What do you think of when you hear ‘traditional toys’? My mind immediately goes to a stick and hoop but I think that is because I have secretly always wanted to live in Victorian times! When we talk about traditional toys, what we really mean is those that stand the test of time, those which have entertained children throughout the generations.
Amongst the enormous variety of games and toys available for children these days, there will always be the ‘old favourites’, the traditional toys – cars, dolls, trains, role play, jigsaws, matching games – I am sure you can think of more! What was your favourite toy as a child? Do you remember the delight it brought you? That is the joy of those classic toys and games – you enjoyed them and your children will too.
Children love to play ‘let’s pretend’ – they start at an early age, emulating the world around them. Role play is a key part of a child’s development with huge benefits as it develops their communication skills and forms their use of language, encourages creativity and imagination, helps boost confidence and self-esteem and so much more. I love this School Set from Learning Resources – aimed at early years, it gives children the opportunity to try out school in a familiar environment. For those already at school, there can be some brilliant family time where they can ‘teach’ you what they know!
Something that seems to be a family favourite of many of my friends, is the good old ‘fishing’ game. There are several versions of this – the popular fairground hook a duck utilises the same skills – but everyone agrees that there are hours of fun in this simple game of hand/eye co-ordination and concentration. This gorgeous magnetic set from Djeco really does tick all the boxes – in a box! The wooden underwater creatures are so cute – who wouldn’t want to try and catch them all!
Toy cars will never go out of fashion! It makes me very happy to see an equal balance of girls and boys playing with vehicles these days. It wasn’t so long ago that cars were seen as ‘boys toys’ – what tosh! Playing with cars really helps children’s physical and cognitive development and leads them to better understand STEM concepts. We had great fun in the classroom exploring forces, investigating how quickly or slowly the cars rolled and what they would do depending on how much pressure was applied. Awesome science!
My absolute favourite toy as a child was a dolls house which was a hand-me-down from a neighbour who had inherited it from her mother – it was from the 40s but that didn’t matter; it had doors and windows, carpets and curtains and kept me absorbed for hours at a time. There are so many great benefits to this fantastic toy. In addition to developing language skills, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills, playing with a dollshouse allows children to both develop their imaginations and to act out real-life scenarios. I really like this Melissa and Doug modern take on the traditional house – lots of floors on which to play!
by Allie White, educational consultant to BrightMinds
As a parent and former-teacher, Allie has a hands-on approach to home learning, believing that the best learning is done together in a relaxed environment.
Our mission at BrightMinds is to foster “a brighter way to play” to inspire your child to be curious about the world around them & encourage creativity in a fun & relaxed way.
We curate a world-class range of educational toys, games, gifts & books which are good quality, safe and backed by our extraordinary customer service. Traditional Toys are our speciality and a Traditional Toy from BrightMinds is a wonderful gift for your special girl or boy.
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