Toys aren’t toys unless they are fun. Anthropologists have found evidence of people having fun with toys as far back as there is recorded history. As early as 4000 B.C., for example, the people of Babylon played a game that preceded the present day games of chess and checkers.
Just as play is an essential component in life, toys are an important ingredient of play. In fact, toys might be considered the tools of play—basic instruments for the development of a child’s fantasy, imagination and creativity.
Almost everyone has had a special toy as a child. As adults, we can revisit our childhood, if only for a little while, by once again holding, feeling, and seeing a favorite plaything – whether it’s a Raggedy Ann doll, a toy truck, or a glob of Silly Putty.
From Toy Industry Association
Play
Play, as a child or as an adult, is as essential as eating and sleeping.
Play brings endless hours of enjoyment and helps people of every age learn about themselves and the world around them. Keeping the physical body healthy is a well-known benefit of play, but few people realize how play stimulates the mind and positive emotions.
Play brings endless hours of enjoyment and helps people of every age learn about themselves and the world around them. Keeping the physical body healthy is a well-known benefit of play, but few people realize how play stimulates the mind and positive emotions.
How to Select a Toy?
Selecting Universal Design Features
Amy Goetz Ruffino Susan G. Mistrett
Wondering what toys to recommend for children with disabilities? Evaluating for universal design can help.
Play is what kids do—it’s how they develop. All children, regardless of age or ability, need opportunities to play. Studies clearly link play with cognitive, language, and social skills that form the basis for complex learning and conceptual understanding.1–3 Play is especially beneficial when children plan together, create new ways of using toys, and adopt multiple themes and roles. To reap the rewards of play, all children, regardless of ability, race, or culture, must be able to use the same toys and play spaces. However, many toys are limited in the ways some children can use them, so parents, grandparents, and friends often have difficulty finding toys that children with disabilities can use. Inaccessible toys stigmatize children with disabilities by preventing them from using the same materials as their peers, thereby limiting their play opportunities. One goal is to ensure that children with disabilities can access and play with toys. Another goal is to develop and identify toys that are durable, safe, and well designed which can, in turn, promote motor development, imagination, social and play skills, and psychological development. A third goal is to coach families and other caregivers on how to choose appropriate toys for play.
Still have questions? Call us at PFOT 1 800 PFOT 124
Amy Goetz Ruffino Susan G. Mistrett
Wondering what toys to recommend for children with disabilities? Evaluating for universal design can help.
Play is what kids do—it’s how they develop. All children, regardless of age or ability, need opportunities to play. Studies clearly link play with cognitive, language, and social skills that form the basis for complex learning and conceptual understanding.1–3 Play is especially beneficial when children plan together, create new ways of using toys, and adopt multiple themes and roles. To reap the rewards of play, all children, regardless of ability, race, or culture, must be able to use the same toys and play spaces. However, many toys are limited in the ways some children can use them, so parents, grandparents, and friends often have difficulty finding toys that children with disabilities can use. Inaccessible toys stigmatize children with disabilities by preventing them from using the same materials as their peers, thereby limiting their play opportunities. One goal is to ensure that children with disabilities can access and play with toys. Another goal is to develop and identify toys that are durable, safe, and well designed which can, in turn, promote motor development, imagination, social and play skills, and psychological development. A third goal is to coach families and other caregivers on how to choose appropriate toys for play.
Still have questions? Call us at PFOT 1 800 PFOT 124
Help Your Child with Handwriting
Taken from AOTA.org
What can an occupational therapist do?
Demonstrate proper posture to supports the proper use of the arms, hands, head, and eyes.
Measure the level of physical strength and endurance.
Analyze fine motor control, such as the ability to hold a writing utensil.
Determine visual and perceptual ability that influences a child's ability to form letter and shapes using a writing utensil.
Help develop and evaluate handwriting curriculums and collaborate with teachers on effective strategies.
Suggest home activities that promote the development of skills needed in good handwriting.
What can parents and families do?
Encourage children to participate in sports and games that could improve visual, motor, and coordination skills, such as playing ball, jacks, marbles, and outdoor sports.
Require children and teens to use silverware when eating to develop hand grip.
Provide an activity that exercises the hands, such as cutting pie dough or pizza and using cookie cutters.
Encourage writing handwritten letters to grandparents and friends.
What can an occupational therapist do?
Demonstrate proper posture to supports the proper use of the arms, hands, head, and eyes.
Measure the level of physical strength and endurance.
Analyze fine motor control, such as the ability to hold a writing utensil.
Determine visual and perceptual ability that influences a child's ability to form letter and shapes using a writing utensil.
Help develop and evaluate handwriting curriculums and collaborate with teachers on effective strategies.
Suggest home activities that promote the development of skills needed in good handwriting.
What can parents and families do?
Encourage children to participate in sports and games that could improve visual, motor, and coordination skills, such as playing ball, jacks, marbles, and outdoor sports.
Require children and teens to use silverware when eating to develop hand grip.
Provide an activity that exercises the hands, such as cutting pie dough or pizza and using cookie cutters.
Encourage writing handwritten letters to grandparents and friends.
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