Safe Games for Kids: Ensuring a Secure and Fun Online Experience

As parents and caregivers, it is our responsibility to ensure our children’s safety. While some areas are pretty straightforward like baby proofing your home or teaching your child what to do if approached by a stranger, other dangers that lurk in your child’s life are far more sinister. This is especially true when they venture online.

Online activities can be more difficult to manage. Even online games and videos that are geared toward children may still contain content that is inappropriate and even harmful. It is more important than ever for parents to examine the content that their children are consuming online – and take steps to eliminate what is not suitable.

At TruPlay, we are committed to giving your children a safe place to play fun games online.

Why Safety in Online Games Matters

The internet has brought the world into our living rooms and opened opportunities to us that were not accessible to earlier generations. But with that also comes potential risks, some very serious. The internet can be a veritable minefield of inappropriate content, aggressive advertising, and online predators.

Even seemingly harmless content can expose your child to values and behaviors within the story that are inconsistent with what you are trying to instill in them. There are many subtle messages that children can pick up such as disrespecting adults, living selfishly, relying on yourself instead of God, having bad priorities, and not showing love to others. And let’s not forget the age-old fairy tale story of meeting a “handsome” prince and immediately “falling in love” because he is the only one who can make you happy.

When you choose games that are designed with online safety in mind, it gives you peace of mind that even money can't buy. TruPlay games are free from hidden inappropriate messages. All of our games have wholesome messages that instill positive biblical values and shield your child from confusing or conflicting ideals.

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Key Features of Safe Online Games for Kids

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When looking for popular online games that are safe for children you can’t rely on the developer’s description or even the reviews by players. The best way is to evaluate the game yourself first to ensure that the game has these four key features:

1. No Inappropriate Content: Safe games for kids should be free from violence, explicit language, and adult themes, but also not exhibit values and harmful or untrue messages that are inconsistent with those you are instilling in your children.
2. Ad-Free Experience: Avoid games with aggressive advertising. This happens fairly commonly and these inappropriate ads can include adult themed content – even if they are subtle – or showing gameplay that is violent or not suitable for children.
3. Secure Chat Functions: If online communication features are included in the game, they should be monitored for safety and the prevention of online bullying and predators.
4. Educational Value: Games should combine age appropriate fun with learning.

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The Benefits of Safe Online Games for Kids

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Online gaming has sustained some serious hits to its reputation lately as parents express outrage over the content that it exposes their children to. It is important to understand that you can’t lump all online games under one negative umbrella.

Safe online games for kids offer some incredible benefits that can actually help them in several ways. You just have to know where to look. Fortunately, TruPlay has a treasure trove of safe games that offer these outstanding benefits:

• Cognitive Development: Safe for kids games enhance problem-solving and critical thinking by walking children through situations where they must use these skills in order to advance in the game. When those skills are exercised in play, they become more natural to use in real life.
• Social Skills: Multiplayer games teach teamwork, cooperation, and communication. The players are required to work together in order to reach goals and advance in the game.
• Wholesome values: Values are asserted in every type of content your child comes in contact with. Sometimes those values line up with yours, but many times they don’t. Safe kids' games instill wholesome values and key lessons that are more consistent with yours.
• Educational Content: Play has always been used as a tool for learning and the advancement of technology has increased that accessibility. By integrating educational elements into safe games, children can have fun while learning.
• Emotional Well-being: Children get a lot of messages in this world that do not promote a positive self-image. In fact, the opposite is often true. A characteristic of safe games for kids is that they provide positive reinforcement to boost self-esteem and confidence.
• Parental Peace of Mind: When you know that your child is playing safe games, you can relax and feel more confident in your child's online activities.

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Top Picks for Safe Online Games for Kids

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You really have to pay close attention to the games your children play online because, let’s face it, online gaming is like a field of landmines. Fortunately, several brands have stepped up to offer kids games that are wholesome and safe – while giving parents a little peace of mind knowing that their kids are protected from the junk that comes with most mainstream games.

1. TruPlay Games: Biblically inspired games for kids of all ages that are entertaining and informative, with no ads or in-app purchases.
2. PBS Kids Games: Educational games designed for young children, aligned with PBS Kids' programming.
3. ABCmouse: A secure platform with educational games for elementary school-age children.

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How to Evaluate If a Game Is Safe for Your Child

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So, what can parents do to ensure their children are playing online games that are safe for kids? There are several ways that you can check out games that your kids are playing to make sure that they are up to your standards.

1. Read Reviews: Look for reviews from other parents and trusted sources (generally not the developer site or where the game is sold/downloaded). There are several very good sites that evaluate games and give detailed reviews so you can make informed decisions:some text
   • Common Sense Media
   • AskAboutGames
   • PluggedIn
2. Play the Game Yourself: Spend time playing the game to understand its content and features. Free trials offer an outstanding opportunity for you to do this before making the purchase and handing it over to your child.
3. Check Privacy Policies: Ensure the game has a transparent privacy policy protecting children's data.

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Wrap-Up: Ensuring Safe Fun for Kids

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The online world that video games offer can be a very good source of entertainment for kids, but it is important to be selective and do your due diligence to ensure that your child isn’t exposed to content that’s not good for them. You wouldn’t feed your child something that could harm their body and the same goes for protecting them from consuming content in online games that is harmful to their mind, psyche, and spirit.

Safe online games let your child explore and play. And you don’t have to worry.

Brands like TruPlay, PBS Kids, and ABCmouse are excellent examples of safe platforms.

Use the tips provided to ensure a secure gaming experience for your children. Also, don’t forget to talk to your kids about online gaming safety.

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Join the Fun with TruPlay

Are you ready to introduce your family to safe and engaging games for children? Give TruPlay a try! All of our games are Biblically inspired, ad-free, and informational. Your kids will have a blast and you can relax knowing that they are playing wholesome games in a safe environment.

Sign up today and start your free trial so you can get to know us. Subscribing to TruPlay allows you access to a safe gaming environment for your kids with many fun, engaging games that they are going to love.

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FAQ

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As a parent, you probably have some questions about online games. We’ve answered a few that we commonly get.

What are the best safe online games for kids?

There are several sites that have games that are safe for kids. The top safe game sites that we’ve found are TruPlay, PBS Kids Games, and ABC Mouse.

How can I ensure a game is safe for my child?

The best way to know if a game is appropriate for your child is to play it yourself. Many sites (like TruPlay) offer a free trial. This is an excellent opportunity for you to evaluate the games by getting into them yourself and playing them.

What features should I look for in a safe online game?

There are four key features that you should look for in safe games for kids:

• No Inappropriate Content
• Ad-Free Experience
• Secure Chat Functions
• Educational Value

How do I manage my child's online gaming time?

Managing your child’s online gaming time can be tricky, but it isn’t impossible. Here are our recommendations:

• Have a set screen time allowance for your child.
• The American Academy of Pediatrics offers the following recommendations:some text
  • Children younger than 2 – NO screen time
  • Children age 2 to 12 – One hour a day
  • Teens (and adults) – Two hours a day
• The World Health Organization and American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry say that one hour a day is appropriate for children 2 to 5.
• The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry says that it is OK to allow three hours a day on the weekends.
• Set alarms and offer rewards for quickly responding when screen time is over.
• Provide other activities that allow your child alone play, group play, and play with you
• Schedule some outside time each day.
• Keep all devices in a common area of your home such as the living room, kitchen, or family room.
• Help your child find activities to alleviate boredom, in effect teaching them how to cope with boredom and manage it themselves without the use of devices.

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