prior to having the DS he was the same about the computer.)

I do think they can be good for logic and fine motor skills (using the stylus and buttons etc) and they do have their uses, as others have said, they are great for long journeys and hospital waiting rooms etc.

The problems we have encountered are:

He gets very het-up and stressed playing the faster paced games and this nearly always ends up with him being in a foul mood when he comes off it.

Ds knows that he is only allowed half an hour a day on it during the week and an hour at weekends. As a result, he spends most of the day repeatedly asking "Can I have my DS time now?" which is a bit of a trick question really, as if he has his time in the morning he will ask again in the afternoon, even though he knows what the answer will be and then has a strop when he can't. If I make him wait until the afternoon to go on it, he will literally nag incessantly all morning. Either way there is much nagging and generally speaking a couple of strops thrown in for good measure.

He tends to moon around for ages waiting for his 'DS time' rather than starting playing with something else. So, I feel that, despite actually playing on it for only half an hour a day in the week, he spends a great deal of time thinking about and going on and on about the games and waiting to play on it and therefore doesn't get involved in as many different types of activities (ie, lego, meccano, chess, board games) as he did prior to getting it.

I think they are probably fine for most children, but I wish I'd listened to the little voice in my head that told me how obsessed ds would become with it (we bought it for Christmas in the end as a reward for coping with an incredibly difficult few months). The problems we have encountered are for the most part down to his ASD though I think.

ZippysMum · 16/11/2009 17:16

I saw a boy (about 10) and his brother (about 7) both playing on these while in a restaurant having dinner with their parents

BloodRedTulips · 16/11/2009 20:07

must have been bliss for the parents, a nice quiet peaceful meal

ZippysMum · 16/11/2009 23:42

would have been, but the kids kept insisting their parents break off their conversation to admire their ascent to the next level!

FernieB · 17/11/2009 08:39

Got them for my DD's (9) last Christmas. They played and played them and then the novelty wore off and now they just get them for 'dead' time. I don't restrict them in any way - they are free to get them whenever they like.

I don't see a problem with them at all. Mine aren't interested in the 'educational' games but the games they do play involve a lot of reading. Their coordination has improved.

We also have a Wii (although I tend to play that more) which they enjoy. They play sports games on it and their hand/eye coordination which was not great before is much better now.

Original poster

mollynp · 17/11/2009 13:06

my kids are a nightmare when we go to restaurants, so something that keeps them in their chairs sounds good!

OP posts:

gonnabehappy · 17/11/2009 15:06

Riven so true. I have 3 boys and endless technology in the house - literally 1000's of pounds worth. I end up persuading them to get the wii/Xbox/PS/DD/PSP out because it has not been touched for ages and seems such a waste.

We went for the no limits set, and they seem to have so many other things to do that as soon as the initial gloss wore off games were ignored.

Now to try and stop them watching so much television....

SuperSoph73 · 17/11/2009 15:10

We bought our DS1 (7yo) one for Christmas last year. We specified when and for how long he could use it in the beginning. After about 6/7 months he played with it less and less and now he plays with it probably once or twice a week.

I don't see it should be a problem. Have a nice Christmas

Original poster

mollynp · 17/11/2009 22:04

i've done it, i've bought a ds lite each for the boys, came with a free game in argos. i had to get one each as it would never work sharing one, as they are incapable of sharing anything! i'm sure we'll use it as well!

OP posts:

edam · 17/11/2009 22:13

molly, now you've bought them, you might be reassured to know that an optician positively recommended my friend get one for her boy who has a squint. Apparently it really helps to encourage his eyes to work together.

btw, brain training or whatever isn't really educational. It's just entertainment, same as any other game, doesn't actually do anything for your brain more than any other would. So I wouldn't insist they stick to stuff that's sold as educational, let them play what they want.

MaryMotherOfCheeses · 17/11/2009 22:19

Phew, what a sensible thread. I was worried when I opened it. [anything to feel guilty about]

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