family matters t
GIFT GUIDANCE
of bossy toys out there that try to direct
you a little too much,” she says.
While many of these products can
teach valuable skills and lessons, they
need to be balanced by toys and games
that stimulate more open-ended
activities, says Janet Rice Elman,
executive director of the Association of
Children’s Museums in Washington.
Elman also is spokeswoman for
Playing for Keeps
(p h yin g fo rkeep s
.■
org
), an ACM initiative that promotes
the need for more free play time for
children. “Parents, teachers, and
toymakers have all been moving in a
direction toward highly structured
play,” says Elman. “But we also need
to make room for unstructured time,
and for toys—like building blocks and
modeling clay—that can be played
with in a lot of different ways.”
The need for this kind of creative
play is crucial. In developmental
studies of schoolchildren over the past
20 years, researchers at Case Western
Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio,
found that kids who got more time for
this kind of play were able to use their
creativity' in other areas of their lives as
they grew up. In particular, research
showed a strong link between creative
play and the development of effective
problem-solving and coping skills,
which will serve children well for the
rest of their lives.
This season, tty these strategies—
and fill some of the space under the
tree with gifts that encourage kids to
use their minds and bodies.
KEEP IT SIMPLE
“In general, the more basic a toy is, the
better kids will like it and the longer
they’re likely to play with it, since
those are the kinds of toys that offer
more opportunities for kids to use
their imaginations,” says Kourtney
Eidam, an editor who coordinates the
annual toy guide published by Better
H o m es a n d G ardens'
sister magazine,
Parents.
Highly structured toys with a
long list of features or capabilities built
around a very specific story are less
likely to capture a child’s interest for
very long. Open-ended toys—art
supplies, costumes, and puppet
theaters—are all smart choices for
fueling imaginations.
GET CRAFTY
Whether it’s a paper airplane kit,
modeling clay, a jewelry set that lets
kids make beaded necklaces and
bracelets, or a simple blank journal to
write in, craft kits and creative toys
make for powerful—and fun—gifts.
EMBRACE THE CLASSICS
Don’t forget the pure fun and joy of
perennial favorites, like a traditional
board game. Most kids (even the most
sophisticated preteens and teens) will
join in on a few rounds of a favorite
game. “In our family it’s Boggle, or
some of the classic hoard games, such
as Risk,” says Oppcnhcim. “It really
doesn’t matter what you play—what
matters is doing it together.”
LOOK FOR ACTIVE TOYS
With childhood obesity reaching
epidemic proportions, it’s never been
more important to encourage kids to
get off the couch. The U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services
recommends 60 minutes of physical
activity per day. Encourage kids to get
that exercise by giving them scooters,
bikes, sports equipment, or even a
foam football they can chuck around
the basement.
(&
TOY TIPS
Every year,
O ppenheim Toy Portfolio
publishes its “Best Toy” awards fo r products
in age categories from infants to later school
years. See the latest results at
toy portfolio
.com/platinumawards.
Portfolio cofounder
Stephanie O ppenheim also blogs regularly
about toys and related news at her W eb
site,
toyportfolio.wordpress.com.
P a re n ts
m agazin e’s W eb site s,
parents
.com
and
goodyblog.com ,
are both packed
with the latest inform ation about toys and
games for the whole family. Be sure to check
outthe magazine’s Decem ber issue, featuring
avideogam eguide.
For m ore toy-shopping strategies
and tips fo r ch ildren ’s entertainm ent, go
to
truceteachers.org,
the W eb site for
the nonprofit group
T each ers R esistin g
U nhealthy C hildren’s E n tertain m en t.
T R U C E also publishes an annualToy
Action Guide.
Finally, If your gift list includes children’s
books, look up past and present recipients of
the esteem ed John Newbery M edal,awarded
every year to the best in Am erican literature
fo r children. Learn more at the Newbery
Medal site,
ala8.ala.org/alsc/newbery.html.
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