Everyday Canvas

Toys and Kids

Prompt: “Having fewer toys can lead a young child to focus and engage in more creative, imaginative play,” says a study in child development. What are your thoughts on the subject?

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I can see why too many toys can be a distraction. Adapt it to the adult scale and imagine having to live in and taking care of 30 houses and using 30 cars per person. Wouldn’t we be losing our minds? Taking care of just one house and one car is more than enough for me. However, if 20 to 30 people would be given 30 houses and 30 cars, they would be able to manage them just fine.

To begin with, each toy needs to be examined and learned by its user, especially nowadays, when more and more toys are electronic or have electronic parts. Then the toys have to meet a child’s specific needs.

Christmas and presents idea, on the other hand, has its own merit. Why we think all the Christmas gifts need to be toys is beyond me. What is wrong with other usable items like fun clothes and teaching gifts like an indoor-garden-starter kit, a microscope, a telescope, or a painting set?

When I was a child, aeons ago, one of our neighbors who had a stationery store kept giving me notebooks with colorful coverings. To this day, I revel in their memory because they were my most favorite gifts.

Children know what they want. I think it is a good idea to have them make a list and choose one or two toys from that list periodically than all the toys at one time.

Thinking back to 40 years ago, the older of my two boys liked the video games and the computer (I think it was TI-99, then IBM XT), while the younger one had no interest in such things. He liked bikes, matchbox cars, a larger car that he could sit in and drive using foot pedals, etc. One thing they both liked were the large plush toys. So, I learned how to sew those on demand (Mom, I want an alligator, etc.), and they were much more enjoyed than the store-bought ones. Plus, we did build memories with them, as the photo shows.