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Choosing the Right Toys for your Toddler
A no-win situation?
Vimal Sathe, mother of two-year-old
Kartik complains, "My husband and I have spent a fortune on toys for Kartik,
but he spends most of his time playing with the television remote or making
a racket with a spoon and a thali."
Monica D'Souza bought her toddler
a toy piano that plays two popular nursery rhymes when you press the keys.
She says, "For about three days my daughter would play with nothing else
but the piano. I thought I would scream if I heard 'Twinkle Twinkle Little
Star' again. On the fourth day, she totally lost interest in it and the
toy is just gathering dust since then."
Today, when parents go into a toy
shop, they are greeted by the sight of a bewildering array of toys claiming
to be both educative and entertaining. But all this comes for a price.
Parents spend a fortune buying toys, wanting to do the best there is for
their children. However, most parents find that they spend more time playing
with these toys than their children do.
Toddlers are at the stage of discovery
in their lives. They come across new things around every corner. Given
the competition, toys often fall sadly short in the long-term interest
department. However, that does not mean that toys are redundant because
household items are not going to offer a sufficient challenge to a toddler's
rapidly growing abilities in the long run.
Some tips for
selecting the 'right' toys
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Try to keep the toys solid and simple.
Avoid toys with sharp edges or that have toxic paints because toddlers
have a tendency to put everything into their mouths. A toddler's concept
of play usually involves bashing the toy about a few times and maybe even
hurling it across the room for good measure. Obviously, delicate mechanisms
are a no-no. Go for durability.
-
A ball is a toddler's delight. She can
kick it, throw it, bounce it, roll it and crawl after it. It is portable
and she will be delighted if she can carry a large, but light beach ball
around by herself. In addition, the ball is a tool for initiating social
interaction. The toddler rises that when she throws or rolls the ball to
someone, they usually throw it back.
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Speaking of toys that encourage interaction,
toy telephones top the list. You and your toddler could entertain yourselves
by having pretend conversations. At a later stage, you will find that dolls,
stuffed toys, toy utensils, etc. also encourage role play and fantasy activities
in your toddler.
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Toddlers can hardly be expected to 'read'
at this stage in their lives. They usually begin their reading careers
by turning the pages of a book back and forth. Thus, it is advisable to
buy books with stiff cardboard pages with large colourful images. As the
toddler's attention span, memory and language skills develop, she will
appreciate books in which there are pictures she can point to and name.
Later, she will graduate to the story book stage.
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Parents often buy form boards and stacking
rings for their toddlers as they are under the impression that toys like
this facilitate the toddler's learning of colours, shapes and forms. There
is no evidence to support this presumption. Children do not need to be
bought special toys for this purpose as long as they have free access to
household items. Children in this exploratory stage tend to take things
apart and manipulate them, which may not be the best way to handle household
items. Thus, the only advantage of these toys is if they are durable and
inexpensive.
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Puzzles are usually beyond a toddler's
capabilities. However, two and three piece puzzles are now available and
could be tried out. Since your toddler's small muscles may not have developed
enough to allow for the precise movements necessary to manipulate the puzzle
pieces, look for those that have small knobs or handles attached to the
pieces.
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Toddlers normally love to draw and colour.
They will scribble on any surface including the walls. Initially, they
have trouble holding the pencil or crayon and tend to make wild strokes.
They may also show a preference for one particular colour and ignore all
the others. Thus, buying your toddler colouring books might be a little
premature. Give her an endless supply of rough paper to try out her artistic
skills. Colouring books may be provided once her small motor skills are
further developed and she becomes interested in stories.
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Simple mechanical toys enhance the development
of small muscle skills. Toddlers are usually fascinated by toys that contain
levers, push buttons, dials, hinges, etc. that they can manipulate in different
ways. E.g. Small hammering toys and peg boards, or large interlocking beads
that can be pulled apart and pushed together. Such toys have far more value
than fancy battery-operated toys that do ten different things all by themselves.
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Toddlers enjoy playing with building
blocks. However, it is advisable that parents buy blocks made of lighter
material like cardboard or plastic other than the traditional wooden ones.
This will make the blocks easier to 'construct' with. Also, keeping in
mind that children enjoy knocking down their constructions almost as much
as they enjoy making them, blocks made of lighter material will cause less
damage.
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One last tip. Don't worry if your toddler
doesn't play with the toys you buy her like it is shown on the box or the
way that your neighbour's child plays. Every child has their own way of
playing and they do learn.
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