Toy Market Trends
The American
Academy of
Pediatrics
recommends
that children
spend at least
an hour a day
engaged in
open-ended
play.
toys that combine drawing, color-
ing, animation, etc. with augmented
reality apps, bringing creations to life
in virtual worlds and adding a whole
new layer of excitement and possi-
bilities to children’s creative endeav-
ors. For example, Crayola’s Virtual
Design Pro Fashion Collection comes
with a book of fashion templates and
colored pencils, markers, and sten-
cils. Kids create their unique designs,
which they can then scan into the
accompanying app to bring their
fashion collections to life on a virtual
model.
We are also seeing a rise in 3D
printing toys, which is particularly ex-
citing as it enables children to create
their own characters, vehicles, and so
on, from scratch. Toys that teach kids
how to code similarly enable children
to create “from the ground up.” Many
coding toys are app-enabled and com-
bine robotics, artificial intelligence,
and kinesthetic components to enrich
play. In short, innovative products are
engaging kids in a whole new way —
they aren’t simply playing with their
toys, they are inventing and building
them, too. The possibilities are literal-
ly endless.
LANGUAGE & LITERACY SKILLS
For very young children, the art
of communication is learned through
role-play and storytelling; older kids
continue to build on their communi-
cation skills with word-based games.
Toys that promote storytelling, self-ex-
pression, reading, and writing help to
develop language and literacy skills,
while also teaching kids important
social skills, including how to read
body language and facial expressions
and voice their opinions in a diplomatic
manner.
A great game for both parents
and educators to play with a group of
little ones is “Tell A Puzzling Story.” It
involves choosing a puzzle with a lot
going on (the more animals, characters,
and activities happening in the scene,
the better!) One person is designated
to begin telling a story that relates to
the puzzle (they can refer to the pic-
ture on the box). Each time someone
finds a puzzle piece that fits, they get
to take over the story, building on it
from the last person. It’s a fantastic way
for kids to simultaneously exercise the
right side of their brain (creativity) and
the left side (logic).
BOOSTING BRAIN POWER
Between birth and age three, a
child’s brain will develop at a faster rate
than at any other point in his entire
life. Toys that allow infants and tod-
dlers to explore objects and physical
spaces and process sights and sounds
will enhance their development. Older
children will benefit from educational
toys that teach important concepts, like
Science, Technology, Robotics, Engi-
neering, Arts, and Math (STREAM
subjects).
Multi-faceted science kits teach
kids high-level subjects. For example,
an archeology kit might allow kids
to dig for artifacts, sort and classify
their treasures, and learn about their
historic significance. Some science kits
culminate in a strategic game, bring-
ing socialization and competitive fun
into the mix. Combining science with
interactive play is a tried-and-true way
to get children excited about learning.
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