How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books • Hacker News Board

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#21

Post by wild_preference » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 9:36 AM UTC

genidoi wrote: post #14

hrktb wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> war on screen So, is it like the war on drug and war on terrorism ? Also I remember when I was a kid, people were over my back for reading too much books, as I was supposed to “go outside”, “play with the other kids”, “make things with my hand”. I won’t use the eternal ‘I ended up fine’ argument, but in any day and age we’re grindingly pushing kids toward stuff they don’t care about for no decent reason. As a gener…

Everything in moderation. Such as stopping your 11 y/o kid from playing runescape at 2am when they should be sleeping. Source: Me.

15 years ago I was setting my alarm for 2am to sneak some before-school Runescape! The growing discussion thee days on the long-term effects of sleep deprivation, especially in youth, is a bit scary. :)

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#22

Post by dumb2223 » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 9:37 AM UTC

I imagine that books could be enhanced with a virtual reality game that presents you the main characters and the place where the book develops the plot. So the line between books and virtual games becomes slimmer.

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#23

Post by 105e9 » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 9:57 AM UTC

dumb2223 wrote: post #22

I imagine that books could be enhanced with a virtual reality game that presents you the main characters and the place where the book develops the plot. So the line between books and virtual games becomes slimmer.

One's own imagination is more precious than any defined virtual game can ever be.

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#24

Post by tzs » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 10:08 AM UTC

Freak_NL wrote: post #19

lihaciudaniel wrote: post #2

As a full time kid and an ex minecraft player, I think that's a way to get into books. The only way I got into books was by trying hard at first to read on my phone (it was hard and boring for a month I was reading during boring classes at school). But now a year later I've never read any paper books, all the books I've read are ebooks.

If you haven't already, why not get (or ask for) an e-reader with an e-ink display? Reading from paper or e-ink is a lot less detrimental to your eyesight. When reading in the evenings that has the benefit of not affecting your circadian rhythm as much (which normal screens tend to do).

I'm a bit skeptical of many of the claims that paper or e-ink in the evening has less effect on circadian rhythms than a normal screen does. What would be the mechanism for this?

One claim I've seen is that it is because they are frontlit rather than backlit. But to the photosensor cells that sense the light and report to the parts of the brain that control circadian rhythms, it should just be frequency and intensity that matters. Light of a given frequency and intensity should have the same effect regardless of whether it came from a frontlit or a backlit display.

I have noticed that the brightness I need to comfortably read a normal screen seems to be higher than the brightness I need to comfortably read paper. Perhaps that is the difference--we simply use less light with paper?

Or perhaps with paper, where we get to choose what light to use for our nighttime reading, and it is often done with a light dedicated specifically to that task, we tend to choose low blue lights?

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#25

Post by lihaciudaniel » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 10:19 AM UTC

Freak_NL wrote: post #19

lihaciudaniel wrote: post #2

As a full time kid and an ex minecraft player, I think that's a way to get into books. The only way I got into books was by trying hard at first to read on my phone (it was hard and boring for a month I was reading during boring classes at school). But now a year later I've never read any paper books, all the books I've read are ebooks.

If you haven't already, why not get (or ask for) an e-reader with an e-ink display? Reading from paper or e-ink is a lot less detrimental to your eyesight. When reading in the evenings that has the benefit of not affecting your circadian rhythm as much (which normal screens tend to do).

Thank you for the advice. I am using app that blocks blue light(1) ( I am sure many people use it and it is famous already). Also great thing about using a phone is that of great apps that allow to listen to your books where you left off (2), also it has in-built dictionary for faster reading. And the speed reading apps (3). I don't think reading is any different from researching where you use a laptop to read research papaers.

1. Twilight, f.lux you name it. 2. (android only) https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.prestigio.... - very great app, you can use widget to see your library also. You can use any TTS ( I use Google) to listen to the book.

3. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=azagroup.reedy

You can set speed, pause easily. A great app that is used for deliberate practicing speed reading skill. Increasing the WPM to an uncomfortable level. Also you can read before bed without having to turn next page.

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#26

Post by ObsoleteNerd » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 10:27 AM UTC

madrox wrote: post #3

lihaciudaniel wrote: post #2

As a full time kid and an ex minecraft player, I think that's a way to get into books. The only way I got into books was by trying hard at first to read on my phone (it was hard and boring for a month I was reading during boring classes at school). But now a year later I've never read any paper books, all the books I've read are ebooks.

> But now a year later I've never read any paper books, all the books I've read are ebooks. This is the most mind-blowing thing I've read on HN. It really makes me appreciate generational differences.

I'm around 40 and haven't read a physical book since the Kindle came out. Same goes for most the people around me (including parents and older friends). I think I know one single person who reads physical books, and they're a collector/enthusiast.

I don't think it's generational rather just some people "clicked" with ebooks and some didn't.

I couldn't live without search, saving passages, device handover, hold-click dictionary/wiki (so good for setting the image in your head if the book mentions a city/country you haven't been). I read maybe a few physical books a year before, now I read a novel or 2 a week, almost every week, and carry my kindle absolutely everywhere since they launched (have worn out 3).

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#27

Post by hrktb » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 10:55 AM UTC

genidoi wrote: post #14

hrktb wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> war on screen So, is it like the war on drug and war on terrorism ? Also I remember when I was a kid, people were over my back for reading too much books, as I was supposed to “go outside”, “play with the other kids”, “make things with my hand”. I won’t use the eternal ‘I ended up fine’ argument, but in any day and age we’re grindingly pushing kids toward stuff they don’t care about for no decent reason. As a gener…

Everything in moderation. Such as stopping your 11 y/o kid from playing runescape at 2am when they should be sleeping. Source: Me.

Yes ! Stopping kids from staying up at night is the funniest game though. The length each party is willing to go to one-up the each other is where you truely get to know each other.

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#28

Post by anonymfus » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 10:58 AM UTC

105e9 wrote: post #23

dumb2223 wrote: post #22

I imagine that books could be enhanced with a virtual reality game that presents you the main characters and the place where the book develops the plot. So the line between books and virtual games becomes slimmer.

One's own imagination is more precious than any defined virtual game can ever be.

A virtual game is not necessary "defined". Minecraft is a very abstract game.

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#29

Post by criley2 » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 11:08 AM UTC

105e9 wrote: post #23

dumb2223 wrote: post #22

I imagine that books could be enhanced with a virtual reality game that presents you the main characters and the place where the book develops the plot. So the line between books and virtual games becomes slimmer.

One's own imagination is more precious than any defined virtual game can ever be.

Minecraft and imagination are two sides of the same thing. People with no imagination put Minecraft down very quickly.

It is a sandbox afterall.

Re: How Minecraft is helping kids fall in love with books

#30

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Jul 14, 2018, 11:09 AM UTC

sova wrote: post #5

Minecraft is absolutely not helping in the war on screens. As a former educator I laugh heartily at the proposition. Although, I did use "screen time" as a gift-able and earn-able commodity, and in a small classroom of kids it works great to encourage sharing, participation, group watch / observance, and "can I please share with Timmy now so I can have more screentime later?" [success fist]

[deleted]