Nowadays we are surrounded by computers and if we want our children to grow up harmoniously we have to be really careful with what we expose them to. Even so, we cannot forbid our children the entire access to the cyber world and this why we have to find the best way to combine the pleasure of playing on the computer with the utility of it. Next, you will find some examples of games that will improve your child’s’ skills:
- The Carmen Sandiego Saga
The Series started in the 80s have as protagonist a solitary man that has to be found. Playing the detective was always a pleasure for the kids and while they do this they learn important lessons about geography, history and even math skills. If your a kid is impressed by this game you can also show him the tv show or the board game that started all and like this you can make this game a family activity suitable for all the members.
- The Oregon Trail
Oregon Trail is a highly addictive game that has as a plot the journey on the Oregon Trail (as the name itself can suggest) by a covered wagon. The action takes part in eighteen century and the player will face the problems of that period of time: starvation, drowning, or even popular disease such as dysentery and in your way to take your family to the West you will learn some valuable history lessons. The PC game is appropriate for small kids to elementary school students and it is a very good way for kids to learn how to deal with real-life problems.
- Crayon Physics
Crayon Physics is an interactive game that will teach children the laws of physics and how to use them to achieve their goals. In this game, you will have to shelter a ball from obstacles by avoiding them. To keep the ball safe you need to know laws about energy, motion or gravity as the game goes by. The best part is that the levels don’t have a single way to solve it, leaving to the kids the possibility of finding creative solutions. The game has a basic version for younger kids and a deluxe version with an online playground for bigger kids.
- Itzabitza
A game designed for children between four and eight years old, Itzabitza might give you at first the wrong idea that it’s only a drawing program for kids. As you get to explore it you will find out that the game will motivate your kid to learn how to read in a very creative way: by requesting the player to draw a specific object. The strength of this game is the “Living Ink” function which brings to life the drawings of the pupils and this will encourage the children to keep on going. At end of the game session children will have better reading, problem-solving and logic skills and when they get bored of the original Itzabitza they can try out Itzazoo.
- Little Alchemy
This wonderful puzzle game will start with the four elements of nature: fire, water, air and earth and the kid will have to create new elements starting from these for. For example, mixing air with earth will give you stones and stones with fore will give you a chimney. Every time a new element is discovered it will automatically be added to your collection and you will be able to use it in other combinations.
- Kerbal Space Program
The Kerbals are a special race of aliens that need someone to be in charge of their space program. They will provide you with a varied range of parts and weapons to make a fully-functional rocket. You have to know some aerodynamics principles and some physics and if you don’t have this kind of knowledge yet you will learn it by failing. You have three gameplays available: Science Mode where you can unlock new features and knowledge directly from the Kerbalkind, Career Mode where you can the bigger picture of the space program and Sandbox where you can build the craziest spacecraft that you could ever think of.
- JumpStart
JumpStart is one of the oldest kids games series with some fine educational lessons ready to be taught. Since 1991 this game is used even in classrooms for it’s one of the safest online places for children between three and ten years old. Here kids can interact with each other, explore new thing and learn some.
- GeoGebra
GeoGebra is a place fit for people from primary school to university students. Here you can discover the secrets of geometry, algebra, statistics any other math chapters in an interactive way. Geogebra covers both commercial and non-profit areas with the head office in Linz.
- Piglets’ Big Game
We all know the famous small piglet that its friend is a pooh bear and we all know how frightened he can be most of the time but now his friends are in trouble. With this trigger, Piglet starts the adventure of saving Pooh, Roo, Owl, Eeyore, Rabbit, and Tigger from some horrible nightmares creates by evil Heffalumps. Because every other character is stuck in his own universe of dreaming, Piglet has helped only from you and you have to help him prove his bravery.
- Human Resource Machine
If your kid is a nerd you have to encourage him to stay like this and Human Resource Machine is a great way to do this. In a world full of machines aiming for your job you have to be better than them by solving tasks and puzzles and you can do this by programming your avatar in the game. If you succeed in resolving your jobs, your boss will promote you and it doesn’t even matter if you never programmed before, the game will teach you this through puzzles.
All in all, computers are not evil machines like some would tend to believe and if we use them right, a whole universe of knowledge lay at our feet.
