Computer Games to Get My 3 Year Old Interested In.

Updated on November 29, 2007
N.B. asks from Palatine, IL
22 answers

My daughter just turned 3 in November and she recently took a real interested in using our computer. I know there are free internet games out there for her age but I can't find them. I would like to try so see if she will play with them and show an interst before I start spending money on buying games. She may just be interested in playing with the buttons but I think if we could find something that she could learn from she would enjoy it.

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R.M.

answers from Indianapolis on

Does your daughter watch PBS shows? They have a website with activities for preschoolers. www.pbskids.org

When my son was 18 months old he wanted to play on the computer. We bought him the JumpStart Toddler software. He loved it! They also have JumpStart Preschool. I think these are good programs to start with.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.S.

answers from Chicago on

The ones my 2 almost 3 year old uses are starfall.com. abckids.com, noggin.com, playhousedisney.com and nickjr.com. These seem to be his favorite. There is also one at sesameworkshop.org and sprout. Good luck My son was a computer whiz by the time he was two!!

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M.Q.

answers from Indianapolis on

starfall.com is the best free educational internet site I have found. My kids will get engrossed for hours if I would let them. The site has differnet levels of activities depending on the level of literacy of your child. My kids are 2 and 5 and they both find plenty to do there.

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Y.S.

answers from Chicago on

disney.com, pbskids.org, nickjr.com, cartoonnetwork.com, qubo.com, sesameworkshop.org, pbssprout,

1 mom found this helpful
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M.H.

answers from Chicago on

If she likes to color, you can download TuxPaint for free. You can also add your own "sheets & stamps" for her to use. That was a big hit with my son. They have pretty good, simple answers in the help/faq section of how to and where to put stuff.

Also, the disney magic artist studio is pretty cool, but maybe after she has had some practice with the computer in general.
Also, we like iSpy.

I found many games on Amazon for less than $5. You might also try half.com. It's cheaper than most stores.

If you need something really basic, there is Alphababy. I have it on my mac. I think it's available for pc, but not positive. It is also free. The child can use any key on the keyboard without destruction to your hard drive. There are options in the preferences to show letters, numbers, shapes, alternate in pictures from iPhoto/folder, sounds can be added. It's fun for them for a first "game".

1 mom found this helpful
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J.K.

answers from Chicago on

N.,
Check out www.sesameworkshop.org (great, age-appropriate games that your three-year-old will love), nickjr.com (you can play on the site or even "download" some of their games to try before you buy), or www.starfall.com (CPS uses this site to help kids learn about letters and reading)

1 mom found this helpful
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J.C.

answers from Indianapolis on

www.123TeachMe.com is a good one if you're interested in her learning spanish, they've got great matching games on it for kids to learn by.

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A.M.

answers from Chicago on

N.,

As the other mom suggested, the Reader Rabbit series are great. My son started playing with them just after he turned 2 and there are all age levels and different games in those series. If your daughter knows all her letters and you are trying to get her to read, try the hooked on phonics. I just got that and it is good. There is also something called Millie's MAth house and another one called Bailey's book house. I don't recall what series or company they are from now. But the Reader Rabbit ones are great. If you do want to just try out stuff, borrow them from your local library - you can also use the interlibrary loan system to request them from another library if your own library doesn't have them. That's what I did. That way you don't have to spend the money until you know if your daughter likes those games. The library has a ton of other games as well.

Good luck.
Aarti.

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C.U.

answers from Chicago on

http://www.amazon.ca/Reader-Rabbit-Toddler-2002-Mac/dp/B0...
When you do decide to buy we love these reader rabbit games you can get them at Best Buy etc...this was her first game.
As far as on-line goes there is noggin.com, but until she gets the hang of using the mouse you will have to help her. The baby & toddler reader rabbit game teaches them how to navigate the mouse, there is no clicking involved. They just keep the mouse in one spot then it goes to where they are pointing. The next level up from that game is the Reader Rabbit Preschool, which you have to click in order to move around. Like I said there really (as far as I know) isn't any games on-line that dont involve knowing how to use the mouse. Let me know if you have any questions. My daugher will be 3 in February and she has been plaing on the computer for about 6 months.

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F.C.

answers from Chicago on

Hi N.,

I feel the same as you, my husband is a workaholic and travels a lot, and I feel like a single mom a lot too...
I have a 4 year-old and he has been showing interest in computers as well, like a lot of kids. He is just mesmerized by the keyboard and pressing buttons and see what happens on the screen. I didn't want to buy any gamnes either at first, so I started by just opening a blank Word sheet, and selected the "Insert" and "Symbol" in the toolbar menu. I showed him how he could click on any character (I choose the fun looking ones) and how to click on insert. It keeps him busy for a while. I usually sit with my work computer next to him so that I can still do some work and be there whenever he hits the wrong button. You could use also just the regular keyboard and let your child type anything. Change the font, the size and it is even better !
For my son's 4th birthday, I received a "Dr Seuss" DVD game that he loves. It reads a story and you can click on anything on the images and silly things happen. Very fun and easy for a young child.
Hope that helps !

P.S.

answers from Indianapolis on

My 2 year old and 5 year old daughters love to play on NickJr.com. They have their own computer set up for them and they do it all by themselves. They enjoy the games on their and I get such a kick out of watching them play!

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S.S.

answers from Chicago on

pbskids.org

great website for kids.

She shows interest because you are interested in your mysterious computer.

My 18 month old likes to watch national geographic video clips of animals/monkeys.

Beware of leapfrog 'games' and other computers for young kids toys. It's a market capitalizng on anxious parents who want their kids to succeed. (My 1st grade teacher opinion!)

Your kid learns most from reading and spending time with you. TV and other media is fine if you use it to buy yourself some time to do a chore or 2 (as babysitting), but don't think it is teaching your child something that you don't do better. My child loves it if we watch a show together and talk about it or dance along.

Try out those websites before shelling out your hard earned money.
good luck

S.

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D.T.

answers from Indianapolis on

My son loved playhousedisney.com at that age. The PBS website also has games and activities for that age - and Nick Jr. There's absolutely no reason to spend money on computer games for kids... the are literally dozens (if not hundreds) of websites with free games. Start with her favorite TV shows and then just do a google search after that.

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K.S.

answers from Chicago on

My 5 and 2 1/2 year old love Noggin.com and nickjr.com and pbskidssprout.com. All have fun and educational games perfect for a 3 year old. They have printables that the kids can color, they have printable car games great for long trips...ENJOY!

K.
www.kristenstemple.myarbonne.com

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S.M.

answers from Chicago on

My boys are 3 and 4 (October birthdays) and have gotten really interested in the computer as well. Online they like to play on pbskids.org and playhousedisney.com. Both those sites have some really cool games, and they are free. My three y/o needs a lot of guidance on these sites, but they are great for working on together. As for games with software, we have two games they like to play that are fairly easy for them to use. We have the Mickey Mouse Toddler game (I think it may be part of the Disney Toddler game set- we got it separately on ebay, but it's about $15 for the set at Target.) and the Disney Pixar Learning Finding Nemo Preschool game (about $10 at Best Buy.). They can play them pretty independently while I am close by doing other chores.

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A.J.

answers from Indianapolis on

There are all kinds of games at sesame street dot com and also nick jr dot com. That's where we started my oldest a couple years ago.

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J.R.

answers from Chicago on

PLayhouse disney is good. PBS kids has some great games for little ones.Do the ones that require an arrow key and put stickers on them so she can find them easier and not muck up the computer. Starfall is for pre-k. Noggin has some good ones as Nick jr, but they maybe a little advanced. Mine wans't ready for the mouse until almost 4.

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L.L.

answers from Chicago on

Our kids loved the Jumpstart and reader rabbit. Very good software.

L. L

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M.C.

answers from Chicago on

Agreed. Reader Rabbit is a big hit at our house. Look for preschool games. We bought an educational Finding Nemo computer game at Target.

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K.M.

answers from Chicago on

Hi,
Try the Nick Jr site and the PBS site. Nickjr.com has all kinds of stuff your child can play like Dora, Blue, Backyardigans, Diego, etc and PBSkids.com has Caliou, Arthur,Sesame Str. and Barney stuff. THere are also Club Penguin too. My 4 yr old loves playing there. You don't need to be a member to play the games. My older girls are members cause then they can change & "buy" things there for their penguin but my 4 yr old doesnt do that. Hope this helps.
K.

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F.S.

answers from Chicago on

My son plays games on the following:
www.playhousedisney.com
www.nickjr.com
www.pbskids.org

He just turned 5 and has been playing on these websites since about age 3. There are some others, but these are great choices.

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