There are several video game systems on the market that carry only educational video game titles. While these aren't as popular or diverse as the big name systems, they're the perfect solution for parents who want to have a video game system specifically for educational gaming.

The V-tech brand and V-smile systems are education-specific gaming systems that cater to children ages 0 to 8 years. The beauty of these products is that their controller systems are designed to be functional for smaller hands and more durable than the big name systems. The software titles are all based on popular kids' shows from Disney and Nickelodeon/Nick Jr. This provides character recognition along with educational content that helps keep attention spans focused.

V-tech offers their own system, V-smile, in a console and handheld form, and they play a large library of titles. You can buy a variety of subjects all with the same character/show theme, or concentrate on one subject with many different characters doing the teaching. There are some drawbacks, however, including slow game speed, accessory prices, and replay value. However, if you want to guarantee your little ones are only playing educational titles, V-smile is the way to go.

Video Games for Toddlers to Kindergarten

Development of motor skills and the basics of learning are important at this age. Many educational TV shows have capitalized on this and have no doubt created a fan out of your toddler. One of the best early childhood development titles out right now is Wonder Pets! Save the Animals for the Nintendo DS.

This game is geared toward children ages 2-5 and utilizes the familiar faces of the Wonder Pets to teach problem solving skills through a variety of physical interactions with the DS hardware. Players have to use the stylus to point to objects, help tell the Wonder Pets what to do by saying phrases into the microphone and other interactive game activities.