7 tech gadgets that are actually educational for your kids

In this digital era, it can be difficult to decide when to give your children their own smartphones, computers and tablets.

It's true that that using technology at a young age has been linked to some negative side effects. For example, this study finds children and adolescents who play video games, and use social media on their phones tend to have difficulty falling asleep.

Too much screen time has also contributed to obesity in adolescents. Studies show watching a screen makes it harder for kids to know when they're full, so it's easier to overeat. Screen time can reduce time spent doing other healthy activities, such as sports.

But staying entirely tech-free isn't feasible these days. Luckily, there are now some kid-friendly choices on the market that can introduce your little ones to the digital world, but in a more controlled and even educational way. You still have to keep an eye on screen time and set some usage controls, but is possible for digital devices to actually add value to your children's lives, not take away from it.

Whether you are looking for MP3 devices or tablets with parental controls, these seven tech gadgets may be potential choices for your family.

Research from this study.

Drawing Tablet: Babycare LCD Doodle Board, $45, from Little Kooma

Drawing tablets has fast become a favourite device for artists. They have their perks, including not having to carry markers and a sketchbook everywhere. However, using such a drawing tablet for long hours can have its downsides - for one thing, studies show that prolonged staring at a screen can contribute to shortsightedness.

But if your little ones love for drawing, take a look at the Babycare LCD Doodle Board. It is made with anti-blue ray, eye-protection technology to reduce eye strain.

Your children can also create thin or thick and colourful lines depending on the pressure they use to draw on the screen. To create a blank screen, simply press the home button to erase everything. There is also an anti-erase button so that you don't accidentally delete the artwork.

With a battery chip that can last for 12 months (yes, you read that right), this drawing tablet is a long-time investment to entertain little ones.

Get it here.

Smartwatch/Phone: myFirst Fone R1s, $269, from myFirst

It can be particularly tricky to nail down an age when you should give your kids their own smartphone. On one hand, a smartphone helps they stay in touch with you. On the other, giving your child a phone is basically giving them access to social media, the internet, a wide selection of video games, and more.

For smaller children, perhaps this smartwatch can help you? It has many of the advantages of a phone, and enough functions to keep kids entertained, without giving them too much leeway to indulge in the media

This smartwatch allows your kids to video call, voice call, and message approved contacts, like you and their friends. The smartwatch also has real-time GPS tracking and can send you your child's last-known location if the watch loses battery. The SOS button function is particularly innovative; press and hold for a few seconds and you will receive a live recording of the environmental sounds for 30 seconds.

It also acts as an MP3 player that can hold 1500 songs for your little ones to jam to. The watch can also be worn in class with its "class mode" that you can implement. On "class mode" this watch turns into a normal watch so your kids won't fiddle with it during class or study sessions.

You can mix and match strap colours to create a watch your youngsters will love.

Get it here.

Fitbit: Fitbit Ace 3, $98, from Fitbit

If your kids love your Fitbit and want their own, Fitbit's Ace 3 is built specifically for children aged six and above. Get information on your children's sleep cycles, the number of steps they've walked, exercise time, and active minutes with this device.

Take note that the watch doesn't keep track of calories, which is heaven-sent in a world like ours where too much pressure is put on children to fit societal beauty norms.

Included in the Ace 3 is a wide range of activity goals you can reach that offer badges for the number of steps taken or active minutes. Children love rewards systems, so this can be a good way to encourage your kids to stay active.

Get it here.

Headphones: JBL Jr310, $39.90, from Shopee

Listening to loud music on earphones can damage your hearing. The problme is that loud music damages the tiny hair cells inside your ears that relay sound information to your brain. To avoid this, music should never go above 85 decibels.

Children find it hard to know when loud is too loud, so the JBL Jr310 headphones are designed to stay below 85 decimals. These headphones also go over the ear instead of inside it. Again, this is to protect their hearing. Using earbuds increases the volume by around 9 decibels.

Your little ones can also customise the headphones using the stickers provided in each box, to make them uniquely theirs!

Get it here.

MP3 Player: AGPTEK MP3 Player for Kids, $54.35, from Amazon

Do your kids love music and want to listen to it on their way home from school? The AGPTEK MP3 Player for Kids is a compact, cartoon-style player that supports music playback, FM radio, and other functions such as audiobook listening, puzzle games for learning, and more.

There is a max volume limit to prevent sounds from going too loud, which helps to protect your children's ears (and your sanity, if you're the one driving them home while they listen).

The device can hold 4000 songs and can work for 26 hours after a three-hour charge time.

The layout design is also very simple and intuitive so your little ones will quickly get the hang of using it.

Get it here.

Tablet: HAPPYBE KT801 Kids Tablet, $141.94, from Amazon

If you are looking to let your kids have quite a bit of access to technology and media, this tablet is a good place to start. Made specially for children, it has parental controls in place that allows you to limit screen time, set curfews, and can reduce unwanted advertisements.

Your youngsters will be able to read, surf the web, play games, and watch TV shows on the device whilst you control how long they can be on it. You can also enter 'professional reading mode' with one click of a button. This reduces the screen glare and lessens the damage and strain on the eyes due to blue light emitted by screens.

YouTube and Kidoz* will be installed on the tablet from the get-go. Kidoz is an app that safely links children to games and websites while offering you control over what your little ones can access.

Get it here.

Tablet option 2: iPad 9th Generation, $499, from Apple

The 9th Generation iPads are a family-favourite for many reasons, including the parental controls that allow you to set privacy settings, prevent web content, restrict the game centre, and prevent iTunes and App Store purchases.

If your kids want to download or buy an app, you can allow the 'Ask to Buy' feature that will send the request to you. This controls what kids can download. The app or video they want will only download to the iPad when you have accepted the request.

You'll probably be happy to accept requests to download educational apps from the The App Store. For example the app Mission To Mars AR makes use of augmented reality to let your kids "explore" the planet Mars.

Get it here.

This article was first published in The Singapore Women's Weekly.