Journal writing

Something I learned on the importance of toy.

On my opinion, the toys bring many vitally important reasons why toys are so necessary to the development and well-being of children. This statement was endorsed by the members of the International Council of Toy Industries at their Annual Meeting in June 2006. Providing they comply with all the conditions necessary to ensure children’s safety, toys are an integral part of their development the new awareness of self opens some fascinating new dimensions of the toddler mind. The discovery of "me" versus "not-me" leads to such tantalizing concepts as "mine" versus "not-mine" as well as the individuality of other people. So we start dealing with such issues as possession and sharing. We also get to a new level of awareness about whom and what other people are, especially other children. Toys and other objects are important extensions of a young child. They can be played with and learned from, and they can be used to achieve other goals — a pail and shovel are a big help in building a sand castle. But possession or ownership has more than practical applications. It becomes another means by which a child exerts independence and autonomy. This carries over into play with other children. For children who are not in a child care setting on a regular basis, territorial disputes are more the rule than the exception in playgroups of kids this age. That is why it usually works better to have a mix of ages rather than a group of age clones.