'Toy Story 5' Pits Traditional Toys vs a Tablet. In Real Life, Families Can Combine the Two
Bonnie turns from Woody, Buzz and Jessie to Lilypad as the film frames screen time as a parent dilemma, with UNICEF backing balanced digital play.
- On Thursday, Toy Story 5 arrived in cinemas globally, introducing Lilypad, a digital tablet character that captivates eight-year-old Bonnie at the expense of her traditional toys.
- As Jessie laments, "I'm losing Bonnie to this device," the film highlights a dilemma many parents face when children become obsessed with screens at the expense of old toys.
- Lisa Kervin, Professor of Early Childhood at Monash University, notes that well-designed digital resources can potentially expand children's play and enhance their social, storytelling, and problem-solving skills.
- Families can combine digital and traditional play—for example, researching "backyard worms" online then searching gardens—while adults joining children's interactions builds real-life connections.
- While Toy Story 5 functions as a cautionary tale, experts suggest the debate over "Tech vs traditional" toys has become outdated, favoring instead a balanced, blended approach.
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The Conversation
Toy Story 5’s ‘Lilypad’ is an indictment of the world that birthed the ‘iPad Kid’
Some parents call tablets the 'square au pair.' Danielle Villasana/The Washington Post via Getty ImagesIn the trailer for “Toy Story 5,” a little girl named Bonnie is playing with her toys when a package arrives in the mail. She opens it to find Lilypad, a tablet for children. The iconic toys from the series – Woody, Buzz Lightyear, the Potato Heads, Forky and Slinky Dog – then watch in dismay as Bonnie casts them all aside in favor of the brigh…
My kids rarely get screen time. 'Toy Story 5' reinforced why.
The author took her three kids to see "Toy Story 5."Courtesy of the authorI've limited my children's screen time and their use of battery-powered toys since they were young.The themes in "Toy Story 5" reinforced many of my parenting choices.The movie also reminded me how quickly childhood passes.Editor's note: There are spoilers for "Toy Story 5" in this article.When I first became a mom eight years ago, I had no idea what parenting style I woul…
The fifth installment of the famous animation franchise invites us to reflect on the danger of new technologies in childhood to both younger and adult Eleonora Duse, the divine actress Mussolini and Fascism wanted to appropriate When the first film by Toy Story premiered in 1995, fixed phones were the center of communication in most homes in Spain and even there were still disco ones, those in which the wheel had to be turned number by number to…
The latest installment of Toy Story didn't hop on the nostalgia train, but instead tried to show how toys lost the battle to screens. Fortunately, it says more than just that everything was better in the old days.
What happens to play when technology demands more and more attention and physical toys are replaced by iPads and smartphones? Cowboy girl Jessie is all squirmy in the latest “Toy Story” movie. It could make anyone giddy, writes Caroline Hainer.
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