“Beginning when children are very young, they have a noticeable need to be valued as a distinct entity within the family,” said Beth Garrett, parenting consultant and owner of Parenting Forward. “We often underestimate just how capable they are, and family game night is a perfect way to help all children develop important social skills, and a positive sense of belonging. Young children in particular learn a myriad of wonderful life skills through game play that will serve them well for the rest of their lives.”
Members of the gaming community agree.
“It is our opinion that a family that games together stays together,” said Ed Ostling, manager of Hat’s Games. “The competitive and cooperative aspects of games encourage personal discovery of each other’s qualities that ‘How was school today’ just does not cover. Also, it instills an air of pride in fair play and the idea that sub-optimal situations with the right teamwork can still provide positive results.”
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Attending game nights outside of the home is a good way to socialize the kids, says Justin Beal, co-owner of A2Z Games.
“Family game nights are important because it allows families to come together with other like minded individuals and be social while playing a game, an art form that is lost in the day and age of mobile, tablet and console games,” Beal said. “I believe the social aspect of gaming with people you do and don’t know is an important step in growing up and becoming well adjusted members of society.”
Having a regularly scheduled game night — whether at home or elsewhere — also serves as a way to let your kids know they’re important, says Garrett.
“Prioritizing this weekly event shows our children, in a tangible way, that they are worth the extra time and effort,” Garrett said.
In fact, family game night and game time is so important to Garrett, that she has scheduled a weekly event at her business, Parenting Forward, which offers parenting consultations, classes and more.
Garrett incorporates gameplay in all of her teachings and offers play classes, says Laura Sagerman, mother of one, and client of Parenting Forward.
“It’s vital to play games because they learn best through playing games,” Sagerman said. “She (Garrett) does a lot of different games, but, they’re all for a purpose. She teaches them how to play and take turns and handle disappointment. The kids don’t even know they’re learning anything. They’re just like ‘This is really fun.’”
“It (game night) is an opportunity for families to come together and have fun, of course, but more importantly it is a time where Beth encourages positive social skills,” said Cate Morales, mom of two. “Through positive reinforcement, her own abundant patience and just the right amount of boundary setting, she empowers the kids to do things like work together to achieve a goal and exhibit patience towards each other.”
Another plus for game night? It’s inexpensive.
Sure, building a game library for your home costs some money, but, once you buy those games, you get countless hours of game play.
Going out to play games is cheap, too. We found 10 places in Tucson that offer game time, in all forms — from role playing to classic board games — and none of them cost more than $5 for the family to play.
