We live in a very materialistic world and with that comes buying lots and lots of toys for our children (I have a problem with this too!). When thinking about toys, we want to make sure that we are engaging our children in open-ended toys. We want them to be active participants in the engagement with the toy, where they can use their imagination and be creative. This means that there should be no batteries, no screens, and a minimal amount of toys. Infants can be overstimulated and overwhelmed with toys that light up, sing, dance, and have screens. It is too much for them. Research has found that children who are given more technological toys in their beginning years have a decreased imagination, shortened attention spans, lacking in social skills, and decrease in creativity.  We want our children to thrive, so give away the light up toys and grab something like this for your kiddos:

• Books
• Dramatic play; dress up, kitchen, work bench
• Wooden blocks; foam, cardboard
• Puzzles
• Magnatiles
• Sensory Experiences; play dough, finger painting, kinetic sand
• Light Table
• Toy Trains; Building tracks
• Doodle Board
• Bubbles
• Scooter
• Board Games; Cooperative Games (Peaceable Kingdom makes some great ones!)
• Real Tools
• Cardboard Box
• Instruments/ Music
• Legos

If a toy is labeled as an “educational toy” really check it out and make sure that it is allowing your child the freedom to express themselves. Toys are there to be used as a tool, not something that entertains us. Remember playing with toys should be fun and filled with imagination!