Setting Rules for Gaming in Your Family

Adapted from 'Rules for Cyber Wellness ' by Pascoaman

Rules are an integral part of parenting. They are the tools for parents to teach about CONSEQUENCES for every CHOICE the child makes.

At home, the children are protected from real-world threats and also immediate consequences for some actions. It is thus crucial that the parents dish out "limited consequences" together with implementation of rules, so as to prepare their children for the real world.

Yet on the internet, we find an environment that sometimes reduces the effectiveness of regular parenting. Children can hide behind anonymity and get away with actions that will be punished in real life. As such, we need to modify some parenting practices to make it work for our children.

We attach here some sample rules that parents have implemented for their kids. These may serve as examples for you to study and make necessary adaptations.

Example #1 - Amos' 10 rules for gaming

Amos uses games to engage his 2 teenage boys. They entire family enjoys gaming together and his boys have gone on to compete in the World Cyber Games at a very young age. Yet at the same time, Amos has very strict rules for his children.

Example #2 - YC's rules for Facebook
Many parents allow their primary school kids onto Facebook without any moderation. YC's eldest daughter enjoys using Facebook to play games and interact with her friends and safe adults, all with engagement from her father. Here are the rules that YC sets for his daughter.