Patent ID: 7029283

Claim:
An electronic educational toy, comprising: a toy housing supporting a planar work platform on which a child can make selections by causing contact across a surface of the planar work platform, the toy housing enclosing: a speaker, a processor, and at least a portion of a sensing system, the sensing system sensing occurrences of contact caused by the child with the work platform and sending information to the processor corresponding to one or more sensed occurrences of contact; a plurality of images presented on the work platform to the child to facilitate the interaction between the child and educational software operable with the electronic toy, wherein at least a portion of the educational software is capable of being downloaded from a remote location over a data transmission medium and wherein the images presented on the work platform are changed from time to time, the processor being aware of the change of images without the child having to assist in advising the toy that the presented images have been changed; and a multiple contact learning mode including: a plurality of questions or instructions capable of being output by the speaker, the questions or instructions presenting the child with a problem which can only be correctly solved by the child causing contact with the work platform two or more times, the child indicating two or more cognitive selections by causing contact with the work platform two or more times, the processor enclosed within the housing receiving information from the sensing system corresponding to at least the first and second sensed occurrences of contact by the child on the work platform in response to the question or instruction and using the information to evaluate whether the child's cognitive selections as indicated by the child caused contacts with the work platform correspond to a correct solution to the question or instruction, a first audio feedback response output by the speaker where the processor determines that the two or more child caused contacts with the work platform correspond to a correct solution to the question or instruction, the first audio feedback response indicating to the child that the two or more selections by the child correspond to a correct response to the question or instruction, and a second audio feedback response output by the speaker where the processor determines that one or more of the child caused contacts with the work platform does not correspond to a correct solution to the question or instruction, the second audio feedback response indicating that one or more of the selections by the child is something other than a correct solution to the question or instruction.