My first grader came home with a Minecraft book from his school library and has been talking about it ever since.
I know it's something that kids are really into but know nothing about it, it's a computer game right?
He has a Wii and gets to play a couple of games on it. I'm not sure I want him playing this Minecraft game but maybe it's fine? He talks about Survivorcraft a lot as well...his friend's older brother in 4th grade plays it.
Any safety concerns I would need to know about with this game, if it's online?
minecraft is one of the computer games that has way more pluses than minuses. and seems to have universal appeal. my 7 year old nephew adores it, and so do my grown sons.
khairete
S.
It's a lifestyle LOL. My kids play it, read books about it, and watch YouTube videos of other people playing it (Stampylongnose is the favorite).
They play in creative mode, which means they basically play as if it's a big electronic Lego set with unlimited blocks. They play on iPods and on that platform they cannot play with strangers. They can connect with other people but only people who are on the same WiFi network. So when they are at home they can connect and play with other people in our house (each other or a friend of they have someone over) but they cannot connect with anyone who is not in our house with our network password. This makes it pretty safe in terms of online safety.
It you get the PC version on your computer it is a little different and in that case people do search out online forums to play against strangers. I believe that is also true on the xbox version. We have not allowed that yet.
Ok, now I'm going to spend the next couple of hours trying to get Stampylongnose's voice out of my head.
I agree that Minecraft is good fun and really does teach. There is so much to learn and do. The Minecraft books explain how to do many things, so the kids are very eager to read those books. That's a plus, right?
My kids loves Stampylongnose. Watching his videos on YouTube has encouraged them to try many things. It does become a bit of a struggle at times because that's a lot of screen time. So we try to present it as a reward, rather than a limitation. Stil, parents do have to be the bad guys sometimes.
Just know that between the games and the videos, that's a lot of screen time. So decide ahead of time what you're ok with and stick with it!
My kiddos both love Minecraft. My daughter is 5 (pre-k), and my son is 7 (1st) and they both have been playing for about a year. We do have limited screen time as a house rule, so if they choose to spend their screen time on the Minecraft videos (with my supervision - they also love Stampy), or playing the actual game, it is their choice. We do not let them connect to other peoples worlds (other than with each other). They love the creative play, and it is awesome to see what their brains can come up with.
I think Minecraft is one of the better ones - all my kids have played it, and I actually don't mind because the older ones will play with the younger ones and have fun. Their friends come over and play it too (I think they can connect if all here).
I don't let my kids connect with outside people unless we know exactly who we're on with (and that's just my older kids).
Mine have played it on the computer but prefer to play it on their little handheld devices (ipods or ipads). My littlest one has it on my Ipad.
my kids love minecraft! It's pretty much building legos but on a video game (that's how I see it at least). They build houses and cities and have pets. My kids are allowed 1 hour a day on video game time
My kids (9, 7, 4) play it on their kindles. I think it's harmless. There are a couple of articles online saying there are some benefits to playing.
http://www.prettyopinionated.com/2013/10/benefits-minecra...
However, we limit Kindle time. I would imagine the bad outweighs the good if they're playing 2-3 hours a day...
I don't know a ton about it but I'm sure you will hear from a lot of moms who do! It's all the rage. My 10 year old started with it this Christmas; it's the first online "game" she's been interested in. The way she uses it, it's kind of like Legos but on the computer. She builds all these elaborate buildings and worlds, choosing materials, animals and plants, etc. If you Google it, you'll find some pretty compelling articles about the benefits of Minecraft, akin to the benefits of Legos - imagination, building, reasoning, etc. From our experience, it's been a good thing though I still keep screen time in moderation. I always feel like there are better things to be doing. But as these activities go, Minecraft seems like a winner.
It is on the computer, Xbox and there are apps for iPad, etc..
My daughter is 8 and started playing last year. She loves the game (a little too much). It is a creative game where you have to build up your world from nothing or start in creative mode and build what ever you want. The character Steve has to chop down trees for tools and then mine for iron, gold, coal, etc.. For such a simple game a world can be built up to become a large city.
If you want an idea of the game check out some YouTube videos of people playing, I would suggest Stampylongnose or his friends. Their videos are very kid friendly (no bad language, etc.).
Here is his first video to give you an idea of the game.
My son is in second grade and loves Minecraft. He plays it on my laptop, in creative mode, and only offline, so he cannot connect in. He's fine with this as he understands there are sometimes 'griefers' (other players who will mess up your construction or worse) and that this *can* be a place for online bullies to go and mess with people.
My own research led me to believe that this game can be a fun math tool and it does have the potential for online bullying, as I mentioned earlier. So your own online research... I will say that sometimes, there is a frustration factor for the child as they are trying to navigate this game, which doesn't come with simple directions but more learn-as-you-go.
my DS LOVES minecraft. he's old enough now to play online but he started at about 7 playing without connecting. not only did he learn a ton about building and math but he also used it recently for a science project at school. he and his friends talk about it constantly and it is a real bonding topic for them all. obviously do your due diligence but this mom can sincerely recommend it. :-) S.
my kids love it (10 and 12). They build the most amazing things.
Many blessings
Man, you should SEE some of the stuff my daughter (12) and niece (8) have built together! My daughter's not as into it as she used to be, but my niece still loves it. Better than sitting mindlessly on a couch watching TV...
My 7.5 and 5.5 year old kids got into it in December. I started by buying them the Andriod version on my phone and Kindle so I could monitor closely and see how much they liked it. They were really into it so for V-Day we purchased the PC version (also available on Xbox and I think Wii?). There are more options for them when playing the full version (versus Android). My 5.5 year old is in Kindergarten and doesn't read fully but does well in this game and they both build some really cool things. For the past few months, watching Minecraft videos on Youtube was pretty much the only thing they would watch when they had TV time. My 7.5 year old informed me that she's getting bored with it now so not sure how long it'll hold her interest. However, it's still the #1 game they ask to play and watch on Youtube! I'd say let him play!
All the kids and my husband play it together where they can link up and be on each others...places. I don't play it but I'll be doing something and I'll hear my husband holler at one of the kids to SHUT THE DOOR BEHIND YOU!!!
