Yet another seemingly obvious fact... There is no tape, DVD, or toy or show that's ever going to replace learning through life interactions. Beeping lights, puppets, and multilingual electronic blocks only serve to entertain and distract. When are people going to learn that there is no short-cut to education?? I have experienced this truth through my 8 years of teaching preschoolers and years of developmental education. Toys that 'do things' and 'interact' actually limit the child's play by building an expectation of one toy-one use or reaction which fosters the attitude of toy/dvd-driven entertainment instead of self-driven creative play and learning. In my classroom these kinds of items (usually donated by parents trying to get rid of them) were initially greeting with wonder and excitement, but quickly discarded for open-ended toys like blocks, legos, dress-up, sand play, and paper and markers. I am not saying that a child should never watch Sesame Street or play with a talking cube, just don't expect any educational enrichment from it. There is a whole industry of these edu-toys making claims, just like boxes of Fruit Loops have Smart Choice labels on them- there's no requirement to back these labels up with scientific proof. So here's for getting down on the floor and reading books, building and destroying block cities, and talking to your child about life as it happens! Kids don't need expensive toys, they need parental and peer interaction in a healthy environment and just a few open-ended toys. Add to that good nutrition and lots of sleep and you're going to have a well-adjusted and intelligent kid. Save your money!
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