- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
It is impossible to ignore the importance of toys for the development of children and for them to spend quality time. But not every toy has the same importance in child development. In this article, we will focus on the importance, types and selection of toys called educational toys. To the knowledge of curious mothers!
What are educational toys?
Between the ages of 0-6, children begin to know the world first with their sense organs, then with their mental orientation. Toys enter the child’s life from infancy. You need to guide your child, who played with toys by exploring with his senses, to toys that will affect him mentally and contribute to his development in the future. These toys fall under the category of educational toys. After all, toys are not objects that can be used only with the logic of keeping the child entertained and the mother comfortable.
Educational toys to children at an early age;
- grouping,
- Discovering the different
- Arrangement,
- matching,
- It aims to teach concepts such as counting.
It is produced in various formats for the child to learn these and similar concepts by experience. Educational toys try to bring all these to the child by entertaining them. In addition to toys, there are educational games that serve the same purpose. Educational games can be played from time to time with these toys as well as independently from the toys.
Intelligence toys can also be evaluated in the category of educational toys. But the important thing is to choose toys that are suitable for your child’s age and physical development! Toys that push your child too hard will not have any positive effect.
What are the benefits of educational toys?
There are different types of educational toys for every age group. If your child is in the 0-3 age range, you should choose educational toys that appeal to the senses and can play with the help of a partner, while in the 3-6 age range, you should choose toys such as puzzles, matching cards, lego that they can play either alone or with a group of friends.
How should educational toys be?
- It helps your child to reach the result by trial and error method.
- It contributes to the language development of your child. Children aged 0-3 remember the words that the person they are playing the game with emphasized and learn new words. In this way, the ability to ask questions and express problems develops.
- Increases familiarity with numbers, geometric shapes, written concepts.
- It helps him to perceive concepts such as cause-effect relationship, similarity and difference.
- It allows him to develop socially when he plays with the group.
- Increases self-confidence, sharpens the leadership direction.
- Children express their feelings more easily according to the course and outcome of the game. They can explore many emotions such as anger, joy, tension.
- Develops imagination.
- It helps talents emerge at a young age. For example, if a musical toy is given to a child with musical talent, it will be a big step for him to create wonders in the future.
- It strengthens hand-eye coordination and is beneficial for the work of small muscles.
- Develops children’s self-confidence.
What should you consider when choosing educational toys?
- The most important factor to be considered when choosing educational toys is that they are suitable for the age and development of the child. The physical and mental abilities of a 2-year-old and a 6-year-old will not be the same. That’s why you need to choose toys that are suitable for your child’s age and that he can play with in line with his physical development.
- You should pay attention to the fact that the toy is of a quality that will attract the attention of your child. If your child is interested in sound materials, the educational toys you choose will have sound, which will cause him to play with this toy with interest.
- Especially in the 0-3 age period, children learn with their senses. For this reason, you should take care that the toys you choose appeal to your child’s sense organs.
- Let the toy you choose be versatile. For example, let it touch the sense of hearing while addressing the sense of sight.
- It should not be pointed, sharp or have features that will harm your child in any way. Do not contain chemicals.
- Wooden educational toys, especially for children between the ages of 1 and 3, can be beneficial both in terms of confidence and development.
- Make it colorful and eye-catching.
- Let it be easy to clean. Especially children in the 0-3 age range tend to recognize objects by putting them in their mouths. Naturally, they can put these toys in their mouths and bite. In order not to encounter any negative situations, you should take care of the cleaning of the toy.
Below, we have given some types of toys to give you some information and ideas so that you can choose educational toys for ages more easily.
Types of educational toys
What are 0-6 months educational toys?
| How should 0-6 months educational toys be? |
|---|
| Should appeal to the child’s senses |
| It should be loud and colorful. |
| Must be able to feel different materials when touched |
Examples of these toys;
- rattles,
- Interlocking toys consisting of two parts,
- We can give toys that make specific sounds, such as animal sounds.
What are 6 month-1 year old educational toys?
| How should 6 month-1 year old educational toys be? |
|---|
| Contribute to your child’s basic motor development |
| He should develop his intelligence |
| Should appeal to the senses |
As a 6 month-1 year old educational toy recommendation;
- Wooden blocks that support motor development, stacked on top of each other,
- Toys that will develop sound and musical ear such as drums, educational piano,
- We can give you colorful and richly illustrated books that contain various concepts.
What are 2 year old educational toys?
| How should 2 year old educational toys be? |
|---|
| It should benefit the mental development of the child |
| Contribute to analytical thinking |
| Must aim to reach a goal |
Educational toys for the age of 2 are now turning into toys that will benefit the mental development of the child! In this period, you should choose toys that contribute to your child’s analytical thinking and aim to reach the goal, such as jigsaw puzzles.
- Simple, large piece jigsaw toy,
- Educational block toys with smaller parts and balance,
- Large pieces of interlocking toys such as Lego,
- stuffed toys,
- Books can be given as examples of educational toys for 2 years old.
What are the 3-5 year old educational toys?
| How should 3 year old educational toys be? |
|---|
| Scientific and life-based information should be instilled. |
| Contribute to mental development |
| It should enable them to get ideas about daily life. |
Children between the ages of 3-5 should now play with toys that will enable them to learn much more scientifically and from life. The point we try to explain by saying scientific is toys that can have information about branches of science such as mathematics and biology and contribute to their mental development.
Among the examples that we can give advice on educational toys for 3-5 years old;
- Health kits that contain doctor’s instruments or introduce the human body,
- Toy guitars and multi-key/sound toy pianos,
- There are numbered toys (such as number matching cards) that will provide familiarity with mathematics.
