Trying to decide on computer games for children?

When children are in Kindergarten their parents minds often turn to their future. Will they be a doctor, lawyer or earn some real money and become an internet marketer (that last bit there was a joke). But seriously, education is a life-long experience and invariably the more people enjoy their learning, the more they will learn.

Games have always been one of the most reliable ways to teach new skills, right from early times to the pre-computer era games have taught many things including social skills, literacy and numeracy. In contemporary society computers are so prevalent that it is accepted that children will learn how to interact with them, and invariably be better more adept with computers than their parents. Introducing kids to computers via educational pc games is a great way for them to learn about computers and learn from computers.

Good software teaches familiarity with computer hardware, such as keyboard and mouse, while providing a friendly and engaging environment to learn other traditional scholarly skills. Even at this early age, kindergarten computer games should address concepts that are recommended for aptitude at this level.

Such concepts include:

o Pre-reading Readiness
o Simple Word Identification
o Basic Vocabulary
o Shapes
o Colors
o Rhyming concepts
o Counting 1-10
o Ordering and Sequencing
o Telling the time

Like any other educational software, kindergarten computer games should also have the ability to adjust the learning level of the program to suit your child. While the above concepts are a guide, not all children learn the same things at the same time and no child should ever be made to feel like they are "failing" if they cannot understand a concept that is "meant" to be learnt at their level. Children are not carbon copies of each other and intelligence comes in many forms, great learning software should reflect this.

If you are unsure of where to start, take a look at software from companies like Jumpstart and The Learning Company. They have been in the business for a long time and have refined their programs to make them user-friendly and informative.