7 guidelines on toy playing and choosing

Toys are so important to a child that play is considered 'work' for them.

They inspire children's imagination. They develop their hand eye coordination. They develop social skills and learn about rules and fair play.

We all know during festive seasons such as Christmas the children will be deluged by an avalanche of toys . Don't let them open all the toy presents at once. Having so many toys all at once confuses the child. It 's better to let the child play with one toy at a time. Secondly, you can save the other toys for a later occasion or when the children have grown tired of their existing toys.
Arts and crafts are good as they let children express themselves. However, children are clumsy especially when it comes to painting or drawing. Don't let them do their paintwork on the floor as they will end up spilling water and paint on the floor and step on paint and then roam about the entire house leaving paint footprints on the floor. Remember to let them wear easy to clean material. Likewise, put plastic sheets or newspaper beneath their art work and restrict painting in a specific area to prevent further mess.

When you buy toys make sure they can be easily stored especially if the toy is bulky or consist of many parts. Ideally the toy should come with a specially designed container or a bag to keep them. Well designed containers help to prevent clutter and optimize space available for storage of toys in the house. Also, by having containers made specially for the toys , it becomes easier to retrieve them and play.

Select toys which do not have sharp edges as they may hurt a child accidentally. You should not pick toys with many small parts as a young child might swallow them.

You should buy educational toys. Avoid electronic gadgets and computer games. These electronic toys may tifle a child's imagination. These toys also cause a child to be anti social in nature. The children get engrossed totally and ignore what's happening around them. These games also over stimulate them and as a result the children get bored easily. Staring at the mini lcd screen may also affect their vision and cause eye strain. Balloon lagoon is a very good educational game that teaches kids math and word skills.

Don't buy toys that glorify violence. They teach a child to be violent and to fear others. They become anti-social and love to fight and quarrel.

Buy toys that are durable and lasting . It can last a life time and can be handed down to the next generation. They can be considered as heirloom and may be fetch high value due to its rarity.