Michael Connelly asked:


Your daughter just came home with a straight A report card and an academic achievement award. She is already taking college credit classes and she is only in the tenth grade. Her brother who is two years older is graduating this year and heading off to college over the summer. He will be attending a major University on a full academic scholarship. And he was the one you used to think would be better off attending a trade school. You and your spouse like to think that you are both pretty smart, and that your two braniac kids are just a couple of chips off the old blocks.

But before you start to think too highly of your own DNA, you need to know about some recent scientific studies that say you and your spouse are not the only ones who should take the credit. Video games played on systems like Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii should get a lot of the credit for making your kids so intelligent.

One thing is for sure, and that is the fact that your kids are growing up in a world that is quite different than the world that you grew up in. Technology and its influences are far more pervasive now than they used to be back in your childhood. The whole learning experience is just mechanically different. For example, you grew up playing with puzzles instead of video games. Puzzles are good for visualization of geometric patterns, along with recognition and recall of geometric designs.

The theory says that if puzzles are good for this, then video games are even better because the shapes and designs are constantly changing and moving, which makes them more challenging. In essence, a more challenging learning experience means that a child is working their brain harder, and this makes them smarter.

There are many other benefits that come with the use of video games. Recent studies have proved that playing computer games helps to develop problem-solving skills, critical thinking and sequential reasoning abilities. They are also good for the development of spatial reasoning and memory skills, as most games involve the placement of objects in 3-dimensional spaces as well as the use of floor plans, maps, mazes and puzzles.

Video games are also good for the development of artistic abilities in children. Many games have incredibly creative graphics and storylines that are sure to inspire any creatively inclined youths. They are especially good for any children who dream to become writers some day. It is important to be able to build imaginary worlds as a writer, and many of the fantasy based games show them what is possible when you think creatively.

Playing computer games can also be good for language skills. Many of the games involve foreign languages and translations from Japanese to English, and visa versa.

There is also the cultural aspect of playing a game that was made in a foreign country. Many games depict scenarios that are found in the country where it was made. Children can learn about the differences and similarities between them and the people in other countries around the world. They can gain access to anthropological information every time they play a video game on their Xbox 360, Playstation 3 or Nintendo Wii consoles.

Not all video games offer an escape into a realm of fantasy. Some have real world geography that teaches children about the planet they live on. These types of games also teach them navigational skills, for they involve the use of maps and directions.

So if you are wondering why you your kids are over-achieving in school, you need look no further than their Xbox 360, Playstation 3 or Nintendo Wii consoles. You may have been the one who taught them their first words, how to walk and how to ride a bike, but their video games taught them things like problem-solving skills, critical thinking and sequential reasoning abilities.

But I would not worry too much for you have one big advantage over computer games and that is the ability to enjoy the fruits of your labor. When you see your children graduate and blossom into mature, well-educated adults you can rest assured that you did a good job raising them, with the help of video games of course, who by the way will have no idea that they were partially responsible for your children growing up so smart and well adjusted.

Duncan Kelly asked:


Getting teenagers to do any work around the house can be quite a mission, unless you resort to draconian measures and spankings. But there are ways, some more effective than others, to get them to work voluntarily. And it’s a fact that a volunteer is worth 10 pressed men.

As parents of teenagers are aware, teenagers have strong desires to own expensive gadgets and clothes, which the struggling parents usually cannot afford. The richer you are, the more expensive these gadgets become. But this teenage desire is a power source that we parents can tap into. Keep your ears open for what the kids want: it may be a Nintendo Wii, or expensive Name brand jeans, or an iPhone. (OK, OK, or a Porsche.) Then talk about this thing a lot, saying how wonderful it is, and that kids really like it, and so on, until your teenager is really drooling. Then introduce the following scheme.

Instead of giving the kids an allowance, or pocket money, which is basically money paid to them for doing nothing, rather scrap the allowance altogether and institute a new system of “pay as you go” wages. Draw up a list of jobs that you want the kids to do around the house every day and every week. Things like draw the curtains, make coffee/tea, wash dishes/unpack dishwasher, wash the car, vacuum the car, cut the grass, feed the animals, water the pot plants, empty the garbage, bring in the washing, and whatever else ytou can think of.

Then allocate a “wage” for each item: how much you are willing to pay them to do each job. Be careful here that you don’t bankrupt yourself - add all the amounts up to see how much it will come to in a month! Small, easy jobs will get a small amount, and jobs like cutting the lawn will get larger amounts.

Print out a blank table where the kids can fill in the date, what job was done and the amount to be paid, with a place where you can sign next to each job to confirm that it was actually done. No signature, no pay.

So if the kids want their allowance, they have to work proportionately for it. If they work harder (or smarter) they can get paid more. This has the benefit of taking the burden of getting the kids to do their chores off the parent and makes it the teenagers responsibility. And once they realise that their iPhone will be in their sweaty little palms a lot sooner if they work harder, the jobs soon get done.

Another hidden factor here is that it instills a work ethic in the kids . The soon realise that one has to work for what one wants, that nice, shiny things don’t just fall out of the sky into their laps, but they have to be worked for. And because of this they appreciate what they have a lot more. They treat their belongings with care, because that possession cost them a lot of sweat and energy and sacrifice.

We have been amazed to see our kids slaving away in the hot sun, vacuuming the car, cleaning patio furniture, brushing cats and taking out dustbins - jobs we usually wound up doing ourselves before the introduction of this system.

So it does work. Bit more expensive than an allowance, but at least you get your money’s worth, in more ways than one!