I have always maintained that simplicity and quality in toys has far greater a learning value than the preordained toys, those that children have no control over. These toys usually prove to be the first to end up in the bottom of the toy chest as uninteresting, boring and broken. Although real toys of learning are more costly, they need fewer toys to play with so parents save in the long run. Expensive electronic toys take numerous numbers to have the same affect as the toddler sitting on the floor in the kitchen banging on the pots and pans with a wooden spoon that they favor doing. Imagination and creativity are more educating than electronics that inhibit a childs learning. Turning a switch on or off is not interactive learning, nor is sitting in front of a tv watching something else do the actions they want to be involved in. TV games and electronic toys should be banned from advertising and implying as educational or learning toys. A child and toddler learns reading and writing and math by doing it, not pressing a button matching pictures. A coloring book and crayons is more eductional than a $600 X-box.

Thank you for this wonderful article! I agree with Professor Cheryl Wright; she was my instructor at the University of Utah and she has such a great knowldege of child development! Children should act upon a toy, not the reverse!

The trick is getting grandparents to go along with this. I can't tell you how many cheap plastic toys from Grandma have ended up in the garbage by Dec 26th- either broken or confiscated by us. We've spelled this out over the years to her but Grandma grew up deprived. She just thrills at the pink plastic stuff she didn't have as a child. And she thinks she's giving her grandchildren the best. How to teach a lovable but stubborn old dog new tricks is the question!

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You mean "educational" I am sure. No Xbox costs $600 and your conclusions about educational value is wrong. But hey, go on and believe whatever you wish without knowing anything about what you are making assumptions on.

Moderation is key -- it would be wrong for a child to sit in front of a TV or computer screen for hours at a time. My brother and his wife have their children "earn" their screen time (computers, TV, video games, movies) by doing active things like playing sports, riding their bikes, running around in the backyard, making cookies, etc. Think about how much fun kids have with the cardboard box the fancy gifts come in -- a box can be a fort, a cave, a ship, a car, a spaceship, or many other things. Sometimes we do too much for the kids -- let them figure it out and have some fun too.

I don't see the purpose of excluding electronics. Not only is it valuable for a child to use a computer at a young age (I am sure we all know by now how involved computers are in the real world), but the problem solving skills provided by some games are hard to come by in some cases. I agree that simple toys are a necessity, but the banning of electronic toys, or the elimination, doesn't seem to make sense to me in an electronically driven world. My son has blocks, he even has the wooden ark from the article and many other simple toys. But every day he gets to play on the computer for a short amount of time. It's limited and he knows it's a privlege, but watching him complete some of the puzzles baffles me. He doesn't seem uneducated to me, quite the opposite. And guess what? He's 2 and can recite his full alphabet (Has been able to for almost a year), count to twenty, knows all his colors, and can work a mouse on the computer. Sounds like a head start to me, not holding back. Let's keep both kinds of toys around.

While the flashy and noisy toys can be fun, how often is it that a child will receive a fancy gift and end up playing with the wrapping paper and bow? From my observations-most of the time.

I teach 12 two/three year olds and I can tell which children have toys at home with "play value" (blocks, legos, simple dolls, simple cars and trucks, etc.)and which children are "entertained" by tv and electronics. The former have vivid imaginations, use materials in creative and unusual ways and tend to engage with other children better.

Wow! Moderation in all things! Technology is a wonderful 'thing', yet so is simplicity. Yes, we live in a technical world, and yes, there is much to be said about simplistic wooden toys that engage a child's mind. It's interesting to see 'which is better', because both tech-y and wood-y toys have pros and cons. Interesting article! (not to mention comments) :) Thanks for the entertainment!

As a preschool teacher for more than 15 years I find that most of my young students need to be taught how to play. Many of them have never built with regular wood blocks, painted with watercolors or molded with clay. Most of them have had no experiences cooking or dancing to music. Nearly all of them watch TV for several hours a day. It is a very convienant babysitter for their parents.

Please parents, take the time to give your children real life experiences. Take them to the bank and post office and grocery store, explaining as you go what is happening and what you are thinking. Give them real toys that allow them to imagine and invent a story as they play. Let them help in doing real work, carrying laundry, shoveling snow, setting the table and putting away their playthings. Read to them every day, every single day.

Children are hungry for your time and attention. It is the greatest gift you have to give them.