I want to give my two daughters a computer for Christmas. They are ages two and six. For those of you that don’t know kids these days, they take to computers almost without any training at all. Both kids understood basic computer skills within 5 minutes of coaching as soon as they were shown. That is no exaggeration and they are enthusiastic.
I already have three computers and I just loaded an entire setup with Windows XP, an LCD monitor and a few games. I want to make an entire play area out of it with furniture which will already work fine but Dopers might know something that kids might find great.
My question is, do you know some kick-ass software that they might love, a setup that they might enjoy for play, or something as simple as a cute little mouse pad? They seem to be able to teach themselves almost all of it and there is no need to lowball the expectations.
I am an IT veteran so technical considerations are not an issue here.
Your daughters are in the low and high range for the Humongous line of games. These were great and both my kids loved them.
Putt-Putt Saves the Zoo was the best of them but the other Putt-Putts and Pajama Sams and Freddi Fish were all popular, fun and slightly educational. None of them made me need to leave the room either. (Unlike certain Elmo games)
As to mice, my best advice is have a few spare USB opticals around. Little kids can be tough on mice and keyboards when they are at them playing games that can get frustrating.
I have twin girls that will be 6 in February. They’ve been using the computer for a couple of years. We grabbed some little kindergarten chairs that a school was throwing out and we had a coffee table from ikea that’s really kind of high for a coffee table, but high enough so the girls can slide their chairs under. They sit resting their chin in one hand and the mouse in the other, just like grown ups.
We have a printer but my girls can blow through ink cartridges in a week if left to their own devices so now we’re very parsimonious with the printing. At this point we only have my big laptop so when they want to “play computer” I plop it down on the table, plug in the mouse, throw down the mouse pad and they have at it. I doubt they really care about the mouse pad as long as everything works. We don’t really have installed games for them beyond what they find on movie DVDs. They spend 95% of their time on the internet usually at Noggin, Nick Jr., and previously PBSKids. There are all kinds of games there.
Each girl has her own account or “world”, and they get pick which icon, wallpaper, etc.
I have an el-cheapo microsoft mouse. There’s a little thumb button that I had to disable because they kept clicking it by accident. Just the L/R buttons are active.
A problem is dealing with auto-installing software, either crapware that comes with the system or, say, a macromedia flash update. Usually the input that the websites require is minimal once all the plugins are initially set up.
Kids love the Zoo Tycoon games (… ok, I loved the zoo tycoon games…) they are geared towards the younger kids and they do showcase a type of depth of gameplay that might teach them a few things they didn’t know about animals, how to use the peripherals of a PC well, and how to plan ahead in order to achieve goals. All good things I think.
The animals do mate however. NOT graphically, but soon after you put a male and a female of the species together you’ll get a “female polar bear is now pregnant”! message. I don’t know how you’d feel about that, seems harmless to me, but there it is.
The game is definitely too much for the 2 year old, but the six year old should have fun with it.
You’re IT, so you probably already know this, but Vista has some decent parenting controls which can help you make sure they are not going anywhere you don’t want them to go, and that they do not sneak around and use the PC when they aren’t supposed to.
They are excellent games, but I think they are a bit much for a 6 year old. Even a brilliant 6 year old. My daughter loves them but even she did not really get going with them until she was 8 or 9. They take quite a bit of reading to setup the pens correctly. Etc.
BTW: I enjoyed the first game quite a bit myself. I played the heck out of it with the kids enjoying watching me play.
I think you’re right. My 8 year old niece loved the game, but my 6 year old cousin loved WATCHING me play the game now that I think about it. She loved when baby animals were born and she enjoyed telling me what new animals to get, where to put them etc.
BigBrainz has a free version of Timez Attack that my 6-year old loves. It’s a math game (it’s obviously * not* a spelling game…) that plays like an adventure game. It engages my son for a decent amount of time and is helping him learn his times tables.
