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Toys to Value — Toys to Avoid
December 22, 2008
Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves.
-James M. Barrie
The 9th Annual Toy Action Guide produced by TRUCE (Teachers Resisting Unhealthy Children's Entertainment), a national organization of educators concerned about the impact of media and commercial culture on children, provides a list of toys and trends to avoid as well as toys of value. It is available free online in both English and Spanish at www.truceteachers.org.

TRUCE recommends avoiding toys that bring violence into rescue-related play, link non-nutritious food to play, lure little girls into focusing on teenage behavior, equate money and shopping with fulfillment and fun, use electronics to over stimulate babies, or promote young children's interest in inappropriate content.

TRUCE recommends toys that promote dramatic play and manipulative play with small play objects, encourage respectful, non-stereotyped, nonviolent interactions among children, allow children to determine play, and help children develop skills important for further learning and a sense of mastery.


Exchange has packaged six of its play resources into a single "Play Tool Kit" and is offering the entire set at a 37% discount. Resources in the kit include:

Books:

  • Beginnings Workshops Book #6 - Play
  • Power of Play by David Elkind

4 Out of the Box Training Kits (Print versions)
  • Play and the Outdoors: What's New Under the Sun
  • But They're Only Playing: Interpreting Play to Parents
  • Supporting Constructive Play in the Wild
  • Designing and Creating Natural Play Environments

 

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Comments (2)

Displaying All 2 Comments
Jean Nathanson · January 06, 2009
United States


I was so pleased to read this article and found the depth and breath of information that TRUCE provides very comprehensive. I found it very parent friendly and making points that parents should be aware of ie., teaching their child to read through commercial means instead of scaffolding the learning and making it a pure experience, one that develops over time and through human interaction. Children are not robots and need interaction to support their learning.

Mary Schuster · December 22, 2008
4C for Children
Cincinnati, OH, United States


The resources on TV watching and toys on the website are great. Even being very aware of these issues and doing workshops on the value of play, this was a good wake up call. I'm startled to think about how much Disney princess, High School Musical and Camp Rock stuff is in my house, and how much less open ended art and sensory experiences my younger daughter does compared to what I had available to her older sister at this age. I hadn't thought about it this way, but - an eight year old girl obsessed with movies about who is dating who? That can't be right.



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