Wii for Kids?

The Wii is perfect for kids.
My kids are 7 and 9 and still play.
They love wii sports , wii music, and wii sports resort.
There is a sesame street game and a couple of "jump start" games for the wii they could play and have fun with , both of them.

We have four kids 8-12 and a 4 year old nephew thats here all the time. We have had the wii a little over two years and they all love it still, especially the sports type games. They still go outside and play too and they dont have too much screen time. The four year old loves to bowl and play mario kart.

I'm not into too much screen time for kids, either, but my grandson, age 5.5, loves Wii. There are a few relaxing games, and some very active ones. I really enjoy bowling, table tennis, bike racing, and archery matches with him. These exercise both of us and improve our coordination.

He also seems to limit his own time playing Wii. I don't know whether all kids would do this, but after maybe a half hour or so, he'll want to get back to "real world" activities.

We got one with some gift cards last Christmas for our 3 year old. It was great over the long MN winter so I could make sure he had something active to do indoors (other than jumping on furniture!). We haven't played much over the summer since we've been outside every night but could see it back in use soon :) Some games were easier than others but he picked it up pretty quickly.

Skip the Wii. Encourage them to play real sports and games outside with real people.

Not too young. But screen time won't be an issue unless you let it. My kids go through stints with the Wii just like with everything else. They'll want to play it for hours! For a today...then it will sit idle for 2 weeks. Then they'll want to play something and playplayplay play.... then it will sit idle for another week or two or three. Same thing with all their stuff.
I think that is where the idea for putting toys in baskets and rotating the baskets out came from! lol

Just try to keep the games more simple. Like the dance games or the Wii Fit has obstacle courses and things like hula hooping that are fairly straightforward games. They may or may not be ready for some of the more "complicated" games (the marios, indiana jones, star wars, etc... ) ?

IMO, Wii is PERFECT for KIDS. That being said, and I've said this before so sorry for repeating, but our kids 'outgrew' the Wii at around 7-8 yrs old. We now have a PS3, also plays DVD/Blu-ray. Just my two cents.

We use ours when we dont feel like going real bowling....it took a little practice but my 5 year old got the hang of it. Honestly we don't use ours that much because we would rather go out as a family and do stuff. And my son has his DS so he's not to interested in the wii

We love the Wii! It's great for keeping active in our harsh Minnesota winters and the kids absolutely love bowling, tennis, boxing (hilarious!!!!) and using the Wii Fit Plus.

I also think your kids are too young for a Wii. They will play videogames enough over their lifetime. Get them more age appropriate toys. and yes, we limit screen time for our kids - just a couple of hours a day at that age - and even now for my teens, they don't get to play on school nights until after dinner and HW, and screen time includes tv, computer and videogames.

We got a W11 for christmas last year, my DD was 7 and DD was 5 1/2 They were both able to play the games, ( my personal therory is that most games more or less play them selves as long as you push the right buttons the bowling ball with generally roll in the right direction. yes you can throw it backwards but it takes some effort to do it)
We started off with Wii sports and stuff like that bowling, cycling, boxing, tennis. I was ok with that, they were playing together, taking turns, getting a little bit of aerobic exercise.
DS recieved LEGO starwars in May and has totally been obsessed and super annoying about it. He wants to play it constantly, He plays it alone because his sister isn't interested. and he stands there like a zombie. I dont see anything at all educational about this particular game or Mario cart. I limit his time, but its a constant struggle. IF i allowed him to chose he would do it 24/7, I don't allow it. I'm not perfect and while i wish i had the follow through, it might a great motivator, but for our family it hasn't been a good reward, like clean your room and you can play, instead i have to go in and make him redo his chores 5 times because he rushed because he wanted to play, I get frustrated and at 6 time i give up, tell him he didn't earn it and then there is a whole pouty mess.

If you really stick to a limited amout of games sports ones and learning company onesyou might be ok, but personally I think your kids are young to get hooked on these. At the ages your kids are, they are happy to build with blocks and use art materials like playdough and markers, Save the video games until they move through that stage.

the dance and sport games are the best because of the actual physical activity. My kids usually quit after an hour, and never use it daily.

We have a Wii and we don't play it often but we do play as a family. I think it is a good investment and it will take time to get all the games you want to play. I would just give a time limit on how long to play so they aren't always in front of the TV. You have to encourage other sports as well but since it is getting cold out the Wii will be something they can play not have to go out in get cold. Just manage the time they are on it. I believe it is a lot of fun for the whole family. Good luck on your decision.

We bought a Wii for our family when my kid was 4. Even though the games were pretty simple, it did take her a while to get the hang of the eye/hand/finger pressing buttons coordination. After about 6 months, she is now pretty good. Her favorite game, by far, is Mario Kart - even though she isn't that great at it, she can still have a lot of fun. Also, she played the Shrek game and since it is 2 player, her papa was able to help her though the game. Also, some of the Wii Fit 'exercise' games are do-able for her, although getting the Fit adds about $100 to the purchase price.

We got one when my youngest turned 2, but it was for my husband's birthday, which is one day later. My kids don't play it all the time, but it teaches them things and has them up and moving. Almost nothing is horrible if you have it in small doses. I wouldn't want my kids sleeping all day over playing the Wii. We even let our boys race other people online when we are with them. Fun family times for sure!!!

Don't be scared of technology...you don't want your kid to be the one who was never allowed to do or try things. Just be responsible with it and they will learn to respect the power of the internet and technology :).