| Parents are increasingly aware of the great | | | | up and role play, and as they begin to meet and |
| advantages to be found in traditional, learning-based | | | | interact with other children, games of imagination |
| toys. | | | | become more and more common. It is a thrill for any |
| This powerful intuition is backed by the findings of | | | | parent to see their children acting out scenes from the |
| educational researchers and government advisors. | | | | world around them, taking on the roles of doctors, |
| The UK government has published its own set of | | | | nurses, firemen, farmers - or even pirates, princesses |
| standards on children's learning and development from | | | | and knights in shining armour - through the use of |
| birth to five years, based on the most up-to-date | | | | costumes, action figures and play sets. |
| research, creating a set of principles known as the | | | | Young children soon find themselves fascinated by |
| Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). | | | | problem-solving, in the form of puzzles, building toys |
| The guidelines stress the vital importance of play as a | | | | such as Lego and arts and crafts. Youngsters love |
| form of emotional and mental development - pointing | | | | making pictures, sculptures and models - and love to |
| out that, through play, children learn to make sense of | | | | proudly show their creations off as well. Homes soon |
| the world, gather information, communicate with others, | | | | become hives of activity, with children surrounded by |
| express themselves and form relationships with other | | | | pens, paints, beads, glue and glitter. |
| people. | | | | Once children start school, play becomes more social |
| From the first year of their lives, children seek | | | | and physical in nature and, once again, the most |
| stimulation and reach out to the world as their brains | | | | educational toys take this into account. Outdoor play is |
| and bodies develop. Even before birth, children absorb | | | | more frequent, and there are few children between |
| a great deal of information - and this process is | | | | the ages of six and ten who do not want their own |
| accelerated when they enter the world. There are | | | | bicycle. Climbing frames and fun sporting equipment |
| virtually no experiences for a child in its first few years | | | | remain a firm favourite among parents and children |
| of life that can not be described as "educational", as | | | | alike, allowing youngsters to develop new physical skills, |
| they see, hear, smell and touch things for the very first | | | | play with friends and develop sporting strategies and |
| time. Today's parent seeks to enhance this experience | | | | tactics. For mental development, science and |
| by creating a positive and enjoyable play environment | | | | chemistry sets can grip the imagination - and provided |
| that encourages the growth of basic motor skills, | | | | a firm grounding for later academic achievement. |
| movement and hand to eye coordination. | | | | Of course, all toy sellers want the customer to think |
| The best toys for children in the very early stages of | | | | that their products are not only fun but educational too. |
| development are therefore those that not only make | | | | Powerful advertising campaigns are brought into play |
| all of this possible, but make the process as fun and | | | | to repeatedly assert this as a fact. However, too |
| exciting as possible. Toys such as rattles, building | | | | many high-tech toys are merely entertainment devices, |
| blocks, push-along vehicles, activity centres and baby | | | | which distract a child rather than stimulating them. |
| walkers will have youngsters constantly striving to | | | | Humans are "wired" to pay attention to sudden noises, |
| explore the world and find out more about it. They will | | | | movements and changes in the environment. Modern |
| also gain the confidence and satisfaction that comes | | | | toys make use of this tendency with a dizzying array |
| from discovering that they can interact with and shape | | | | of bright lights, beeps and other sounds - whilst doing |
| their environment. Any new parent will tell you that their | | | | little to actually develop a child's capacity. |
| child loves to grab hold of anything to hand and test all | | | | Traditional toys, including all of those mentioned above, |
| aspects of its physicality using all their senses - through | | | | avoid this pitfall by ensuring that children, far from being |
| touching, shaking, smelling and even tasting it. | | | | distracted or stupefied, are involved in the play |
| As babies become toddlers, this desire to interact | | | | experience at every level. The more physical forms of |
| gathers pace. Toddlers love to find new ways of | | | | play give the child the sort of exercise that a games |
| getting about the place and they have a fascination | | | | console or hand-held device simply cannot. And that is |
| with building things - and of course the fun of knocking | | | | why more and more parents are rediscovering the |
| them over afterwards. Around this stage of | | | | value of the sort of toys they fondly remember from |
| development, children also discover the joy of dressing | | | | their own childhoods. |