Best tablet toys for children

Turn your iPad into a teaching tool with an Osmo kit: letters, digits, dots and tangram pieces combine into a set that offers educational, hands-on play for pre-school to secondary school (and beyond). The simple set-up is a definite parent bonus: create an account for each child, so you (and they) can track their progress, then download the apps to play. Each activity uses your device and the Osmo stand and reflector "brain" to get your child to physically interact with what they see on the screen. Tangram offers over 500 puzzles to solve, using the wooden pieces and playing in front of your tablet. Words is a 21st-century letters and images vocabulary game (with a useful Junior setting for early readers), while Numbers encourages kids to problem-solve addition, subtraction and multiplication in lots of different ways (on their own or as a sibling-or-friends team). Newton is a real-world meets screen-world physics game which uses everyday objects as part of a virtual obstacle course. An original, beautifully-designed way to break down the wall between virtual and real-life learning.