Moderation in all things

Interesting piece in The Scotsman by Nicola Morgan - related to a couple of books she has written - How to wean them off their computers (Thanks to Kevin Thompson for finding this!). It argues for a balanced lifestyle for children, where computer and video games are an accepted part but which don’t dominate their lives and spare time.
Quote:

None of these activities is valueless. All, unlike television, are interactive, not passive; many require focus, concentration, skill. Games involve strategy, dexterity, mental speed, hand-eye co-ordination, intuition, perseverance; some involve role-playing and creativity.

And another:

However, there are important negatives. All stem from one factor which makes these activities, particularly computer games, different from other things that occupy our children’s time: time itself. It’s so easy to spend an inordinate number of hours playing computer games or being online. If they spent only half an hour a day, or treated it like any other hobby and did it for a couple of hours once or twice a week, we wouldn’t worry. But it’s the hours and hours that worry us.

There are several good points, even if it does read like a sales pitch at times. Something that has not gone unnoticed by some of the commentators at the end of the piece.