Giftedness and Fortnite: our topics in August

I admit: I've never been interested in computer games. I had to google the term «Fortnite» first. «Once the sons are ten or eleven, there's no stopping them,» says author Jochen Metzger, «Computer games are contagious, hardly anyone seems to be immune. Fortnite sets new standards in this respect. And puts parents under pressure.» Fortnite Battle Royale is one of the most successful video games and is currently played by an estimated 125 million people. The game is free to play and is rated for ages 12 and up, even though it involves killing fighters in rows. What fascinates young people
fascinated by this shooting game? And how do parents recognise that their child is addicted to the game?
Fortnite. Colourful, but not harmless.

He is the leading journalist on the subject of «children and new media» in Germany, author of the bestseller «Jetzt pack doch mal das Handy weg» and, as of this issue, Fritz+Fränzi columnist: Welcome, Thomas Feibel! Media competence, writes the father of four
father of four, writes in his first article that media literacy usually refers to pure operating skills. Feibel therefore calls for a new competence in dealing with digital
media: the ability to read.

Every artistic endeavour of a child, no matter how mediocre, is reflexively praised by the parents. These children later fail due to their lack of frustration tolerance. Because they were constantly prophesied to be hugely talented, they give up at the slightest obstacle.
obstacle. In this respect, there are indeed insults that are productive.

Richard David Precht, German philosopher

Do you remember Joel, the seven-year-old with autism? The boy wanted a dog so much to accompany him and relieve his mother. Because there are long waiting times in Switzerland, Joel's mother Miriam Bettschen turned to a German assistance dog organisation. A trained dog costs 30,000 euros. We called on you, dear reader, to donate. That was last October. The money came together quickly, but Joel had to wait longer for his dog. Until the beginning of July. Then we received this message from Rostock: «The retraining is going well. Cola is doing a great job. Joel is totally besotted with her. We are very happy.» Cola - that's a large schnauzer mix (poodle and collie), the new four-legged friend at Joel's side. You can read a report about the autistic boy and his assistance dog in the September issue.

On our own behalf: We have revamped our website and bundled our cover stories into online dossiers . You can now find a wealth of texts on the topics of autism, resilience, bullying, smoking weed and homework on our homepage - without having to search for them. Further online dossiers are in the pipeline.

I hope you enjoy reading this issue and our texts at www.fritzundfraenzi.ch

Yours sincerely - Nik Niethammer