Toys Should Foster Imagination

Our fourth and final entry for chapter 2 was written by Mallory. Like our previous authors on this chapter, she appreciates Elkind's perspectives on the importance of imaginative play, and I think you'll enjoy her examples from her own childhood. Happy reading!

In the first part of the chapter, Elkind addresses the problem of children having too many toys and receiving them too often. Looking back on my childhood, I remember being ecstatic during Christmas time and my birthday. The reason I would get so excited was because there would always be that one special toy that I would pick out, and hope and pray that I would get it as a gift. Elkind argues that with children now receiving toys for no special occasion, they accrue an abundance of toys and don’t really seem to value any of them. They go from one toy to the next without spending enough time with one toy to develop an imaginary experience with it.
One change I have noticed that accentuates this is there are toys everywhere a child goes with their parents now, even grocery stores. When I was a child, it was a special privilege and outing to be able to go to a toy store and pick out a toy. Now, too often, I see parents not able to leave a grocery store before letting their child pick out a toy just for being there on the errand. They reward them for not making too much of a scene, while the child constantly asks what kind of toy they get to pick that day. Whenever I see this, it leads me to wonder what these people’s homes look like, and how many toys this child actually owns since this seems to be such a routine process.
Elkind’s excerpt about Maria Montessori was especially interesting. He talked about the use of “natural” materials and warm colors. I have learned about the benefit this has on children’s senses. It baffles me that so many schools, including my mom’s preschool class, are decorated with harsh fluorescent colors and so many plastic toys. These materials are not particularly warm and comforting, which are sensory experiences critical for development. The Harlow study with monkeys and the soft cloth mother is a great example of this. Piaget has taught us the importance of children learning through play.
Elkind worries that there is a decline in play and the type of play children are now engaging in. Imaginative play is especially important and children building fantasies around toys often aids in their “socialization into adult culture” (p. 24). I completely agree with this and think back to my days of playing with dolls. I always carried around the same Cabbage Patch doll that I named “Oh Baby,” and I was, in my mind, every bit his mother. I would bathe him, clothe him, feed him, take him to the grocery store and the park. My imagination was limitless as to the day this doll and I would have. Using play to become socialized into the culture of adults resonates with me and reminds me of my first day of preschool. We were all asked what we would like to be when we grew up, and my response was “a mommy.” I had such a vivid imagination with this doll and would often emulate my own mom and her mannerisms. To me, being a mom would be the best thing to be when I grew up.
Today, I feel like children’s toys are often mini laptops and pretend cell phones. I believe these are things children shouldn’t even know about yet, because they certainly don’t understand how they operate or what they are for in adult life. They also are encouraging children to grow up faster than they should by suggesting that they be competent with these devices at such a young age.
Reading this chapter has definitely opened my eyes to the overabundance of toys today and the importance of taking it back to the basics of imaginative play. It will definitely make me think twice when buying children’s toys and influence me to stick with the more natural, time-tested toys that stimulate children’s senses and imaginations.