Save up to 40% on Amazon

Schools were among the first buildings to close because of the novel coronavirus outbreak, so if you happen to be a parent, you’ve probably had plenty of time lately to ponder the following:

1. The average teacher’s salary isn’t nearly as high as it should be.

2. It’s really hard to keep kids entertained while also keeping them on top of their schoolwork.

You might be tempted to curb your kid’s technology use while you’re social distancing together under one roof, but rest assured that handing them an iPad when you need some alone time will not cause their developing brain to instantly turn to mush. In fact, it may actually do them some good: Research has shown that tablets and other touchscreen devices can support literacy in young children, enhance their fine motor skills, and get them pumped about learning new things.

SEE ALSO: Kids home from school indefinitely? STEM toys are the answer.

Besides, no parent should feel guilty about giving their kid some extra screen time during a freaking global pandemic — especially when they’re juggling remote work responsibilities of their own.

As if by fate, Amazon happens to have two of its most popular kid-friendly tablets on sale for up to 40% off (as of March 20): 

This 7-inch tablet comes with a yearlong subscription to Amazon FreeTime Unlimited (a $35.88 value), which provides access to more than 20,000 kid-friendly apps, games, books, videos, audiobooks, and other educational content from the likes of PBS Kids and Disney. Mom and Dad have the option of filtering content and setting educational goals using the built-in parental controls, and can rest assured knowing the device is covered by a two-year, worry-free guarantee.

The Fire 7 Kids Edition Tablet usually retails for $99.99, but right now you can grab one in either blue, pink, or purple for just $59.99 — a 40% savings.

Released last October, the Kindle Kids Edition is a 6.4-inch e-reader that can last for weeks on a single charge. It *also* comes with a year’s worth of FreeTime Unlimited, which boasts a huge library of popular titles (including the whole Harry Potter series), and it’s covered by the same two-year warranty as the Fire 7 Kids Edition Tablet.

If you order one today for only $79.99 (down 27% from its $109.99 MSRP), you can take your pick from four different cover styles: blue, pink, rainbow birds, and space station.