We always hear that the technology is affecting our kids negatively. It is often recommended to limit “screen time”. This might be true, if all the time spent on phone is on youtube or tiktok videos. There are many other ways in which the smartphone, tablet or laptop can be used that will be beneficial to the kids.
We are used to say: “garbage in, garbage out”. This principle also applies when it comes to kids and “screen time”. If the “input”, the things that the kid does on devices is something he has what to learn from, it is good, if he is only watching music videos or repetitive content, then the time spent is lost.
There are many ways to learn online. You can read articles about a specific topic, you can watch educational or instructional videos, but when we are talking about kids, we cannot expect them to spend hours watching this type of content. Kids must be involved in fun activities that will make them keep going and learn what they should learn.
Playing games is fun for everyone, but the kids enjoy and can spend hours playing. If they spend hours playing games, why not playing games where they can learn to do or to like something? Cooking, for example, is a boring activity for kids, but if we mix it in some games, we can make them interested in cooking.
Recently, I found a great collection of simple games for kids at Culinary Schools. They have food education games, where kids can learn about cooking, farming or recycling. They also have games specialized on different types of foods like pizza, burgers, mexican food, sushi, ice cream, cocktails, etc.
One of the games that got my attention is Pizza Cafe. In the game, structured on 12 difficulty levels, you have to serve clients with 6 different types of pizza. You must combine ingredients and prepare the pizza they order, and collect money after they finish eating.
You have a determined amount of time in which you have to reach a money goal, in order to progress to the next level. You can spend money to buy new ingredients when you run out of specific items. You have a book with pizza recipes so you know what type of ingredients you need for each pizza.
After playing this game, you kid will be interested in mixing ingredients for pizza and I bet he will ask you to make pizza with him so ha can make what he did in the game.
Another game that caught my attention is Sweety Cooking Chocolate Cake. This game is more simplistic, but it is teaching kids how to make a chocolate cake, step by step. Each step requires selecting the ingredients and the required tools, and each action is explained.
If you want to teach your kid how to make boiled eggs, The Boiled Eggs is the right game for you. After playing this game, you kid will know what is the difference between hard boiled eggs, half boiled eggs and soft boiled eggs.
