This Black Friday Remember Quality vs. Quantity

Give Quality Gifts to Children for the Holidays

It's Black Friday (the busiest shopping day of the year for Americans). If you are going out to shop for Black Friday deals today I urge you to remember that when gift giving quality is much more important than quantity.

Teachers Resisting Unhealthy Children's Entertainment (TRUCE) suggests that when choosing gifts for children remember that the increasing number of electronic toys, games, and DVDs often turns infants and toddlers into passive players whose main activity becomes pushing a button. Toys are often linked to popular media characters. Branding toys for the very young means that when they are older they often want an item simply because it is linked to a familiar character, not because of the quality of the toy.

Quality play promotes close relationships. The most important part of a child's healthy development is safe, trusting relationships with you and the other caregivers in their life. Interacting with the child through positive, supportive play experiences will help them gain the confidence she needs to build loving and healthy relationships.

Quality play promotes thinking skills. Play gives a child the opportunity to learn concepts and problem solving strategies which are critical for future academic learning in science, math, and literacy.

Quality play promotes creativity. Create play experiences that come from the interests and abilities of the child in your care. It’s the process that’s important in creative play – what they do, not the product they make in the end. Current brain research shows that children learn best when they experiment and discover for themselves rather than being shown by adults.

Quality play promotes social skills. Through play children learn how to get along with others. Interactive play helps set the foundation for future friendships.

Reference:
Teachers Resisting Unhealthy Children's Entertainment (TRUCE)