Electronic toys instead of parents?

Parents are the first and most important teachers that children have. Some child development experts are noticing that electronics are replacing parents as playmates, and believe this will have detrimental effects.

In a New York Times article by Sherri Day she spoke with one such expert: "The notion of pushing kindergarten work down to the nursery just because you can put it on a microchip doesn't make it right," said Joanne Oppenheim, a child development scholar and president of the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio. "I don't think that toddlers need electronic workbooks. People buy them thinking that they are going to give their kids a head start, and that's unfortunate because informal learning activity might be much more useful and instructive."

Discovery Toys believes parents should "Play with your children. It's the best investment you can make."