An essential part of being a good parent is respecting your child’s hobbies and helping them to develop their passions. Even if you are not a fan of that particular activity, you should allow your kid to do what makes them happy. However, you should not do it blindly, but with your child’s well-being in mind.
If your kid has a huge passion for gaming and loves browsing a retro game store, it would be an excellent idea to provide them with equipment that will help them do it comfortably and with an as little negative impact on their health as possible. In order to help you with that, we have prepared a list of essentials that will prove useful for your little gamer. Check them out!
Gaming Chair
One of the most significant aspects to take care of is certainly keeping the right posture while playing video games. You might have seen many large gaming chairs that could make you think they are only for adults. The truth is, there are also many models designed particularly for the youngest gamers. They have smaller sizes to fit a kid’s body perfectly, and they can be easily adjusted, so when your child is growing, you will be able to adapt the gaming chair to their current needs.
Blue-Light Blocking Glasses
Your child is probably looking at screens a lot nowadays – not only for gaming but also for watching cartoons, chatting with friends, attending online classes, and not only. Without proper protection, it can be very harmful to their eyes because blue-light emissions negatively affect the retina, the innermost layer of an eye responsible for transmitting signals to your brain to inform it what you are seeing. For this reason, you should consider buying your kid a pair of blue-light blocking glasses that will protect them from eye strain.
Gaming Headset
Nowadays, many people work at home, and the sound of your child playing can make it hard for you to focus or even disturb your meetings with the team or with clients. However, it does not mean you have to forbid them from gaming during your working hours – headphones will do the trick!
However, they should not be just the regular ones you use to listen to music or watch movies. It is recommended to get a dedicated gaming headset because it will be very comfortable for longer use, and also, it will have a microphone. This enhancement can prove useful when your child no longer has to be so quiet and can talk to their friends. Many games nowadays, such as Fortnite, Overwatch, or League of Legends, are played in teams and require efficient communication. Thanks to such a headset, it will be easier for your kid to talk to their friends during the game, and in this way, they can develop their teamwork skills more effectively.
Large Mousepad
Proper gaming mousepads differ from those you can find at school or office. They are much larger so that the player can move their character more precisely and conveniently. In this way, they are able to quickly whip around and attack an opponent without running out of the mousepad space. In this way, your kid will get less frustrated while playing shooting games that improve their motoric skills, precision, and the ability to react quickly.
Controller
Controllers are more associated with gaming consoles than PCs, but in fact, it is a great idea to buy one for your little gamer even if they are playing video games on their computer only. With such a device, they will not have to be so close to the screen, which will be better for their eyes, and they will be able to sit back and relax.
Keep in mind that a keyboard and a mouse have been adapted for gaming, but they were not created for this purpose in the first place. On the contrary, controllers are designed particularly for video games, so they are much more ergonomic for players, and help them to reduce stress injury and neck pain. Moreover, it may be significantly easier for your kid to learn the controls with a gamepad than with a keyboard as there are much fewer buttons, so they will be less likely to get frustrated.
Summary
To be a supportive parent, you should not forbid your child from playing video games (although setting some time limits is certainly a good idea), but make it as healthy and convenient as possible. In order to achieve that, you need some equipment particularly designed to facilitate gaming.
You can think of, for example, a gaming chair, headset, mousepad, controller, or blue-light blocking glasses. With such enhancements, you will help your kid keep the right posture, protect their eyes, and avoid too much frustration. Also, how about buying a second controller and joining your child for a little Rocket League, Overcooked, or Minecraft gaming session now and then?