Self-control and impulse-control games for kids

Self-control is the ability to stop, wait and think before acting: not blurting out an answer, waiting your turn, or not grabbing the last cookie straight away.

In Color Clash your child taps the ink colour instead of reading the word, and in Firefly Catch they tap the star but hold back when a look-alike appears. Both games ask for that quick “stop and think” moment, and get harder as your child improves.

What the research says

Diamond and Lee (2011) and Diamond and Ling (2016) reviewed many ways of helping children’s executive functions, including self-control. Computer training improved the trained tasks and very similar ones, but the benefits did not reach much further.

The approaches that looked most promising were ones that practise self-control in daily life and keep challenging children — such as certain school programmes, martial arts and active games. So enjoy these games as practice, and give your child chances to use self-control off-screen too.

Sources:

• Diamond & Ling (2016), Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience: what improves executive functions
• Diamond & Lee (2011), Science: interventions for executive functions in children 4–12

Try it at home, off-screen

• Opposite Simon Says: do the opposite of what the grown-up says.
• Freeze dance: dance to music and freeze the moment it stops.
• In a board game, wait for your turn without touching the pieces.