At Stork Gifts we’ve learnt that toys often offer a vast assortment of activities, games and educational opportunities that aren’t listed in the instructions. Understanding what they are unlocks the real potential of the toy, often making it more cost effective investing in one good toy you and your child will enjoy and care for. The result is a single toy that can produce years of enjoyment, instead of several that will be discarded in the bottom of a draw in just weeks or months.
Parents sometimes tell us their child gets bored of toys easily. We advise that with gentle encouragement and parental stimulation the same toys could initiate play in a multitude of new & exciting ways. For example……
Try a little experiment. Find a toy that hasn’t been played with for some time and think of a few potential ways in which it could be used. Be as creative as you can and inspire yourself, find that inner child. Begin a game by yourself in the same room as your child involving the toy and you should find that curiosity will draw them in to see what you are doing. Allow the game to evolve with you making some play suggestions, by example not direction, and be led other times by what your child does. Rewarding them by showing your enjoyment at their suggestions will build their confidence. You can even do this with simple household items.
Elizabeth Pantley author of Gentle Baby Care also agrees with us, saying ‘a puzzle is not always for “puzzling.” The pieces make great manipulative characters, can be sorted or put in boxes, and make interesting noises when banged together or against an empty pot. Children learn through play, so any toy they enjoy playing with is, by definition, educational.’
Through trying these new ways of playing with a toy you are getting so much more value for money from the toy at the same time as educating your child further and having fun in the process!
References
Elizabeth Pantley - Pantley.com
Excerpt Merbabies
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