A whole range of material such as wood,
plastic, cloth, rubber, clay, iron, steel, and stone is used for making
toys.
Stuff toys
Stuff toys are soft toys made of cloth, cotton and other non-hard
materials, designed specially for infants and small children. Stuff toys
include dolls teddy bears, Donald duck etc.
Wood toys
Wood toys are mainly made of beech wood and yellow birch wood, which is
carved, painted and polished. Wood toys include alphabet blocks, abacus,
rocking chair; wheel trailer, cars, trucks etc.
Plastic toys
Plastic toys PVC, Polyethylene, Polystyrene are common plastic variants
used in making plastic toys However, due to toxic nature of some plastic
chemicals, special attention is given in making plastic toys such as
buses, trucks, animals, football, table tennis set, rock and roll, guns,
soldiers, stacking rings, pull alongs etc.
Rubber toys
Rubber toys: are generally squeezable, chewable and sound producing.
They are made of soft non-toxic rubber like silicone rubber and include
items such as balls, tethers, animal figures etc.
Metal toys
Metal toys: includes items such as soldiers, warships, vehicles, dumper
trucks, guns etc. Brass, steel, ZAMAK, an alloy of zinc and aluminum is
used in making metal toys.
SKILL DEVELOPMENT
Educative toys enhance speech, listening,
creative, motor, and cognitive abilities of a child. Depending upon what
the kind of skill you wish to develop in your child, toys can be
categorized as:
Confidence
Confidence: Toys such as Lift and Look Alphabet puzzles, Building
towers, and Role Playing toys builds confidence in a child.
Hearing skills
Hearing skills Musical toys are excellent means of developing childs
hearing skills.
Mathematics
Mathematics Abacus, Counting games, arithmetic games are good tools for
enhancing math skills of children.
Problem Solving
Problem Solving Jumbles and puzzle games have proven to boost problem
solving abilities in children.
BASED ON AGE GROUP
Age is an important factor for choosing the
right kind of toy as children go through different stages of development
at different ages. Based on age group, toys are classified as:
Infants
Infants are children below 1year. Soft toys (dolls, teddy bears) and
rattle toys are best suited for infants
Toddlers
Toddlers are children between 1 to 2 years of age, and learning to
walk. Pull-along, musical toys, ride-on etc are most sought after toys
for toddlers.
3-4 years
3-4 years Educational, pre-school toys such as learning alphabets,
fruits, animals, counting, puzzles are much likeable items
5-7 years
5-7 years Electronic and video games, creative craft toys, puzzles etc
are meant specifically for children of this age group.
8-11 years
Challenging games, vocabulary enhancing (scrabble), mathematics puzzles
are common for this age group.
HOW TO CHOOSE TOY
Toys are children best friends and should be
chosen carefully. Following are some tips and advises while choosing
toys:
- For infants and toddlers, small-sized, stringed toys
should be avoided for infants to avoid choking.
- Toys should not contain more than permissible amounts of
metal traces such as lead.
- Avoid toys with thin, brittle plastic as children are in
habit of putting everything in their mouths.
- Avoid toys with small magnets that can be swallowed.