2 out of 3 parents say they do not have information about the toy they buy
Safety, list of warnings, instructions for use, recommended age ... are some of the important details that we have to look at when choosing the proper toy for our children. When the receptors of the toy are the children, to this information we must also add the transmission of values and the stimulation of the imagination. But, as parents, how can we find out which toys are best for our children?
Missing information about the toys we buy
The first edition of the study Infopapás: Parents and Toys in Spain, produced by Mattel, reveals that two out of three parents consider not having access to enough information about the toys they buy, either because they do not know where to look for it (51 percent) or because they do not find data specifically for parents (64 percent).
The advertisements that we see on television are intended to seduce the little ones and seek that they themselves ask their parents the pertinent request, especially at this time, when the day of Kings is already around the corner. Maybe that's why, on many occasions, we have to settle for reading that tiny letter that appears at the bottom of our television screen during the broadcast of an advertising spot. At least that's the way it is because, in the face of parents' worries, there are more and more Internet portals that reveal the keys to choosing toys without making mistakes.
In fact, according to this study, the Internet is precisely the source of information of the head of this collective concern. The Infopapás website is just one of the many that we can turn to. A good option is also to visit the website of the OCU Organization of Consumers and Users, because with just typing in your search engine the word "toy" we will find quantity of articles that will be of great help to us. Other platforms such as AIJU Technological Toy Institute and AMEI World Association of Early Childhood Educators also provide valuable information on each of the toys on the market.
What guarantees the safety of the toy?
The last modification of the legislation on the safety of the toy was made in August 2011 and it contains all the safety rules and technical regulations that can be associated with the toy according to the age of the minor public to which it is directed. The document can be accessed online and we can resort to it if we consider that any of the toys we have purchased does not meet the requirements that are supposed. If we are still thinking about whether or not to buy our son the toy he has requested in his letter to the Magi from the East, it is best that we take into account these parameters:
- We have to locate the CE in the box. All toys that we buy must always comply with the security requirements of the European Union.
- It is convenient that the address of the manufacturer is also included in the box.
- The list of warnings must be visible without having to discard the cardboard.
- The minimum and maximum age must be indicated for the use of the toy.
- The instructions for use and safety must be made explicit. Much better if they are summarized on the outside of the package and detailed inside.
- The toy must indicate whether or not it contains small parts. Remember that, according to the law, these have a maximum diameter of three centimeters and a length of six.
- You have to be especially careful with games that contain strings because they can not pass the 30 centimeters long because of the risk of strangulation of the child.
- Water games are very dangerous, those that require electricity for their operation and those defined as magnetic. Children should always use them in the company of an adult.
Toys that stimulate the imagination of children
But all these issues concern only the safety of the child and, although this is the major concern, there are also others. In fact, what worries most a 84 percent of the surveyed parents is whether the toy contributes or not to stimulate the imagination of the child. From the World Association of Early Childhood Educators AMEI point out in this sense that "the game is a creative resource in both the physical and the mental sense". The child is active and moving while playing and also, from his inescapable wit, is gradually increasing their intellectual capacity. Plasticine and drawing are two of the best ways to stimulate imagination and creativity.
Toys with educational values
If the activation of the imagination and the security conditions of the toy add that it is capable of transmitting important values to the child we will be before the perfect toy.By values we understand the preservation of the environment or solidarity, for example. Thus, it is advisable to follow the following advice:
- Avoid selecting war toys thatthat can encourage violence among children.
- Choose toys that favor the stability of the planet and let him know.
- We will opt for the game in group versus the individual, thus we avoid generating selfish attitudes. The ball and the rope are two options that add to its traditional value, the awakening of a strategic sense in the child, which also includes the advantages of teamwork.
- We will not select games that are too competitive and we will try to teach the child to lose.
- When they are babies it is convenient to decide on active toys, which are those that enhance their psychomotricity and strengthen their small muscles. At these ages, musical games are equally stimulating.
- We do not have to wait for children to read to give them a book. Tell them one before they go to bed can awaken in them a taste for reading that then only have to maintain.
- The story drawings will help you imagine and we can always propose them to paint by their side.
- Inflatable stories for the bathtub They are a good option, but we will have to keep the baby under surveillance.
- Construction games (with care to small pieces) they also enhance your strategic vision and manual skill.
- Craft games and cooking are also especially educational.
It is our duty to tell children that they can not have all the toys in the world. We must make them reflect on what they really need and find it fun. We can limit to three the toys that you ask for in your letter and add us some didactic detail. This way we will teach them to define and to decide, we will be causing them to design little by little and on their own a pyramid of values mentally.
