Teaching Our Children Life Lessons

Besides the life lessons imparted by my loving parents, I learned a lot about living from the Board games I played as a child.

I learned that children are expensive from the game of Life. I learned that things are often not as they appear on the surface from Clue. And, I learned to make good choices from Chutes and Ladders.

All three are identified as being among the Top 10 Board Games for kids by FamilyEducation.com. As is Monopoly.

But, is the new edition of the venerable board game, expected out next month, really what we want to teach our kids?

It's called Monopoly: Cheaters Edition...and, according to Fast Company, it "plays faster, zanier, and perhaps more apropos of the current socio-political climate. Most of all, it’s a version of Monopoly that properly reflects the impulses inside our own dark hearts." 

One of the available cheats encourages players to steal money from the bank. If one is clever enough to pull it off, they not only get to keep the money but receive bonus cash. To be sure, if you get caught, you have to wear a handcuff connected to the Board. But, still...

Call me old-fashioned...but is validating cheating something we want to teach our kids?

Just sayin...

Comments

[Lee T]

You are dead on that kids will emulate what they learn while playing. Parents have the choice to instill ethics...or not. Our son loves Monopoly and plays to win. When younger, he would try to "bend the rules" because he wanted to win so badly. He got busted quickly, repeatedly and penalized till he got the message. Our daughter learned strategic thinking in a simple way her playful mind could understand by playing the Kipper, "Where are my toys?" board game. Happy to say that both remember those lessons now that they are college. No guarantees on where they end up in life, but it is nice to see something sunk in:)

[WilliamHook]

Sometimes life lessons are not learned to children, they are taught by the experiences of life. These experiences can be get by taking participate in games, by learning arts and culture and more such social activities. Cheating is the fact which encourages players to win. But it is not good for children to teach how to cheating because it may prove bad impact on them. So its parents responsibility to teach their children ethical values.