Chris and I have had one ongoing parenting disagreement. He is all about video games and I think they are a time waster. I also think that too many children are playing games with far too much adult content. I am very careful not to desensitize my children by exposing them to crass behaviors, violence and gross sexual content. I want them to reject these things and think that they are horrible until they are old enough to have enough understanding to handle them. Even then, I want them to be more like me and cringe at the thought of violence. I want their sweet, innocent spirits to maintain some of that innocence, even in a world that turns farther and farther toward the macabre and evil and away from beauty and peace.

Enter the Entertainment Software Rating Board. This website is an awesome resource for parents who want to allow their children the fun of a video game, but who want to make darn sure that what they are exposing their children to is good clean fun without a hidden agenda. On this website you can search for games based on age level, content level or title- so if you are doing your holiday shopping and you need to make sure that what Jr is asking for is appropriate for him, you can.

Why can you trust the ESRB? The ESRB is an independent review board. They review by both age and content, and they are responsible for making sure that the game companies adhere to responsible marketing practices. They want you to be able to make an informed choice.

On top of this helpful tool, they also offer something really great. It is a Parental Controls section where they give you a step-by step guide to setting parental control features on popular video game consoles. When you consider how well versed our kids are in technology these days, most of them understand how to work parental controls. Those of us who are less involved in gaming need to understand how these tools work. Also, parents need to be watchful about their kid’s Internet downloads and make sure that they aren’t making unauthorized or illegal modifications to software and hardware that remove protective controls.

This is a great resource for parents in this age of overwhelming technology. It already helped me give the ok to a game Chris wanted to buy for Jonas. I feel good about saying ok because I know exactly what my son will be exposed to- and I know I’m there to make sure it will be in small doses so he won’t be wasting too much time.