GOOD TOY GUIDE
This month Dr Amanda Gummer explains the benefits of tech toys when used as part of a healthy play diet, before ToyNews rounds up the latest tech toys and gadgets on page 89
TECHNOLOGY is making its way into more and more toys; and it’s meeting its critics face on by being incorporated into toys providing a range of play activities. From screen- based family-friendly tablets to interactive soft toys, musical toys and activity play, tech play is no longer limited to large computer screens and video games and is often a far cry from the solitary, screen-based activity that attracts so much of the media’s criticism. We have all heard it
before (usually from disgruntled grandparents), “When I was younger we didn’t have all these ‘namby pamby’ gizmos, we had real toys!” – But isn’t it the role of parents and grandparents through the ages to resist advances and bemoan the ‘good old days’ when we had to get up to change the channel on the TV, etc. The question is, are they right? Here, at Good Toy Guide we certainly don’t think so. First, the effect is counter-productive: the more tech toys are demonised, the more appealing they are to children. And there’s no need to demonise them. There are lots of ‘good toys’ that incorporate
technology – the Good Toy Guide has loads of great examples all of which can form part of a healthy, balanced play diet. There are so many other technological advances that we celebrate, it is hard to understand why tech toys attract such criticism. We don’t encourage
children to spend all day on a tablet in the same way that we don’t encourage them to spend all day stuck in front of the TV or computer. But as part of a healthy play diet, technology can help
children’s development and technology in toys can enhance the learning, increase the flexibility and longevity of the toy and personalise the child’s play activity. Tech toys help with both
the development of an increasingly wide range of skills including, music (Symphony in B), school- based subjects (Kurio, Innotab, etc), emotional development (Karisma Kidz) and physical development (Magic Moves), as well as building confidence with technology in a world that is becoming rapidly more and more dependent on IT.
CONTACT THE GOOD TOY GUIDE
On Twitter @goodtoyguide
On Facebook GoodToyGuide Email
admin@goodtoyguide.com Kurio 7
An android tablet with wi-fi and parental controls Fun Rating: Educational Rating:
Provides educational activities in accessible ways Develops understanding of and confidence with technology Develops fine motor skills Enhances logic and problem-solving skills
Stomp like a dinosaur, swoop like an eagle, hop like a kangaroo. Get children moving with this engaging activity wand featuring 90 fun, physical commands, 26 random tunes and twinkling lights.
Fun Rating: Educational Rating:
Promotes understanding of the body Improves gross motor skills Increases vocabulary Develops listening skills, vocabulary and ability to follow directions Encourages active and imaginative learning
Magic Moves
Good Toy Guide’s Retailer of the Month
Chester’s Toycraft Traditional Toyshop has been awarded the first ever Retailer of the Month. With its own website and High Street shop, the store has been selected for its dedication to promoting play through its toy selection. “With knowledgeable staff and a commitment to stocking well-made, well designed toys, Toycraft is an example of a toy shop that represents the Good Toy Guide’s values,” said Dr Amanda Gummer. The store will now receive
Retailer of the Month branded POS as well as a profile page on the firm’s website. Bev Luca of Toycraft, said:
“We are thrilled to have been chosen. Established in 1965, we have many years’ experience in providing quality.”
www.goodtoyguide.com www.toynewsonline.biz October 43
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