kids-toy

The kid develops and learns the world with the help of toys. Playing mother-daughters or cars, children imitate the behavior of adults, and by assembling construction toys and puzzles, they improve fine motor skills and imagination. But choosing a good toy is not at all easy.
The market is full of low-quality products that, at best, quickly break down, and at worst, negatively affect the health and psyche of the child. Therefore, when choosing children’s toys, you need to take into account a lot of parameters: smell, quality of seams, material, age restrictions, themes, etc. Today we will tell you how to do this.

How to find a quality toy for a child: selection options

Material and safety

Some toys are made from poor quality materials and coated with cheap toxic dyes. As a result, they cause an allergic reaction (rash, cough, tearing, fever, runny nose, etc.) or even poisoning in the baby. To avoid this, you need to buy toys in specialized stores and from trusted manufacturers (for example, Lego, Fisher Price, Tiny Love, Smoby, Eichhorn or Connoisseur). So you can be sure that the toys have received the necessary quality certificates and do not pose a threat to the health of the child.

Important to remember:

1. For small children (0-3 years old) it is not recommended to choose soft toys – they quickly get dirty, accumulate dust and can cause allergies. In addition, according to GOST, the use of natural fur and leather is not allowed in such products. It is also important that the toy does not have a long pile that easily breaks out, as well as small parts that can be torn off and swallowed by the cub.
2. Wooden toys should be made from well-finished wood, free of burrs and wormholes. Painted products must be covered with a colorless varnish.
3. Glass must not be used in toys for children under three years of age. In products for older children, this material can only be used when it is necessary for the functioning of the model.
4. For children under three years old, you should not choose toys made of paper, brushed rubber (for example, latex), porcelain and cardboard.
5. Parts for prefabricated toys (for example, pyramids and building blocks) intended for toddlers 0-3 years old should not be less than 3.2 cm.
6. Rattles for children under three years of age should not weigh more than 100 g.
7. Lasers must not be used in toys. Laser radiation can damage the retina of the eye and impair the child’s vision.

Details

Details on the toy (spouts, eyes, etc.) must be tightly attached to the product. This is necessary so that the cub cannot grab them with his teeth, tear them off and swallow them. It is also important that the paws, ears and other parts of the body in soft stuffed toys cannot be torn off – otherwise the child may eat the filler.

Sound

Before buying, check the sound that the toy makes. He should not “cut” the ear or scare the baby.

Smell

If the product has a strong chemical smell, refuse to purchase. Most likely, it contains toxic substances (formaldehyde, methanol, toluene, etc.).

Marking

When buying, pay attention to whether the toy packaging or insert contains instructions for use, warning labels and age restrictions. They must indicate:

1. At what age can the product be used?
2. Lifetime;
3. Rules for storage and care (if necessary);
4. Producing country;
5. Trademark (if the manufacturer has registered it);
6. Precautions (if necessary) and rules for use.
7. Warning labels. For example, a toy indicates that it can only be used in the presence of adults or only from a certain age;
8. Manufacturing date.
9. Remember, products of dubious quality do not have such markings.

The form

It is important that all protruding parts of the toy have “protection” made of rubber, plastic, etc. For example, tips for arrows, bullets and other projectiles must have protective suction cups or rubber caps, while their diameter must be 2 cm or more. Also, the presence of sharp ends, corners and edges that can injure the child is not allowed. The edges of metal parts to which the child has access must have a special polymer coating or be bent or twisted in a spiral.

Choose children’s toys according to age

Toys for children 0–1 years old

For the first months of life, the baby should buy hanging toys (giraffes, tiger cubs and other animals). With the help of the baby will learn to distinguish shapes and colors, focus on objects, develop hearing, tactile reflexes and fine motor skills. Rattles and teething rattles can be bought from four months, and from five months toys that make sounds are an excellent option.

At this age, it is not recommended to buy soft toys that will accumulate dust and dirt, and metal (heavy) products.

At 6-7 months, the baby will be happy to play with rubber squeakers, pyramids, cubes and musical toys, and at 8-9 months he will show a special interest in toy boxes into which objects of a certain shape must be inserted.

In the future, the cub can choose toys on wheels that can be pushed, balls that he will roll on the floor and other developing models.

Toys for children 1-3 years old

At this age, a child can buy play mats that facilitate the development of coordination, motor skills, dexterity and fine motor skills. as well as wheelchairs-tolocars, which contribute to the development of muscles and the formation of walking skills. A good option would be music boxes, sorter pyramids, dolls, collapsible toys, cars.

Toys for children 3-5 years old

Children over three years old enjoy playing with soft toys and do “adult” things – they play with toy household items (pots, pans), treat their toy friends with the help of a “doctor’s set” and “save the world”. They also assemble constructors, draw and paint pictures, mold from plasticine and dough.

Toys for children over 5 years old

Around the age of five, children begin to prepare for school. Therefore, they should choose books, realistic toys, puzzles, board games, research kits, puzzles, radio controlled toys, etc.

What else to look for before buying

1. When buying, pay attention to the appearance of the product. Psychologists report that scary toys can negatively affect the psyche of children, causing aggression and fear. In particular, this applies to babies 2-5 years old. The emotions and impressions received by the cub at this age have a strong influence on its development. It is at this age that he learns the world and builds his behavior on the basis of what he saw and heard. But what will happen to him if he plays ugly monsters or mutants?
2. Unfortunately, the appearance of toys is not regulated in any way, and how they look depends only on the imagination of designers and engineers. Therefore, you should not rely on the integrity of manufacturers – even well-known companies have products that can negatively affect the child’s psyche. Rely only on your opinion and choose beautiful and kind toys that will become a source of joy for the baby.
3. Remember that it is impossible to “fill up” a child with toys. If the baby has too many toy “friends”, the less value they have in his eyes. In addition, with such an abundance, the concentration of the child’s attention suffers.
4. With a limited number of toys, it is easier for a baby to be interested in reading, drawing and modeling, as well as to teach him to take care of his things and be neat.

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Attention! This material is the subjective opinion of the authors of the project and is not a purchase guide.