RE: re: Re: Childish things was Re: That Age Thing

Dave said:
>since most of us on the list are married with children, we must
consider
what we introduce to our kids -- even wargaming.  if I show them only
bloody combat where only winnning counts, I failed as a father.  if I
can
teach them about history and the joy of meeting/knowing other people,
then
I've given them something valuable.  it's all a matter of what the goal
of
the teaching is and how it's approached.  our home already has many
lessons
on war, fighting, selfishness, defending what's right, and how to
distinguish them.

  Agree.  Of course, when you're young, there's also a certain
attraction in doing something--anything--that's Not-Mainstream
("freaking the mundanes"), but hopefully that wears off pretty soon. 
Meanwhile gaming can be used to teach arithmetic, probability,
geometry/trigonometry, history, economics, basic physics, astronomy,
plus lots more if you get into worldbuilding--not to mention values such
as winning or losing gracefully, being a good sport, cooperating with
your team (assuming you have enough other gamers around for a
multi-player endeavor), determination, etc.
  I hypothesize that kids a certain age--around 10-12--are looking for
ways to be winners or have at least one area of their life where they
have some power.  Letting your child haul out an Ogre or a
Battledreadnought squadron and beat up on your forces is one way to
gratify that.  Adding other elements to the mix--eg economics and
negotiation in a campaign game--just lets you capitalize even more on
the learning experience.

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