Modern stores are littered with all kinds of toys. Educational computers, talking pets, pistols with light and sound effects, game sets, radio-controlled cars ... At the same time, it becomes more and more difficult to choose a truly high-quality and useful toy for a boy. How not to fall for the tricks of advertising and buy what is really necessary for the development of the child?
First toys
According to psychologists, before the age of three, both boys and girls need the same toys. Bright rattles, rubber squeaking animals, pyramids, tumblers, toy cars, balls and baby dolls, where you can look for eyes and nose, will please the baby. Musical toys are of great interest to both. For the development of fine motor skills, liners, cubes, soft designers, large mosaics, sorters are useful.
Well, if toys for boys from a year help to throw out energy. Think about buying a fitball where you can jump, balls, a wheelchair, pins, a bicycle, a ring throw, mini-basketball and a punching bag. With their help, you can organize a lot of active games for your son.
Should the boy buy dolls?
Starting from two years old, children enthusiastically reproduce the situations they saw in reality with the help of bunnies, bears, cars and toy houses. In this way they know the world around them. Parents usually buy children's toys for boys, such as cars, planes, boats and trains. They are also offered plush animals. Dolls are another matter. For some reason, it is believed that playing with them will negatively affect the sexual identification of the future man.
Meanwhile, fumbling with dolls, the boys try on the role of father and husband. Beating everyday situations, they learn about the structure of the family, learn to take care of other people, understand their feelings. Psychologists advise the son of a baby doll-boy, whom he will bathe and ride in a wheelchair. Also, the baby needs a toy family of dad, mom and kids of different sexes.
A doll for a child is, first of all, a prototype of a person. For this reason, you should not buy a three-year-old supermen and transformers. Toys for boys of this age should be a copy of real people, objects or animals.
Educational toys
Modern parents mean by this word various inserts and frames, rattles with light and noise effects, "game centers" with moving figures, creativity kits, puzzles, letter cubes, unusual designers. All of them are designed to teach the baby to distinguish colors and shapes, count, compare, read, solve logical problems. At the same time, usual cars and balls are not referred to educational toys for boys, as a rule.
According to children's psychologists, this is a big mistake. Preschool age is a time of free play and creativity. And those children are right who refuse to lay out words from Zaitsev’s cubes, using them to build castles. By the way, ordinary plasticine was recognized as the best developing toy for kids 3-5 years old in America. It does not imply action according to the model; from it, a child can dazzle whatever the soul wants. At the same time, fine motor skills, speech, thinking and imagination develop.
Interactive toys for boys
They can interact with children, walk, repeat phrases, execute commands, make sounds. Which child will refuse a talking robot or an electronic puppy that can be trained in different teams? Such children's toys for boys prepare them for life in modern society. And also learn to communicate with electronic devices.
However, experts do not recommend buying interactive toys for boys under 5 years old. Playing with them comes down to exploring the functions provided by the creators. At the same time, the baby needs to learn to invent his own imaginary world. For this purpose, ordinary dolls, soldiers, animals, which the boy himself endows with character and voice, are better suited. Role play kits will help your son turn into a doctor, locksmith, policeman or pirate.
For older boys, choose interactive toys with a focus on learning. Robots can not only walk and talk, but also help to learn the basics of programming, design. A future astronaut will need a telescope to study the constellations. And with a children's computer you can write words, solve puzzles and guess quizzes.
Toy vehicles
Boys love technology from birth, and this interest should be encouraged. The first cars and trains can be purchased a six-month-old baby. Together with them, he will learn to crawl. Boys 2 years old really like trucks, in the back of which you can carry dolls, cubes or sand. By the age of three, most children have their own fleet.
The only thing that psychologists warn against is the too early purchase of radio-controlled cars and self-propelled trains. Existing racing tracks and flying helicopters are suitable for younger students. Those already know how to manage them, they are happy to arrange competitions. Buying a similar toy for younger boys hinders their development. A four-year-old kid takes on the role of a leader, pushing the car in the chosen direction. Watching from the side, as the train runs on rails, he turns into a passive spectator.
Useful constructors
The best toy for boys of all ages is the constructor. With its help, spatial thinking, logic, fine motor skills, imagination, and speech develop. The first building materials can be presented to an infant of 8 months. First it will be cubes. A one-year-old baby will need a set of parts of various shapes. In a year and a half, get a large Lego designer.
After three years, the boy can buy themed sets with small details (3-4 cm blocks). With age, the range of designers is expanding. The student will like:
- Metal constructor for modeling.
- Magnetic constructor. From it you can create thousands of combinations.
- Electromechanical constructor. The toy built from it moves at the expense of batteries.
- Electric constructor. With it, you can create a spaceship that makes sounds, or a lie detector, while getting acquainted with the laws of physics.
- Radio constructor. It allows you to assemble a do -it-yourself radio-controlled machine or tractor.
Raising a pacifist?
A lot of controversy arises among parents about the purchase of toy weapons. Meanwhile, games of war or bandits are one way of exploring human relationships. Another thing is that babies, due to their age, cannot grasp the meaning of what is happening. Their game comes down to running around and random shooting. Psychologists advise buying pistols and sabers for boys, who are already 4-5 years old. The same applies to superheroes, "combat" transformers.
Toys for boys help take out aggression in a safe way. It’s great if the son tries himself as a defender, fighting the villains and restoring the violated justice.
Toys for boys 10 years and older
Younger teens in the shower remain children. They still need toys. For boys of 10 years old, a radio-controlled transport, an interactive robot, a bow with arrows, a snow blaster will be an excellent gift.
It is good if you have the following types of toys at home:
- Sports. Balls, rollers, skateboards, bicycles, badminton, room game "Twister" - all this is useful for active pastime.
- Kits for design and creativity. Children still love to assemble models of cars and spaceships. Many are fascinated by burning, wood carving.
- Educational. Boys love to do chemical experiments, study stars through a telescope, learn to use a microscope, try themselves as a magician.
- Team games. Chess, table hockey, monopoly, mini-billiards will teach the child to make predictions, react to the actions of rivals, calculate winning strategies in his mind.
Choosing toys for the boy is a responsible matter. Through them, the child learns the world, teaches to communicate, splashes out accumulated negativity. Before you buy another toy, ask yourself what it will teach your son, what qualities will develop. And only then make the final purchase decision.