One of the things that works for several people in my family (including my own Mom!) is Webkinz.
Okay, sure -- Webkinz has the possibility of being expensive. I'm sure many of us know some child (or adult!) with some large amount of webkinz. As a matter of fact, I know some people that have anywhere from 40 - 100 webkinz.
Now, let's look at it as the possibility of inexpensive entertainment.
Lil Kinz (the smaller version of the stuffed animals) can be purchased for just $5 or $10 (or less!). (There is a big price variation on Amazon for Lil Kinz, but some of that is based on retired pets and hard to find ones.) They also come with a code and it allows you one year of access to the online gaming site. So, for just $5, you can play for a whole year. And, only then would you need to purchase another pet (again, a $5 one can be picked up) for another year of fun.
Why do we enjoy Webkinz?
We love that there are a great variety of games. There are games that help with typing practice, logic puzzles, spelling, patterns/math, and so much more. There are also quizzes where the kids are given answers (when they don't know them) that help them learn all kinds of information -- subjects cover most typical school subjects. It is also interesting for kids to understand some monetary situations, one such is that while items can be sold back to the "W Store" after they have been purchased, you only get back half of your original purchase price. (Ouch!)
Of course, there is also just some general fun activities that don't have any particular educational value. But, so many of the games and activities involve real thought.
Being able to use all of these features for just $5 a year not only works for me, I think it's pretty frugal option too.
This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday and Frugal Fridays.
photo by ouvyt
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Webkinz Can Be Inexpensive Entertainment (and Educational!)
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4 comments:
Our kids like webkinz too. They both have about 4 animals, each. It took us a few month to realize that one animal will last for 1 whole year and if you get another animal it doesn't add a year more.
For example if we add an animal today the account is good until July 29,2010. If we add an animal tomorrow (July 30, 2009), then the account is good until July 30, 2010. You only get an year to the date from the last animal added.
Once we realized that is how it worked we stop buying them webkinz. (Not that we bought a whole lot like I said they only have 4 now).
We just recently bought each kid a new one because their account was set to expire in August. :)
Yes, My kids love webkinz. My oldest has about 40 and my 4 year old has 10. But I didnt pay alot of money for them. Some were gifts again those who got them didnt pay alot of money. WE got all of them on ebay. Big and Lil Kinz. Depending on what it is and who is selling it, some offer free shipping and some start bid off at a penny with shipping again depending on seller anywhere from $3.00 - $6.00. Many had combined shipping.
Depending on how good of ebayer and how quick you find the deals you can get some good purchases. I always find the deals hour in advance watch them in my ebay, then I would note the time it would be ending so I could get back on around that time check bid price. If it was to high I deleted it and if was really low I would place my bid to my cut off, the last 40 sec. Thats how I got my good deals. Most of the webkinz were bought at a total price of $6.00 or less. That included my shipping & handling price. So really can get some good deals. I agree. LOL!
I also love that it teaches them to manage their kinz money as well as the games and other educational features. I completely agree, webkinz is a great way of learning. Thanks for posting
We love Webkinz! My kids have an insane amount of webkinz....but I didn't sink my money into them. We get them a webkinz at Christmas and birthdays, but they also like saving and spending their own allowance on them. (Plus the Webkinz make great easy and inexpensive gifts from friends and family on special occasions.)
I love how fun and stimulating the games in Webkinz World are :)
We really like them here too. My daughter has way too many to count but she gets them for special occasions.
We have many that arent already logged in yet either , extending the webkinz life.
I love that there are educational games and they make them so fun the children dont even realize at all that they are playing them.
But I do think it has gone out of control on the amount. They release 5 new ones each month. I guess that is go the children always want new ones.
But overall they are really good a stuffed animal and computer games.
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