This one’s just for you. It takes about 10 minutes, and then you’re ready to go and find your child.
What you’ll need
- A laptop or computer with Google Chrome. Phones aren’t great for this, because the games were buggy on mobile when we tested them.
- Your own free Google account
- Paper and pencils or crayons
- The design sheets, if you’d like to print them. Blank paper works just as well.
- About an hour, sitting side by side so your child can see the screen
Get set up
- Open Chrome and go to gemini.google.com. Check you’re signed in to your Google account.
- Decide what to do about Activity (see below).
- Find Canvas: click Add files, then Canvas. That’s where the game gets built.
- Turn off autoplay on YouTube, so the next video doesn’t start before you’re ready.
- Play the example game yourself, so you know what you’re aiming for.
Then set up your space. Your child needs to see the screen easily, but the keyboard stays in front of you. Keep their drawings next to the computer so you can check against them as you go.
It’s your account
This runs on your Google account, and you do all the typing. Gemini has age rules, and this activity isn’t designed for a child to use on their own. Your child does the thinking and talking, and you’re at the keyboard.
Decide what to do about Activity
Gemini has a setting called Gemini Apps Activity, and it’s up to you whether it’s on or off. You’ll find it in the settings in the bottom left corner, under “Activity”.
- Off: your chats aren’t saved to your history, so you won’t be able to come back to the conversation another day. You’ll need to download the game to save your progress.
- On: your chats are saved, so you can come back to the same game another day. Google may also use your conversations to help improve Gemini.
Either way, keep names, ages, schools and places out of anything you type.
Save as you go
Every so often, download a copy of the game: Export, then Download code. It’s a good habit even with Activity on, because sometimes a change breaks the game, and it’s nice to have a version you can go back to.
Coming back another day with Activity off? Start a new chat, add the file you downloaded, and ask Gemini to open it in Canvas. You can carry on building from there.
You drive, they lead
It’s your account and you’re at the keyboard, but your child makes the decisions.
This is the hard bit. Try to type exactly what they say, even when they leave things out or suggest something completely bonkers. When the game comes back different to what they imagined, that’s fine. Working out what they forgot to say is where the learning happens.
A few things that help:
- Stop while it’s still fun. The drawings will keep, and you can build another day.
- Use your child’s words, even when yours would be quicker. Tidy up the grammar, but don’t add ideas.
- Ask, don’t tell. “What colour should it be?” rather than “Shall we make it blue?”
- Point to the drawing when you’re comparing. “Your drawing has a starfish. Can you see one on the screen?”
- Let them play after every change. It keeps it fun, and they can see what each change did.
When things go wrong
| What happens | What to do |
|---|---|
| It’s not what your child pictured | That’s the point. Ask what’s different and make that the next change |
| Your child says “make it better” or “make it cool” | Ask which part, and what better would look like. Then type that |
| A change breaks something else | Say what’s wrong now, and ask Gemini to put that part back how it was |
| Your child gets frustrated | Play the version you’ve got for a bit, then come back to it |
| Gemini says you’ve hit a limit | The free version has usage limits. Stop and carry on later, because they reset after a few hours |
| Your child wants to type | Let them type a word or two with you, but you send the message |
| Gemini adds something they didn’t ask for | Ask your child whether to keep it. It’s their game, so it’s their choice |
About the spoilers
In the videos, my version of the game is hidden in its own chapter, after your child has done that step. On these pages it’s in a section you have to click to open. Skip it if you’d rather.
Some children find it hard to come up with their own ideas once they’ve seen an example, so it’s up to you how much they see.
Sharing at the end
At the end, you can publish the game to Google Sites so family can play it. That’s completely optional, and the game still works in Gemini if you don’t.
Anyone with the link can open a published game, including people you don’t know. So keep it free of anything personal from the start:
- No real names. Use made-up names for the game and anything in it.
- No places, like your town, your street or somewhere you go regularly
- No schools, clubs or teams
- No photos of your child or anyone else. A photo of a drawing is fine, as long as there’s no name on it.
- Give the site a name that doesn’t include your child’s name.
It’s easiest to steer towards made-up names while your child is designing. If you have any concerns, don’t publish, and just play the game in Gemini.