Video games and social skills: 3 ways gaming can benefit your child

Gaming has become increasingly popular over the years amongst a wide range of age groups — including pre-teens and teenagers.

In Ireland, a recent report discovered that 80% of children aged 8-12 play games online. Apps and online gaming communities such as Roblox and Discord are a hit amongst pre-teens, and as a parent, it’s likely that an Xbox, Playstation, or gaming console of some sort has made its way onto your child’s Christmas list at some stage.

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How can gaming support your pre-teen’s development?

The rise in popularity of gaming has raised some concerns, specifically around excessive screen time for children and the risk of strangers and unverified users contacting them when playing online.

However, it's important to also recognise their potential to build essential social media literacy and digital skills for your child. Gaming can be a positive force in your pre-teen's development, supporting collaboration and teamwork, strategic thinking, and vital digital literacy skills.

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3 ways gaming can benefit your child

1. Gaming encourages collaboration and teamwork

One popular misconception about video gaming is that your child will be a solitary player, locked away in their bedroom for hours hunched over a screen in isolation.

In reality, video games have evolved to become extremely collaborative and social over the years. Many popular games today have a strong focus on multiplayer gameplay, meaning players must interact and collaborate effectively as a team.

Interactive games can allow your child to communicate, delegate roles, manage conflict, negotiate, and work together with their friends to achieve common objectives, whether that’s building a town or civilization or completing a quest.

This collaborative environment facilitates a great sense of teamwork, similar to offline sports teams and classroom projects.

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2. Gaming develops strategic thinking

Another misconception about video games is that they are made up of random, pointless tasks. In fact, most games require your child to use their critical thinking skills and make smart decisions that will guarantee their progression in the game.

Users are tasked with a wide range of obstacles and challenges that must be overcome, which can aid your child’s ability to brainstorm solutions, plan ahead, and ultimately solve problems, both online and in offline scenarios. What’s more, many games today are based on long-term survival and planning, which can teach your child about the importance of predicting future outcomes and deciding the best course of action.

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3. Gaming can building essential digital literacy skills

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Finally, in today's world, digital literacy is essential. Through gaming, children can learn how to interact in online spaces responsibly, discern information, and practise online safety.

For example, your child can learn about best practices when it comes to online and social media content creation through gaming features such as customising characters and creating in-game items, as well as the importance of responsible content sharing and how to be mindful of others when creating digital content.

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And some games are even specifically designed to educate your child on the importance of digital literacy areas, such as safety on social media platforms.

The newly launched Sersha game does just that, providing children (aged 8-13) with their own avatar and team of virtual friends that guide them through various social media scenarios so that they can make choices and learn about social media safety issues (such as cyberbullying, stranger danger, and digital footprints) in a risk-free environment.

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