Searching for the experience of real families with monitoring and protecting their kids, we glanced at the Baltimore Jewish Times.

Linda L. Esterson writes on precisely this: the author asked two families to share their own experience managing kids’ online activities. “Parents need to talk to their children about creating online identities,” the Zerwitzes observed. “We’ve drilled into her [our daughter’s] head that whatever goes into the Internet is on there forever, and that what is posted … could definitely come back to haunt her later,” said the Taule family.

Anyway, nowadays parents understand that cutting kids off kids games websites or the whole Internet isn’t practicable. Let your kids keep with the times – but safely!

“The secret to happiness – speak to your father”: we think this headline in The Telegraph has it right. “Young people who said they talked seriously to their dads ‘most days’ gave themselves an 87 per cent score on a happiness scale compared with 79 per cent for those who said they hardly ever spoke to their fathers in this way,” wrote the paper, based on findings made by the University of York and released by the Children’s Society.

Every father has so much to say to his child that it is sometimes simpler just to play an online kids game together and say nothing. Sometimes it works, but it’s a vicious cycle! Start with the basics: it’s not necessary to tell your kid the meaning of life while the Flash games for kids are loading.

Speaking to children doesn’t mean lecturing them. Three simple “don’ts” for those who want to their company to be preferred to that of free online games for kids:
•    Your child wants to talk to you? Don’t brush him aside!
•    Your child keeps silent? Don’t try to pry his secrets out of him!
•    Your child sits there listlessly? Don’t rush him, but encourage him!

And once you’re off to a good start, why don’t you play some free kids games online for a while?

Nevertheless, your curiosity is still strong, and you search for new educational things to do online…

Let us inform you that you may now become a student at a new, completely online university! “Now non-traditional students from around the world can be a part of Western Governor’s University Indiana — the state’s first fully online university,” we read at tristatehomepage.com. “Students can apply starting now, and enrollment begins on the first day of each month.”

Even if you’ve already received your university degree, and your child is learning the English alphabet online — don’t hurry to file this in your mental trash bin, our kids grow up so quickly…

“UC Davis public health researchers have found that children … are the targets of a new medium used to sell high-fat, high-sugar foods: advergames,” we find out from Science Centric.

Diana Cassady and Jennifer Culp from the University of Davis (California, U.S.) analyzed websites for kids which were promoted in grocery advertisements on children’s  TV channels. “84 percent of the websites assessed included online games,” the study concluded.

The researchers noticed that many kids’ games websites and advertising games hardly promote healthy nutrition. “Advergames are clearly a means of casting food with few health benefits in a positive way,” Jennifer Culp summed up.

As we have written here, parents shouldn’t be too quick to spring for colorful packs with cereals. As we have noticed elsewhere, you can teach kids to recognize advertisers’ intentions even by using educational online games for kids.

Let us assure you that the Driving Kids online game doesn’t contain any advertisements for dubious food. No hidden catches, just fun educational games for kids!

Kids may be easily influenced by social and cultural happenings, of which advertising is among the most insidious. It appears without knocking at your door, it exists here and there, and it determines your lifestyle… It catches you when you aren’t ready to resist, for example, when reading a magazine, eating cornflakes for breakfast or looking for Internet online games for kids.

A special educational website for kids about how ads work has recently appeared… New kids games website admongo.gov teaches kids how to recognize ads in everyday life. This educational online campaign for kids was initiated by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission; its goal is “to boost advertising literacy.”

“It’s tough to create an online game about business and money that is both entertaining and fun for youngsters,” Steve Rosen from The Kansas City Star writes. “Admongo, however, meets those challenges without confusing or boring kids”.

“Your ad-ucation starts today,” the new kids’ website proclaims. Aimed at youngsters ages 8 to 12, this free educational game asks kids to think about three simple questions: who’s responsible for the ad; what is the ad really saying; and what does it want you to buy, do or think. In the fun online game, kids learn to recognize advertisements on the street and at home.

So, as Driving Kids supposed in March 2010, it looks like the time to understand promoters’ and advertisers’ tricks has finally come!

Just look to what results this fun kids’ game may lead when kids have paper, pencils… and when their flight of fancy is directed at the certain way! Google is now conducting one of its most touching online competition for children called Doodle 4 Google.

Now it’s focused on the U.S. kids: all K-12 students are invited “to create their own Google doodle inspired by the theme, “If I Could Do Anything, I Would…“.” Look at the painted dreams in the list of State Finalists – and admit that kids create braver than we, adults! While we’re making virtual playgrounds and game websites for kids, kids dream of a playground in space. While we’re concerning with games kids can play, kids are ready to save the world. While we’re caring of educational games for kids, our small boys and girls are ready to teach us some lessons!

“Internet and free kids games ruined children’s creativity,” some parents mutter. “Computer is a handy tool to create works of great talent, while online kids’ games assist children in learning,” other mothers and fathers object. Endless arguing seems to be solved soon… and not without help of creative children and their games!

Don’t miss the chance to vote for the most impressive kids’ artwork in every grade group from the Regional Finalists’ list: online voting is open to May 25, 2010.

Kids Internet Digest in pictures. Arnie and kids take their hands in the leftscussion

• in XX century, about 10% of the European children were born left-handed

It let us allow that one in 10 kids playing online games do it putting the mouse on his left.

• there’re many famous left-handed personalities: Lewis Carroll and Sir Paul McCartney, Leonardo Da Vinci and Sir Isaac Newton, Bill Gates and Barack Obama…

We’re sure that educational games for kids favour the development of children’ skills and abilities. There’re definitely a couple of future big scientists and generous millionaires among Internet kids games’ players!

• many left-handed write with the right hand, doing other duties with the left as leading

To detect children handedness, look how kids play games online and offline and pay attention which hand is usually leads.

• some devices are usually convenient for right-hand people only: scissors, pens, knives, computer mice…

Driving Kids recommends you to check the computer mouse settings: it’s possible to change buttons’ position and to make the mouse more left-handed-friendly, online kids’ games more accessible.

• making left-handed person right-handed by force isn’t a good idea. Our handedness is connected with our psychical activity, reteaching may lead to unexpected consequences

By way of example, if you enjoy playing fun educational games like arcades “Rainbow” or “Taxi Coloring,” will you be happy if only online problem-solving games like “Bus Stations” or “Ice Breaker” were available to play? Simply put, just allow your child be himself and do the deeds as it’s comfortable for her or him.

What interesting facts about left-handed do you know? Can you share with Driving Kids some useful info to make our online kids’ game easy-to-use for left-handed boys and girls?

As TODAYonline.com (Singapore) writes, new fathers’ website “can help fathers keep abreast of the latest research on fatherhood, as well as allow them to recommend books for fellow dads to read and discuss father-related issues.”

Dear dads, would you please kindly help us to create our small Driving Dads’ Favourite Websites Database? Just below this article, you may live a link or two to the websites for fathers which you trust.

And then, after such an important mission, take the keybord back to the child, please

“My best cannot be her best,” “do what suits the child at that age,” “demonstrate to your children what you want them to be,” “observe your kids, not interfere”: Driving Kids finds these thoughts from the article worthy of being quoted in the every parent-oriented book!

From our point of view, the main advantage of following these pieces of wisdom is becoming closer to the child’s mind without disrupting the child’s psychology or individuality. Our kids deserve being respected, don’t they?

Have you forgotten how it was to be a child? Join in children’s games, play a kids’ game… and feel what kids want, dream and are able to do!

Stevanne Auerbach, Smart Play Smart Toys: How to Raise a Child with a High PQ

Book’ Title:

Smart Play Smart Toys
How to raise a child with a high PQ – play quotient

Book’ Author:
Stevanne Auerbach (aka Dr. Toy), Ph.D
DrToy.com

Book’ Key Point:
“To assist your child in succeeding with skill-building, we will look at different ways your child uses toys, and you’ll become informed about finding the right toys, and skilled at helping child expand his or her PQ”

Have you ever tried to talk about upbringing as about an amazing game? As far as we are children games’ developers, we’ll try to do that way, defining “genres” of literature about upbringing and children development in own original and a little bit “digital” way…

Childhood: user-guide, FAQ, walkthrough
There’re some books for parents which similar to hardware or software manual or user’s guide: highly informative, precise, strict, comprehensive, and with a note of thank to the Dear Reader (Customer, Parent) at the first page. There’re also books which look like FAQ: more user-friendly, may be read from any page, useful in certain cases (but seem to be useless when readers ask more complicated questions than “How to pay for my account” or “How to calm the youngster down in the supermarket”).

And, there’re books which resemble role-played games’ walkthrough. It specifies frames, notices the characters and items you shouldn’t pass by, shows the secret doors – shortly, focuses on significant things you may disregard. You think you can do without a walkthrough… until you once have it.

Walkthrough’s main distinction from another “genres” is that it gives you a presence effect. It features everything without eliminating the magic, the atmosphere, the quintessence of the world described. That’s why we put Stevanne Auerbach’ “Smart Play Smart Toys” on our  “walkthrough” bookshelf – among our own magic wand, mysterious box with everything-kids-need, and the sincerest and wisest books focused on children’ development.

Who’s the perfect reader?
Do you know who are you for your newborn child? You’re his or her… “Big Toy”! It’s you who attract child’ first attention, makes him or her smiling, serene, curious… Parents who’re not taken aback with such statement and who’re ready to climb down an adults’ mountain and to sit and play with their children on the floor – if there’re you, this book is for you.

Besides, there’s one more condition for successful reading. Parents who dare at exploring their children’ universe with “Smart Play Smart Toys,” should be ready to be fair with their self. They should be ready not only to their children’ knowledge but to self-exploring and self-education too. Small tip-block “Some questions to ask yourself about toys in your childhood” is a good example of how Stevanne Auerbach makes parents mentally and emotionally involved in reading and helps them to understand their kids better.

What’s the point?
A person begins to understand the world from the first days of living. And the first available way to do it is play. But play is not only an entertainment: it’s both art and science. Baby, toddler, preschooler, primary school child, older child – whoever your kid be, he or she deserves appropriate developing toys and activities, and Dr. Toy discovers it in large quantities.

Developing playing skills, we may develop other own abilities: physical and cognitive skills, creativity, and intellectual potential. The author appeals to IQ, intelligence quotient, to describe PQ, play quotient: it’s “an equally vital factor which affects how well your young one will attain the best of his physical, creative, and intellectual potential.”

Every phase of development has its certain achievements and difficulties. Some perspectives are proposed; some reefs are noticed. And if the Stevanne Auerbach’ playguide won’t help parents to avoid all the difficulties, it could show them various ways to increase the achievements.

The best expert is You
Despite the author has great experience in this field, she doesn’t allow herself be instructive. To say, she is not an artist, she is rather his assistant who fills color-boxes and prepares brushes.  Why does one of the world leading experts on children’s products and activities choose such approach? Because it is you who decides which toys worth buying and what activities worth being done. From her own side, Dr. Toy just fills parents’ backgrounds to simplify for them making conscious and targeted decisions.

That’s why she offers parents to create their own playbook, “a notebook with ideas that apply to your child and tips from your reading and research.” That’s why she defines three different categories of games – active, creative, educational – and marks with its index the most of toys and games in “Toy suggestions” boxes: what to choose finally, it’s on the parents’ own.  That’s way at the end of the book she proposes 5-pages list of “Play ideas,” where everything from archery and pottery to computer games for kids to scrapbooks making is counted.

How to use?
Dr. Toy’s playguide is well-structured and easy to use, even if you have to use it as a “FAQ-book.” The key-points are recorded in special tip-boxes. Here’re topics of some of them: it looks informative and worth reading, and it does.

Tips on selecting toys and other children’s products
Safety tips on toys
Tips on child observation
Scrap materials for making toys at home or school
Sources for free and unexpensive materials
Tips for selecting software

Frankly speaking, we think some of these tip-boxes may be stick down on the fridge or in the parents’ datebook.

Our resume: helpful for parents as well as for kids’ educators!

Reviewed by:
Marta Sterman, Editor, Kids’ Internet Digest,
DrivingKids.com – Edutainment MMO Game for Kids