We are very fortunate to have this fantastic guest article that we can share with you! WoodenToyShop.co.uk has been one of the UK’s premier wooden toy e-retailers since its launch in 2011. As the outlet of co-owners Rob Schofield and Jon Grocott’s passion for imaginative play and nostalgia for the wooden toys they played with as children, WoodenToyShop strives to bring together traditional and contemporary wooden toys with a focus on quality brands and toys with a creative or educational use. The company sponsors numerous children’s charities and has donated toys to worthy causes worldwide.
There are so many new and original toys coming onto the market every month, but one in particular has remained a favourite with children for decades – toy food. The opportunities for play that arise with play food are endless, but in the minds of parents playing with such a simple toy can be undervalued and underrated when it comes to the benefits it may have for our children.
Role play is an invaluable part of play in children, as it helps them to develop skills they will need in later life. Young children spend a large amount of their time watching and copying the adults in their everyday lives. Activities such as cleaning, laundry, DIY and specifically cooking, will be learnt very quickly from simple observation. Parents often report their children as being disinterested in a type of food until they see their mum or dad eating it, at which point the desire to mimic kicks in – at least until they take a bite.
The best way for children to learn of course is by getting involved. When you are doing the washing just simply handing them a tea towel to fold up will encourage them to engage in the activity and help them develop folding skills – they will feel involved and helpful and want to try their best, this presents itself as a positive association for the future.
It is obviously not always possible to get your children involved with activities, as dangers can present themselves if you are doing the ironing or DIY involving tools. If this is the case, then toys can make fantastic substitutes, as they allow your child to feel like they are still doing the same as you, but with their own set of equipment.
A perfect example of this is with cooking and food. Food is such a huge part of everyday life for children and they will watch adults cooking around them often more than three times a day. Toy kitchens have been a favourite with children for decades, and allowing them to create their own meals with wooden play food is a really great away to encourage them to learn more about health and nutrition. You might be struggling to get them to engage with anything beyond fish sticks or processed food, but the immediately recognisable forms of fruit and vegetables lend themselves fantastically to toys and this can help form a positive association with the child. Finding out their favourites and then replicating them in their food can only increase their level of interest.
Toy food can be used in a number of fun situations during play time, including picnics with their teddies, setting up a café with their dolls or even cooking for Mummy and Daddy. Toy food is great for shop play too, nothing teaches your children maths better than hours spent totting up endless bills from their grocery store and with lots of writing involved in taking orders, there are so many skills that can be developed.
The areas of food and health are becoming increasingly stressful for parents these days, with obesity and anorexia becoming rapidly worrying problems. It is important to educate children at a young age about what a healthy and balanced diet is, what food they should be eating and the different ways food can be used. Even very young children can play with the often large, chunky and tactile toy food and pretend they are preparing and cooking it to learn basic food preparation skills
A child’s skill development is mainly driven by the desire to appear more grown up than they are, and this is reflected in many situations including young girls playing with dolls and young boys riding in toy cars. By allowing your child to feel involved in day to day activities and get involved with whatever chore you may be doing, you will be helping them to learn, while developing a strong bond with them too. Many of the key skills humans depend on in day to day life isn’t taught in school, and so by helping them learn more about doing the laundry, DIY and in this case, cooking, you will be hugely benefiting them in the long run.
With Christmas around the corner, play food presents a fantastic option for indoor play with so many different potential activities for your children to get involved with. Toy food is an amazing tool to help develop a good attitude towards food and a great number of other skills such as maths and writing too.
