Why are Physical Toys More Important For Children than Fancy Gadgets

This is a very controversial topic indeed, but a very important one as well. A child’s character is moulded as they grow up and it is affected by their surrounding environment. For example, their emotions are affected by people’s behaviour around them. Now, young children absorb everything they see, hear or interact with. Hence, it’s crucial to be extra careful when they are growing up because those very factors will influence their understanding, thinking, social skills, language, and body language.

Since the rapid growth of technology has taken over the world, children too, are curious about it and they want to explore it further. Most parents nowadays, give their children a fancy gadget in their hands such as a tablet or a smartphone to satisfy their curiosity and calm their tempers down; little do they know that doing so actually has bad implications for young children.

image:pixabay.com

Hence, providing your children with physical toys is better than handing them an iPhone or an iPad. If you’re wondering why, here are the reasons.

·         Gross Motor Skills are Developed and Improved

These skills are also known as kinaesthetic movements and they are an essential component of a child’s development. Through these skills, children learn to walk, stand, maintain their balance, run, and pay attention.

Gross motor skills are improved through toys and play sets that allow children to move their body. If you give your toddler a smartphone or a tablet, it won’t encourage their physical movement much, which can impede their physical development. This may result in a poor body structure and posture.

·         Honing of Fine Motor Skills

Fine motor skills refers to the usage of the wrists, fingers, thumbs, and hands in conjunction with the eyes; this is an extremely important skill for children to develop as it builds a sense of understanding as well as a sense of movement as to when and which muscle group to move.

There are many toys like construction blocks and stackers that enable children to hone their fine motor skills. On the other hand, handing them gadgets does not encourage critical thinking or using muscles, which leads to attention deficit disorders.

·         Development of Emotions and Sentiments

It’s not only the thinking and motor skills that children develop while playing with physical toys, but they also develop their humour, body language, identity, communication skills, and a sense of association. When they play with other children, they will develop feelings, emotions, sentiments, attachments, and considerations, thus allowing them to create relationships.

For example, when they play with dolls, children learn caretaking, kindness, and compassion. A technological gadget, on the other hand, will not be able to incur such feelings in children.

·         Their Subjective Skills are Enhanced

Did you know that physical toys help children to improve their neural, clasping, and memorisation capabilities? It’s true. For example, musical toys often aid them in increasing their subjective skills.

However, giving your child a tablet or smartphone and allowing them to use a music app or website will not trigger the same level of development because in an app, they are merely touching the screen.

Sources

http://paramountgym.com/benefits-keeping-kids-active/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2565061/How-iPad-replaced-toy-chest-Researchers-children-play-touchscreens-traditional-toys.html

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/does-spending-too-much-time-on-smartphones-and-tablets-damage-kids-development-a7067261.html

http://www.raisesmartkid.com/all-ages/1-articles/smartphone-and-tablet-screen-time-good-or-bad-for-kids