Am I depriving my son? Games console related!

[BrianMolkoismyPlacebo]

My ds is 7. He has a tablet which is he watches netflix and youtube on.
He plays a handful of games on it, lego star wars & minecraft mainly.

He love his tablet and hasn't asked for anything else.

He was ata friends house yesterday, he has a ps3 & a ps4. They spent most of their time playing minecraft and lego dimensions on it. My ds struggled as he's never played one before. His friend was a wizz!
It turns out that atleast 6 of ds friends have a ps or xbox of some sort, and obviosuly when they go round to eachother's houses this is what they mainly play on.

Is a games console a normal typical toy for a 7yr old? Should I be thinking of buying him one for christmas? Or is it a slippery slope?

[MsJamieFraser]

A lot of kids now have them nowadays, my two have consoles also.

They are good for them, my 2 love the mega games.

[sofiathesecond]

Dd6 is getting a Nintendo 2ds for her birthday. We have an iPad that she watches amazon video on. I considered boxing up and giving her it to her but I'm uncomfortable with apps etc due to adverts and things. She has a netbook which was given to us which she types stories onto but she wants to play games which the netbook isn't really cut out for. I'm too worried about her having something connected to the internet (we have controls on but still) so 2ds seems good for gaming- she wants things like nintendogs etc. I would never have something connected to the tv as I hate video games

[FixItUpChappie]

no tablet, no console here either....mine play with toys which is my preference at this age. I think there are some benefits to limited console play actually but we are also worried it's a slippery slope. IMO there is lots of time to come for video game play but this time of toys and make believe is short so I'm in no rush.

[onwego]

My son is 8 (and a half, as he keeps reminding me) and would love a console. We're risking social pariah status and holding off until he's about 10. A lot of children in his class seem to have consoles but certainly not everyone.

[DragonMamma]

Just to add that games consoles are in the living room. Largely because DS wants us to play with him.

[DragonMamma]

My 5.5 year old has a tablet and access to both our PS3 and PS4. He's a complete whizz at games and I do resent the implication that to allow him one = laziness.

It's offset by plenty of outdoor activities and it is limited in the week purely due to time.

I don't know any 6/7 year olds that don't have one form of device/console, in all honesty.

[babyblabber]

at the replies!!! DS is 7 and doesn't have a console or a tablet. He gets to use my iPad about once a month for half and hour or so but that's it. I'd actually rather he had a console and was playing games than a tablet that connected to the internet (I know consoles connect too but presume you can switch this off?!)

I only know one 7 year old who has a console but his dad is really into gaming and in fact made a living from it at one stage.

My aim is to get DS to 10 before we go down that road so I would say you are absolutely not depriving him and are in fact being a normal, responsible parent! He's only 7, plenty of time when he's older and lazier!

[Chattymummyhere]

My son got an Xbox 360 for his 7th birthday but it has to stay in the Livingroom. We are looking to upgrade to a one on his birthday next year. The children also have a shared iPad and pc. I think most children have these things now although not deprived it will be harder for him when at friends if he doesn't know how to play them and when they are all talking about their games/apps.

There is a girl in my sons year who has no tv at home at all in their house, every time she goes to a friends house all she asks for is to watch tv, the children without consoles tend to do the same to get their fix so to speak.

[Artandco]

My son is nearly 7. He has no tablet. We also have no tv at home so no games console either. He doesn't seem deprived to me.

[AmberEars]

My DC are 7, 9 and 11. We have a family laptop and a family iPad but no games consoles. My DC definitely aren't the only ones in their classes without one.

It's up to you, OP.

[Kerberos]

It's up to you to decide. We have family games consoles which belong to DP and I. The children have free rein most of the time and will usually make sensible choices.

If you do decide to buy one it's worth putting in the lounge where everyone can play - plus it's easier to monitor usage. There are lots of games available for younger players and you can set up their own accounts which have access controls over what they do.

My view would be to ask his friends what they all play so he can play with them.

[dudleymcdudley]

Yes I think it probably is about that age lots of kids get into gaming.

Most of my dss friends have some sort of console, a few don't, it doesn't seem an issue, the ones who don't play pc/tablet games and hone their console skills at friend's houses.

We do have an Xbox 360 and PS4 because my 2 older dss used their savings plus xmas/birthday presents to get them.

We were really worried that it was a slippery slope but so far (my dss are 7 and 10) they mostly play minecraft and FIFA and it's all very innocent and constructive and involves a lot of teamwork and bonding so has actually been a positive thing.

[allegretto]

My kids are 12 and 6 and we don't have any games consoles in the house as I hate them! I don't think they're that deprived.

[linandleo]

My son is 8 and doesn't have one. He has a kindle fire and access to our tablets/laptops if he needs them. His has tight controls on his kindle so browsing the internet isn't easy and there are things (DanTsoddingDM) he wants to watch on youtube from time to time.

We recently agreed with him that 10 was a suitable age for a games console. I know many of his friends have one and that's fine but it's not how we do things. :) He'd like one but doesn't seem to feel terribly hard done by.

[ChilliMum]

We have 1 but it's a shared one and lives in the living room. No tvs etc upstairs so the kids have to ask.
I have no idea which one it is but it's a godsend on rainy days. We have 1 with a sensor and sports / dance game and it's great for burning energy when they can't play out. We have no games that require using the hand held controller.

[Turnbacktime101]

My DS (6.45 as he keeps reminding me) has no access to console and we strictly limit iPad time. He's not played minecraft etc yet

I think it's one of those all or nothing things, once they start playing that's it - you're into limiting time spent on them (certainly will be with my son)

I love the idea of maths sheets to earn games time. Defiantly going to use that one

[BrianMolkoismyPlacebo]

Thanks everyone.
When I said deprived I meant of an everyday item for his age. Like a bike. Not deprived in life.

My dh is dead set against them, he still struggles with the fact that ds has a tablet despite him only using it on weekends and holidays. Dh would rather it only be used for long car journeys.

I'm not too bothered about games consoles. But I would definately put a restriction on use.

Ds hasn't really asked for one. It just occurred to me that maybe he should.

I'm going to hold off until he mithers.

[unicornsarenotjustforchristmas]

Yeah my 7yr old has one. TBH, if I was still a single parent he wouldn't. But dh bought them for 'the family' and we now have a ps2,PS3,PS4 and a wiiU. They drive me nuts but the kids love them!
They are only allowed them on Friday after school (and Saturday and Sunday afternoons if we aren't doing anything)

[WhatWouldTheDoctorDo]

We have a family wii u. DS plays Lego dimensions and skylanders on it. He usually plays on it an hour or so at weekends really. He loves both games though.

[TheFallenMadonna]

DS bought his own second hand PS3 aged 14. I think he was mildly unusual, but by no means a social pariah.

[Pancakeflipper]

Problem I find with the Xbox etc is the lack of games for children under 12 and stuff to play together on it.

Now our old knackered wii has given us many years of fun with Mario Kart

[DeleteOrDecay]

Our dc are a bit young but we do own a PS4, its currently mine and dp's but as the dc get older and show an interest in it or any future consoles we may own it will become a 'family' console in the living room and will belong to all of us and they will have their own age appropriate games to play on it. Me and dp are gamers anyway so that set up will work for us.

[Emberfirefly]

I think it's normal at that age particularly if they have older siblings that have one already - my eldest ds didn't get an Xbox until he was 10, up until then he had a Nintendo ds. My 6 year old is a whizz at the Xbox as he has been playing games like FIFA and Disney infinity and the Lego games for about the last 18 months. There are plenty of kids in his class that don't have one yet.

[DameDiazepamTheDramaQueen]

Ds has one at that age but it was a family one downstairs until he was 12 and then had it in his room.