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| Play | 50% | 89 votes | Total: 178 votes | |
| Education | 50% | 89 votes |
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Add to FavoritesMy 2-year old daughter is a bundle of energy, ready to learn something new at every opportunity. The question has always surfaced about how I, as a teacher, would rear her educationally. My main goal is to teach her as much as possible according to her individual developmental level. Her young mind is very inquisitive, and it has the ability to stretch to tremendous heights. I could bombard her with a flood of learning activities, educational toys, or instructional elements that would aid in her intellectual growth. However, I choose to give her a healthy balance of play and educational toys and activities on a regular basis. Therefore, when it comes to holiday gifts, I am comfortable in my choice of buying her toys that she can play with and simply have fun with.
For my daughter's first birthday, I bought her a toy car that she had to propel by pushing her feet against the floor. She had a blast with that and didn't become bored with that toy for about a year! It wasn't educational, but it helped to develop her sense of balance and depth perception. For her 2nd birthday, I bought her a kitchen set and a toy shopping cart, complete with play food and money and credit cards. These were not educational toys either. However, the kitchen set gave her something fun to do while I cooked in the kitchen daily. It also taught her how to imitate Mommy in the kitchen; pouring juice from the pitcher into the cup, setting the timer on the microwave, storing dishes in the cabinet. These are basic life skills that she will one day need and use. For Valentine's Day this year, I bought her a toy Blackberry. Once again, it is only a toy, but it helps her make a real-live connection from her world of play to our world of technology.
The imperative educational learning does still occur in my daughter's life, despite my choice to buy her play toys. She has a complete collection of books in her small library that we read from on a regular basis. That library also includes a set of picture flash cards that help her sight recognition of objects. She has received some educational toys from friends and family members at her birthday parties. Sesame Street, Super Why, and Word World, among the many other PBS children's television shows, continue to teach my daughter the fundamentals of the alphabet, word building, and letter sounds. Finally, her daycare experience has been outstanding. Her teacher focuses on monthly themes that supplement learning that my daughter gets from home. Examples of themes include colors, the five senses, and sharing.
In closing, don't be afraid to buy your child a fun, play toy. As long as they are in secure, nurturing, and balanced environments, they will learn as much as they need to. Let them learn at their own pace, and let children be children! They have plenty of time to grow up later!
Learn more about this author, Jamilah Underwood.
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Education
I believe educational toys are an absolute must! After watching my friends son grow up and constantly be passed through grade after grade and continue to read at a first grade level while in the third grade. I have learned that a Leap Frog learning toy beats a useless Spider Man toy any day. Even at a young age the type of toy your child receives makes all the difference.
Recently my friend and his two children came over for a play date. We were both surprised to see my two year old pull every letter and number magnet off the fridge and correctly state which it was. While his three year old was unable to name more than three letters and two numbers. While both of our girls have a room full of baby dolls and My Little Ponies, his daughter does not have any story books or any Leap Frog learning toys like my daughter does. We both spend about the same amount of time teaching our girls the alphabet and counting, but my daughter seems to be ahead of his daughter. Since the age of nine month my daughter has had the Leap Frog Learn Around Playground (http://www.novatechg adgets.com/lelepl.ht ml, which teaches young children their letters, numbers, colors, and shapes. It was my daughters favorite toy until two months ago when I finally packed it up and passed it on to another mommy. She learned so much from that toy. She knew all of her colors by fifteen months, and as stated before all of her numbers and letters at an early age. My daughters other favorite toy is the interactive Leap Frog Little Touch Leap Pad educational book (http://www.amazon.co m/LeapFrog-10090-Lit tle-Touch-LeapPad/dp /B000096R0P. Each book comes with a cartridge to enhance the learning experience and is designed to both engage and stimulate development.
I think it is amazing how much a child can learn for a "toy". While baby dolls, and play kitchens are great for a child imagination, I am unable to see what a Spider Manweb sprayer can teach a child. I strongly believe that a educational toy can be just as fun as a play toy if the learning is not constantly forced on a child. If they don't realize they are learning they will pick things up quicker than when they are forced to sit in a chair and learn to count to 5 or learn the alphabet. Learning toys can be more expensive, but just remember it is your child's future you are investing in this holiday season!
A great website to find excellent educational toys this holdiay season is http://www.leapfrog. com/en/shop.html.
Learn more about this author, Michelle Ives.
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