Webkinz World of Online Games and Fun

How to Keep Your Kids Safe and How to PLAY!

Webkinz are plush toys that can be purchased at many card and specialty shops. They are approximately 8 inches long (some a bit bigger, some a bit smaller). They cost about $11-$12 each. But beyond being a plush toy, these stuffed animals come with a secret code. Enter the code on the Webkinz website and you enter a new world of fun to play with your new friend!

But is it safe for my child to play online games?

Many parents will first want to know the safety of allowing their children to play online. Afterall, there are so many scary stories we've all heard about child predators and such. But, Webkinz is designed for kids and it is designed to be safe. First of all, even though children are playing online, they can mostly play games against the computer if they want to. And, though there is the option to have a "cell phone" to "connect" with a "friend," a child cannot actually "chat" with this friend. The only communication with friends are pre-written statements that the player can click on. Things like, "how are you today?" and "do you like playing in Webkinz World?" and the answers are also pre-written so that a child cannot possibly type in his real name by accident or any other identifying information for that matter.

Webkinz claims to be opening up a "Clubhouse" area where players CAN go to chat with other "friends" in Webkinz World. This is not open yet but when it does, children can supposedly type in their own conversations. The first thing parents can do to keep their children safe in this area is to opt out. A parent simply has to log in and choose the option that their children do not have access to this. If you do want to allow your child access, certain words like proper nouns and numbers to name a few simply won't be allowed to be used. If you type these un-allowed words, they simply will not show up when you "chat." Is this foolproof? Of course not and this is why I, personally, have opted my child out of the Clubhouse when it does start up.

So, how do I or my child actually play Webkinz?