This holiday season, give a kid a box. Seriously.

A new report published by the American Academy of Pediatrics lists the cardboard box as the ideal gift to give youngsters. Along with other old-fashioned toys, like puzzles, coloring books, and card games, boxes inspire creativity and imagination in ways that newer, more high-tech toys do not.

Forgoing tactile, interactive activities for electronic entertainment might be the easier route when raising children, but it’s not the wisest. Too much time playing with gadgets can interfere with adolescents’ speech and language development, as well as lead to obesity.

Who would have thought that an object created out of necessity more than 200 years ago would become the choice gift for kids centuries later? Apparently, quite a few people.

The creators of Nickelodeon’s Rugrats certainly knew that kids loved boxes. They created a number of episodes centered around the humble object, including one from the second season called "The Box" that first aired in 1993.