Many adults have heard of Second Life, a 3D online digital world created and maintained by its' worldwide cyber residents.  It's a very cool online social concept, that has since been followed up by "Teen Second Life".  Now there is a virtual, social playground for pre-teen children, and it revolves around the new toys, Webkinz .

To the casual observer, Webkinz are just stuffed, plush animals.  But to the thousands of children that own them, they are the gateway to an exciting online world at wekinz.com.  If you haven't heard of them yet, you will soon, as the holiday shopping season starts.  The makers of these toys, Ganz, Inc., have purposely kept their marketing of these toys very low key.  At this time, they are relying solely on word of mouth and in-store promotions done by a select few retailers.

Once a Webkinz animal has been "adopted" is when the real fun begins.  Each animal has its' own unique online code that unlocks its' cyber-world counterpart.  After logging in and filling out their "Kinz" adoption paperwork online, children are able to live out their new pets' virtual life.  They can visit with their online friends, play games and take care of their new "pet".

Ganz have produced a "safe" online toy as well.  All of the online chatter between "inhabitants" is scripted, although you are able to vary it to some degree (you can't just type in words, phrases have to be picked & combined from a list of choices).  You can actually leave your child in front of the PC without worrying that they will come into any harm, it is that regulated.

Kinzcash is the currency in Webkinz' world.  This can be earned by performing various tasks.  Your child can go to the Employment Office to get jobs, or earn money by answering "Quizzys".  These are multiple choice and true or false quizzes categorized by subjects and age groups.  The various tasks promote responsibility and learning without your child even realizing it.  But it's not all work and no play.

Another popular way to earn money is in the Arcade area.  There children will find single and multi-player games to increase their earnings.  There are even daily and weekly touranments, encouraging kids to come back and beat their previous high scores.  Again, social skills are being taught, transparently.

Why do these stuffed animals need money?  To spend in their new virtual world, of course.
Webkinz need to be cared for, see the doctor regularly, buy food, and probably most importantly, outfit themselves and their homes.  Each animal comes with a basic house and the sky's the limit as far as upgrades go.  Additional rooms and a huge variety of add-ons are available for customizing their hew home.

Interactive additions like furniture, appliances, toys, movie studios, etc. can be purchased to "Pimp their Cribs"!  It is truly something seeing kids trying to keep up with their neighbors (just like in real life!).  Once they've seen a new addition to one of their friends' houses, it give them ideas about improving their own pets' habitat.  Items can also be resold once they've outlived their usefullness.  Children get a headstart on managing a budget while they're having fun.

I could go on for hours about the wide array of interesting things kids are able to do once they've adopted one of these Webkinz.  Our family started with three of these originally (for three kids).  We now have six of these in our family.  From what my kids have told me, alot of kids at school have them, and most have more than one!  I have talked to several parents of these kids; some have confessed to spending more time online with their Webkinz than their children, it can be addicting!

They are very affordable (under $20), and admission to the online world is free for the first year.  This is truly a great interactive toy that will teach your children about real life without them realizing they're learning anything!