visitor Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 Dear all at which age did your kids start playing Minecraft ? What is the suitable age starting with Minecraft. And do your kids learn from it ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 If you really want the thread to die, stop responding to others, especially sarcastically. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
underthebridge Posted June 7, 2015 Share Posted June 7, 2015 Dear all at which age did your kids start playing Minecraft ? What is the suitable age starting with Minecraft. And do your kids learn from it ? Hi visitor, Perhaps your should start a new topic to get more responses. I will follow along because whether it was intended or not, this thread has made me curious about Minecraft myself! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Minecraft in a nutshell... The game isn't violent or graphic or inappropriate. I've seen kids as young as about 4 yo playing. There are two modes - creative and survival. In survival, you try to build things to survive with the baddies come out. In creative, you can build whatever you like. You can use it to build all kinds of things - sort of like Legos. It's also very customizable - you can get mods to change the sort of things you can build. The tablet versions are very easy to use. The computer version has some more options. You can play on a server with others or set up your own server to play with friends. Or play via bluetooth on devices if you're with friends. Minecraft videos are also very popular. In these, you watch someone else playing Minecraft to get ideas or see what's possible or just for entertainment. Some people consider it educational. For one thing, you can build anything so some kids recreate historical buildings or settings from books or things like that. You can use it as a tie in with school type stuff that way. For another thing, with the mods, you can use it as a way in to start learning some programming and there are different classes kids can take online to do that. Minecraft is a "sandbox" game. There are other sandbox games as well. Probably the other really popular one is Terraria, which has a very similar concept, but looks like a late 80's Nintendo 16 bit game instead of all 3D like Minecraft. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alte Veste Academy Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 If you really want the thread to die, stop responding Yes, and the OP can be edited to discourage people from responding to it. Not everyone reads all replies before posting to a thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raining Pineapples Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Ok, so I'm not getting why this post is seen as judgmental... I went through each sentence because it was driving me crazy and maybe I'm missing something. People were already jumping on it after this first post. I am so glad mine isn't. :001_smile: My girl JB sure likes her PS2 Sims Pets though. (BW is thankful her kid isn't hooked on minecraft and prefers other things. She points out she does like other games. This is a problem?? Don't we all have things we prefer our kids don't get into that others enjoy? Whether it's football, digging in the mud, feeding all the stay cats in the neighborhood, or video games? ) I babysit for a girl who is very hooked on Minecraft. ( Is this the problem?) The last time we were there my daughter was sitting quietly busy knitting....the girl was sitting next to her on her tablet playing Minecraft. ( each engaged in something they enjoy-good, right?) She asked my daughter if she wanted to move her chair over closer and watch her play (yeah...like that's really what she'd wanna do, :001_rolleyes:). (BW knows her daughter would not stop knitting to watch somebody do something she has no interest in. Mine wouldn't stop playing Minecraft or petting the dog to watch someone paint-isn't this normal behavior?) JB didn't want to, but just politely said, "Well, it's kind of hard to knit and watch you play at the same time." (good response!) The reply: "Oh no...I mean for you to stop knitting and watch me play." :lol:( It's funny when someone wants you to stop what you are doing and watch them have fun!) I'm sure there's skills involved and learning...but it just does not appeal to me or my kid. (OP acknowledges that there are probably some skills and learning involved for it to be popular, but it's not their "thing", so they don't understand it. The graphics (at least what she plays)...is pretty bad, imho. Everything is square. (Yes, they are square and the graphics are a step back in time) When I watch it, I feel like I could get a headache. ( People get headaches from all kinds of things. Squares flying around on a screen might be one for BW. I get nauseous watching the kids when they fly over their world) I don't get it.... Enlighten me please. Why all the rage? Just curious. (It sounds as though BW is trying to understand why a game that appears outdated is so popular. Is this not a legitimate question? Yeah, I don't get it. What did BW do to make others defensive? We play Minecraft here. Curious, because apparently you need to be cautious and censor yourself on this board. Even when there is nothing in your post, you must interpret it in multiple ways so you don't get jumped. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TracyP Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Ok, so I'm not getting why this post is seen as judgmental... I went through each sentence because it was driving me crazy and maybe I'm missing something. People were already jumping on it after this first post. Yeah, I don't get it. What did BW do to make others defensive? We play Minecraft here. Curious, because apparently you need to be cautious and censor yourself on this board. Even when there is nothing in your post, you must interpret it in multiple ways so you don't get jumped. My .02 People are touchy about screen time. I'm not going to speculate about why this is, but I see it IRL fairly often. My family owns no gaming systems or tablets. We watch little TV. I like the computer, but nobody else spends much time on here. They just aren't something we enjoy. No biggie. I have often felt like there is no way I can word this so it doesn't offend people or make them defensive. I see the same thing online. We have a huge number of things that we don't enjoy, yet nobody seems to get offended when we say, "Yeah, we aren't into hunting," or "I know we live right next to a trail, but 4 wheelers aren't our thing." (actual examples that have come up) I have come to believe that screens are one of "those" topics along with vaccinations, wealth, and a few others. If you want to wade in, you need to either don a flame proof suit or bend over backwards to ensure you don't offend. I'm not exactly sure why this is the case, but I wouldn't sweat it, and I hope BW doesn't either. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Ok, so I'm not getting why this post is seen as judgmental... I went through each sentence because it was driving me crazy and maybe I'm missing something. People were already jumping on it after this first post. Yeah, I don't get it. What did BW do to make others defensive? We play Minecraft here. Curious, because apparently you need to be cautious and censor yourself on this board. Even when there is nothing in your post, you must interpret it in multiple ways so you don't get jumped. I think what many people thought was there was a contrasting of the two activities of knitting and minecraft and it presented minecraft being the less worthy activity. If someone said "My kid and her friend aren't playing well together & this worries me a bit. Her friend likes to play minecraft and wants dd to watch. My dd would rather knit. The friend doesn't seem to want to knit. They're not 'gelling' as friends & I'm not sure what to do." - this would present the options as neutral & equivalent & just presents a dilemma of how to get kids engaged with each other when their interests are not the same. But saying "I'm so glad mine isn't" as your first sentence in response to the q about addiction is already presenting a bias. & we haven't even tackled whether the child really is 'addicted'. I mean just because she likes it and wanted to show it to her friend or chose to keep playing it in lieu of another activitiy is not a sign of addiction. The eyeroll about watching a player would also be problematic as many people watch twitch or youtube to see gamers play. It's again dismissing a whole genre and way of interacting with the technology. I don't think you need to censor yourself but I think you need to understand that if you write a post which carries a subtext of 'let's bash this thing I think is stupid,' then if there are people here doing that thing, you'll get pushback. If you post a genuine 'really, I don't understand this, please explain it to me so I can understand what it's about & why you like it/love it/ do it & I can consider whether it's something that would be neat to have in my life (or help me cement my reasons for not wanting to have this in my life) ' - then you probably won't get people jumping down your throat. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wintermom Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 nm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TracyP Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 I did not take offense anything you posted. I have responded to many of the "Tell me more about Minecraft" posts. I don't expect everyone to be interested in it either. I've said many times it's not for everyone. I have no problem introducing or explaining what it is. I did have a problem with the OPs wording, which I broke down why upthread in which I already admitted I was a bit harsh. At least to me, it came across as judgmental, not purely curious and apparently, I wasn't alone. Perhaps I set the tone for the rest of the thread? IDK. I remember years ago, I posted a similar question about Facebook. As a longtime FB holdout, I didn't get the appeal. I'm sure I offended some people by making them feel like they had to explain or defend themselves. I did learn a lot though and eventually gave FB a try. Wording is important if you want a good discussion about the pros and cons of people's personal activities or lifestyle. I appreciate that you didn't take offense to what I wrote. I have had it happen so often that I assume somebody will.... I have seen enough "holier than thou" posts from people who don't allow screens, so I wonder if people who enjoy theirs start to assume that intent even when it isn't there. I could be wrong, of course, but that is the feeling I get. I agree that wording is important, but I also think it is important not to read intent into words. To go back to the OP's post again, she immediately countered the "I'm glad my kid isn't into Minecraft" comment by noting that her dd does have her own things she is into. Until this thread, I did not know that watching other people play Minecraft was its own entertainment. Knowing that I could maybe see how the middle paragraph comes off as judgmental, but without knowing that it sounds like a ridiculous request. "Do you all want to stop riding bikes and watch me read a book?" KWIM? Her final paragraph sounded like a completely legitimate one wanting to understand what people like about Minecraft. I wonder if this thread would have been better received if it didn't come on the heels of the other thread. Ya know, the "People LET THEIR KIDS have iPads. WHAT is the world COMING TO?" thread. :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomatHWTK Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Well, I took offense become I am so very tired of someone noting a behavior in someone else's child, highlighting that behavior and then comparing his or her own child in a favorable light. If my child isn't into something, it's an addiction. 'The way my child responds is appropriate and the other child is somehow inadequate.' So in my ideal world people would ask questions and make observations without targeting some other child for comparison. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted June 12, 2015 Share Posted June 12, 2015 Dear all at which age did your kids start playing Minecraft ? What is the suitable age starting with Minecraft. And do your kids learn from it ? OP, this is how you ask questions about something you know nothing about, without judgment. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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