Webkinz: Waste of Money or Learning Opportunity?
Last week in our 4th grade sunday school class, the kids mentioned something called Webkinz. They were crazy about these things, but since we had a lesson plan to stick to, we didn’t get to ask them more about these toys.
I decided to do my own research into this craze and learned the following:
* Webkinz are stuffed animals you can buy online or at stores. They run about $10-15 each, but prices are expected to rise soon. They’re a mixture of Beanie Babies and Tamagotchis (virtual pets)
* The most important thing about these toys is the code they give you with the toy that allows you to activate an online version of the “pet”. Otherwise, it’s just a regular stuffed animal
* When you activate the pet online, you get $2000 virtual dollars (KinzCash) to buy your pet food, toys, and other items. These items can be rather pricey. A fancy bed can run you about $1750 in KinzCash! Also, you can’t buy KinzCash with real cash (or it conveniently leaves that out of the FAQs if you can)
* You can earn more cash by playing games online, getting a job, or taking surveys. However, per Webkinz FAQ, these games are not gambling because “Webkinz members can not lose KinzCash playing any of our games. There are no wagers involved at all.”
* The pets need food or go hungry, and if they go hungry for too long, they get sick and need medicine, which all costs KinzCash. However, the pets never die, they just stay sick.
Now that you know what these cute little pets cost, do and require for care, let’s assess what they teach our children:
Educational Value of Webkinz
Basically, the only way these toys, or any toy,, can really teach a child is if the parents are actively involved in that education. If you just buy your kid the toy and give them free reign over the computer, then they’ll probably proceed in the following steps:
1. Immediately go to the “W Store” to buy food for their new pet
2. See all the other cool things they can buy and load up on cute toys, beds, and and fashion accessories
3. Realize they need more cash and go play games to earn it
4. Buy only the minimum amount of food for the pet because they want all the other cool things
5. Get so wrapped up in playing the games, they neglect their pet
6. Their pet gets sick and isn’t fun to play with anymore
7. The kid decides they would rather have a different pet and the cycle continues until the child is tired of the whole thing entirely
Basically, that’s how I play with toys, and everyone’s like me, right? Anyway, regardless of the deviation in the pattern above, your kid is going to need guidance when playing with their toys if you expect them to gain the right values and knowledge.
You’ll need to guide your child’s learning in the following areas:
1. Spending vs Saving (Value of Money) - do they really need all that junk to keep their pet happy? Maybe they should save up their earnings for something the pet could really use?
2. Appropriate online behavior, courtesy, privacy, safety and security - Webkinz offers online chats and video capability. Supposedly no one can see your videos, but they are being stored SOMEWHERE for SOMEONE to be able to access at any time
3. Responsibility and Accountability - You can’t just leave your pet while you go off and play games. You need to feed and walk that thing!
4. Time Management - Kids can easily spend hours and hours online with their pets, as well as chatting and playing games. They need to learn how to split their fun time with school and household work. They also need to spend time with REAL PEOPLE!
5. Costs vs Rewards - You can offer rewards for doing housework, getting good grades, etc. that go towards “online time”. You’re the parent and should control when they’re online versus helping you around the house
If you’re a hands-off parent, then please avoid this toy. Actually, I advise you to be more involved with your children, regardless of age. Our kids learn best through actions, not words, so please show them how to learn, how to deal with money, how to be safe, and responsible and accountable. Just buying kids things without teaching them how to value it is a worthless investment.
Be hands-on with your kids. Be involved. Be friends, but be leaders. Stand your ground because YOU’RE the boss.
Try one of these related posts too!:
- New Poll: How old (young) are my readers?
- Clever Dude’s Week in Review April 2-8, 2007
- Reader Poll Results: Are you a PF Blogger too?
- Reader Poll Results: How old are my readers?
Leave a Comment
If you would like to make a comment, please fill out the form below.
DUDE! My little siter is OBSESSED with these things, they are the next beanie babie craze no doubt. It is amazing how they get kids hooked these days, she goes on the website every day to earn more webkin’s money to buy stuff (guess it does teach savings eh?).
Most of the kids we supervise at an after-school daycare have these… well, most of the girls anyway. The boys don’t seem too interested.
Strangely enough, they like playing with the plushes more than the online versions.
sounds like another fad that is just a waste of money that people will drop tons of cash in, and will fade away in less then a year, then they will bellyache cause they bought the stuff.
I think the webkinz are a great way to learn responsibility. You do have to budget and save up for those special items. It helps younger children become more familiar with the computer keyboard. They are a nice electronic plus “regular” toy mostly for girls(because of our nuturing intincts?) that they can be interested in as much as boys are interested in their gaming systems. Besides all of that they are just plain cute.
Interesting, I hadn’t heard of these, since the only child I spend significant time around is my 2 year old niece. But these sound an awful lot like Neopets, which is something I was into when I was 13. Although Neopets started as online only, and then after a while they started selling plushes.
I also had Beanie Babies, by the way
My children, a girl age 5 and two boys 7 & 9, and I have fun playing with our house full of Webkinz everyday! It can become obsessive. But I use that to my advantage! The kids have to spend their own allowance on the pets, so they are more willing to do extra things around the house. They get their howork done immediately to get their 1/2 hour of Webkinz time (1 hour on weekends) They can also earn additional time for good behavior. I have seen that they better use the money now they they did when they got their first ones a couple months ago! Webkinz is done as a family in our home. Everyone is interested in what each other is doing and how they are decorating…what the sales are…what gems they’ve found..and more! If used wisely, they are great!
As far as video capaibility…I have never seen anything regarding that. From everything I havce experienced at the site, it is very, very safe!
Thanks for the insight . . . my girls are just starting to learn about these toys and I want to know what I’m in for if they receive any as gifts. I appreciate your views on making it a family thing vs leaving them on the computer on their own - we only allow them access to the internet when we are with them and we talk about what they see/do so hopefully they can use their experiences wisely.
Cheers
I’m a highschool student, and occasionaly find myself playing some of the Webkinz games, earning money for my sister or brother. The site is completely safe, with “constructed chat” meaning you can only send pre-made messages, such as “Great Game!” or “I think you’re going to win!”. Furthermore, the videos talked about before, are cartoons that kids can make. There is no way that the cartoons can be identified as one child’s or another. In conclusion, (I sound like my English teacher all of a sudden) Webkinz are a fun, interactive way for kids (and teens) to spend alloted time playing with!
I love webinz and I can’t get enough of it! Before i got one I thought they were babyish and stupid but know that I have one I do not think that at all!
I think Webkinz teaches Responsibility.
Ok, I’m finding it hard to believe someone has any more than 10-15 of these things, given their price. Perhaps a new hobby is called for???
my two daughters have webkinzs and love playing with them and they don’t cost alot of money ($13 can.) but we have problems getting on the site.
Webkinz are cute, and the $13 isn’t too bad… But Ganz customer service is horrid, and the way that you register your Webkinz is … Poor.
My seven year old daughter bought one with her own money, and I helped her register. We used her birthday as a password so she and I wouldn’t forget. After one week of use, we were getting an error that we had the wrong password, after multiple tries and even checking that caps lock wasn’t on. So we used the tag to reset the password. This happened 4 times, and at the fifth we found that she had misplaced the tag (after removing it from the animal so it wouldn’t get lost). The FAQ says we are, in effect, out of luck. You can’t call the company unless you want to dial their over seas offices, and snail mail as well as web form contacts are ignored.
Cute toy, but I’ll be darned if I buy another, and my daughter is rather downtrodden. She likes them, and her friends have them, but she feels betrayed that this company flatly refuses to help. Personally I won’t do business with companies that ignore customers, regardless of how “popular” their products.
I have a Webkinz Bullfrog named Bongo. Webkinz is pretty fun…especially for me: I have a Crappy Computer. I like it because you can design your own house and it is interesting. Also, $13 Dollars isn’t so bad, and the Plush Toys are really nice Looking :D. I only get about 1 every month, but the cheapest store to buy it at is Hallmark, I saw one in the Garden State Mall for only $10. Between that and Neopets…thats basically all I do online. Lol.
It’s unfortunate that you didn’t take the time in your class, regardless of the lesson plan you were supposed to follow, to spend 5 minutes to get to know the kids in your class better. The follow-up to that would have been to even go online and actually use the site to see what you do inside, rather than just read through the FAQs.
Anyway, there are also smaller webkinz called lil kinz that are only about 5 bucks, but they give you the same one-year access to the online content, so once a year you have to buy a new stuffed animal to keep access to the site.
With my first-grader, we have her doing jobs around the house, dishes, straightening rooms, washing windows, etc. and after she does a certain number of jobs, she’ll earn a new webkinz and we’ll probably give it to her for her birthday. Let me tell you, though, 5-10 bucks for a little stuffed animal is a lot cheaper than some of the expensive crap we have bought for the kids for birthdays/christmas.
Don, not sure what you were trying to say with your first paragraph, so I won’t comment on it.
I agree that you need to investigate all options before plunking down cash for your child’s enjoyment. Research the value it will provide to your child, and also look at ways to get your child to earn that toy. However, also give them some surprise gifts when they especially earned it.
However, you can never judge whether your child will really enjoy the toy and cherish it, or just play with it a few times and toss it in the giant pile of toys from years past. Not having a child of my own, I won’t comment too much on kids and toys, but I was also a child once, so I have some valid backing to my opinions. Getting kids too many toys reduces the value of each to the point that they all become “throwaway”. My nieces have so many toys, but when my sister asked us to buy them some kid’s video game system (can’t remember the name) for them for Christmas, we complied.
They played with the system just a few times and now it’s collecting dust. We spent hours and hours trying to find this thing because it was the “in” toy that year. We have told my sister that we will never buy the kids another toy again. They just have too many. Now she knows our opinion.
I know that wasn’t all to your original comment, but I felt that I needed to state my stance on kid’s toys.
Eh, I had a Neopets account back in the day. It was similar–we had to get points by playing games and we could use them to feed our pets and do all kins of stuff.
I have a 7 and 5 year old, and I think these are great. My son has had two for almost two years now, and he still takes care of them. He’s not online every day anymore, but he likes them. He has ten, all given as gifts. My daughter has 5. We gave lil’kins to my mom, sister and brother, all far away, and they go on sometimes to send messages and presents to my kids and their cousins. They even have room visits with their cousins far away.
What I love best about them, though, is that they have made stuffed animals cool. I see playgrounds full of 2nd and 3rd graders, boys and girls, running around with webkins, playing games with them. My son turned a box into a “webkins clinic” and brought it to school today for everyone to play with. Some friends have made their own superhero costumes for their webkins.
So, don’t let them online all day, but it’s a good learning tool and has provided great play value for ten dollars.
Webkinz are totally fun and safe…..Grown-ups think they are nonsense because they suck the fun out of everything- I know, I’m ten. It’s true. Grown-ups have no interest in fun because their target is to ruin all of it! These are educational. My class had to put their lunchboxes on the floor at my school because so many people in my class brought so many Webkinz!
My friend gave me one as a Christmas present, she got one herself and thought I might like it. Well, I love it. We’re 23 and married. We like computer games but aren’t nearly as nerdy as our husbands. 3 of her siblings have them, and so does her mom. Grown-ups don’t think they are ridiculous, at least not all of us. I enjoy the games and I love the house. I can’t imagine having a 4 year old who could navigate the site alone though. If only I breed such little geniuses! As far as children and the internet go, this is possibly the safest, most entertaining place they could be.
Webkinz are wonderful!
Some people are saying it costs a fortune but I want it to be known that you only have to spend at most, 17$ or much less per year to keep the child`s account going.
To pay for the account (Yearly) you simply register another pet with an “unused code” just waltz in to a gift shop or drug store, buy the plushie of the pet you or your child wants online, sighn it up, and you are free to play for another year and so on!
@ Webkinz lover
That is very rude of you to say, even as a ten year old I knew better than to say that. I love Webkinz And I will have you know I buy my daughter them because I enjoy to see her have fun with them and I have fun with them to.
Adults suck huh? Well who gave you the money to buy you your Webkinz? Adults, thats who, so go be a little brat somwhere else.
I agree with Silver.
WebkinzLover, you are a disrespectful brat.
Your parants, or adults, bought you those Webkinz and you have the nerve to say Adults all suck becasue you think we all hate fun.
You are so wrong, whats your problem anyway?
I`m a 23 year old mother and I buy my daughter Webkinz all the time because she earns them and then she gives me a big hug and tells me she loves me but you on the other hand, are probley just a spoiled little loser.
Webkinzlover, why would you even say adults want to “ruin” fun?
Thats mean, My dad buys me Webkinz because he wants me to have fun.
Bunnie, Silver, Singolo and Luna: I recognize you’re all the same person (I can see IPs of commenters). Why does this article tend to get all the people with multiple personalities?
I stumbled upon this conversation by mistake, as I looked for possibility of washing my god-daughters 14th Webkin. The poor duck got badly stained last night during our sleepover (Damn white fabric and red koolaid; anyhow.) After reading I needed to comment.
- First I agree these are simply just toys if you are not being a good parent and spending time with your children but if you are spending time with your children and using them as a means of education as well as fun they are a perfect companion to any under 10 year old child.
-Kailey (6; kindergarten) & Hunter (5; Preschool) my godchildren are obsessed with these small stuffed animals and there online world. They can only play up to an hour during the weekdays and only if they have done there chores and homework. There time limit starts at 30 minuets and increases on how well the day events move and if they are behaving.
During there time either there mother or father are near by watching. They must feed there pets and bath there pets. If they plan to purchase items, all purchases are made with a parent there so they can learn how it will effect there bank and often comes with them doing there own math on a scrap piece of paper, and often end up in saving the points for a bigger item. They have gardens that they tend to every other day. And many of the games they have are even educational, Kailey favorite is the Super Model game, which is about matching clothes but she can only play that after she plays the games dealing with counting and spelling. Hunter enjoys Cashcow; matching the colors and go Fish; matching numbers. Not all games as I said are educational but some are. Both children’s schools use them as educational helpers during there computer time and Kailey is already learning how to type very well for her age. They don’t play there webkinz on the weekends instead they do family activities that take them outdoors. Both children really like Quizy corner which is the most educational game on the site and perfect for adults to play with there children or even as a family.
- As for the toys themselves, they of course go through periods of which one is there favorite but they enjoy them all and know each one of there names. They may only sleep with one each night and have a special place (a bookshelf case) where each must keep there webkinz when there not playing with its.
- Neopets vs. Webkinz. A lot of people have brought up Neopets, of which I have a younger brother who plays I have found that Webkinz is much more age appropriate and much more secure with chating features. The one thing I hate about Neopets is that any age range of child can have contact with an adult pretending to be younger while on webkins, even if they are speaking to an adult the parent has the control on turning off chat all together. In addition that the pets on Webkinz are much more interactive; while they become sick it doesn’t take them many points to get them better indeed once a week Kailey and Hunter must take each pet to the doctor on the site for a check up.
All and all these are great toys for my god children and while most likely a fad I will continue to buy them when they want them; which is on birthdays and holidays. So how do they have so many? They use there own allowance to buy them of course. We have used Ebay (a way to get some cheep) but even better buying the pet of the month which is always on sale during its appropriate month.
The negative. I agree someone has mentioned that the costumer service is atrocious and I agree it is the HUGEST problem with the Ganz/ Webkin line! But the fact that my god children are learning responsibility, having fun learning to use math and spelling skills, and even art, health, and science facts is fabulous. The plushies while simply only glorified beanie babies are teaching them to care for there own things and that is a good thing as well.
Ask your self which one is the better situation? Make a child happy spend 13 dollars and give them some of your time, and even teach them a few things or sit them infront of the TV and ignore them?