Finding the right toy
Because the winter holidays are fast approaching, the next few posts will highlight how to choose the right toy as a gift. Many adults have trouble knowing what toys are appropriate for what age. Don’t beat yourself up about this – even parents sometimes miss the boat on their own children’s abilities.
The truth is, picking the right toy can be hard due to individual differences as well as market confusion. For instance, the labeled “recommended age” on a toy’s box is not the most reliable indicator. This age is determined chiefly through insurance groups, meaning that the toy is safe for that particular age group. Whether or not the toy will appeal to the child’s educational level is another matter all together.
Toys and creativity
The next couple posts will focus on toys and creativity. For most kids, expressing their creativity is not usually a problem. In fact, the problem is often that parents have to find ways to keep their children from expressing their creativity all over an expensive painting or a restaurant wall.
The best way to funnel this natural creative drive is to provide toys that allow them to let loose and learn new skills at the same time. Creativity, ironically enough, is at its best when bounded by strong rules.
Game playing secrets for educational toys
November 24, 2007 by toy-tma
Filed under Learning Toys, Toys
It is often difficult to tell if a child is being challenged enough by educational games. Here are some more suggestions about finding that balance between a little challenge and a Herculean task.
- Electronic toys were mentioned earlier. Another trick to employ if the child is a game player is to change the options of game play. Find the menu option for “game saving.” Some games have the option to save at a particular level, but in many of these games this option is not the default.
Electronic toys create the right level of challenge
Last week the discussion about learning was focused by the metaphor of children’s minds as sponges. However, there is an art to intellectually challenging a child. In other words, kids don’t learn on autopilot. Mentally reviewing the names of colors or the alphabet’s letters can be tiresome. An added ingredient of challenge or spontaneity is actually what keeps their minds open and ready for more.
On the other hand, don’t overdo it. Kids become frustrated just as quickly as they learn, so it’s important to have some guidelines in mind. These guidelines will help until parents figure out their child’s unique sensibilities. Yes, “sensibilities” is an euphemism for what causes a child to become overwhelmed and shut down. Follow these suggestions, and that delicate balance may be achieved a little easier.
Blocks are great for educational development
Let’s talk more about how building blocks can hasten your child’s development.
Alphabet blocks, in addition to being fun to chew on, also aid in intellectual development. Toddlers and twosies will naturally begin to sort their blocks based on the characters. This piques their interest in letters, numbers, and colors, providing easy and ample opportunities for parents to teach them what everything is called.
This same natural learning method is great for introducing math, too. Numbered blocks can help with counting, and eventually impromptu lessons on addition and subtraction are possible.
The best toys: building blocks
When parents and babysitters want to know what are the best toys in the world, the discussion should start with building blocks. There are no more basic toys than blocks. These wooden and plastic cubes, rectangles and triangles may seem boring to adults. However, to children they are, quite literally, the basic building blocks to children’s imaginations.
Kids of all ages are entranced by blocks. Babies gaze at them with perplexed and almost mystical looks, and toddlers delight in crashing through a simple wall of delicately balanced walls. When kids get older, they really get going with elaborate towers, fanciful creatures, and mini cars to drive around in.
