Want To Get Back To Basics With Toys? Here's How

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As a parent, you may sometimes despair of all the noisy, battery-powered gizmos and gadgets that make up the bulk of today’s kids toys. You may long for the days when you were a child, and the iPad didn’t exist. Nowadays, our children seemed glued to apps and LED lit toys that make more noise than a class full of kids can do. There are plenty of articles out there detailing the benefits of our electronic world for children. More information than ever is instantly accessible, so it helps them learn anything and everything from the comfort of their own sofa.

If you really fancy going back to basics, or you just need something that doesn’t make a noise, there are some lovely gifts you can choose for a child. You’re definitely not restricted to socks if you want to buy them something that doesn’t flash endlessly. Admittedly, there are probably electronic versions of everything you can think of (except maybe the socks). But sometimes traditional is great. Perhaps you could even consider it novel now!

Dolls and Collectibles still have the power to light up a child’s face. These kinds of toys may seem rare nowadays, but it is still possible to buy something beautiful like the princess dolls collection that is all about the craftsmanship. If your child loves pretty things, they can spend hours with these toys, and even turn them into a prized collection. Handcrafted toys, particularly those made of natural materials like wood, are also sought after. They may not be cheap, but they will last and last. They may even become an heirloom!

Books are bulky, smelly, and easy to damage, but boy we love them! A real book in your hand instead of reading an electronic one on a mobile device still makes for a great evening of entertainment. Lots of children only see books in their school library when they are very young. They may see some music books if they learn an instrument, but digital scores are everywhere already! Everything is available digitally, and that seems to be the preferred medium. However, a real book feels good in your hands once in a while and gives kids something ‘real’ to handle as they read.

Board games used to keep all of us entertained for hours as kids, but you so rarely see any advertised for children anymore. Pretty much all of them have been turned into apps, but sometimes it is nice to sit around a table together. You can physically handle the pieces rather than ‘bump’ them between devices on the wi-fi network. OK, so the pieces may get lost, and the table gets knocked so everybody loses their place. But isn’t all that part of the fun of a family games night?

Crafts sets are great fun for letting a child’s imagination run wild. Glue and tissue paper, pom poms and plasticine make up the staples of any arty set. Of course, the kids can paint and build in 3D on their mobile phones these days. They’re even taught to code the apps to do it! But getting your hands and your home messy once in a while is what childhood is all about.