Some children as young as two years old can navigate their way around cel phones, laptops and ipads. Toys and games are fast going out of fashion. New millenium kids are growing up in a different world to the one we grew up in and their future will revolve around technology. So, of course, the computer and smart phone screen do have their place in the lives of today’s children. The problem is that it can be hard for kids to drag themselves away from computer games, ipads and their phones. They are all powerfully addictive!
Part of your job as a parent is to help your child live a balanced life that doesn’t weigh too heavily on being glued to a screen. Limiting screen-time is vital in order to help children develop normally. Children need extra mural activities, sports and hobbies. In addition to that they also need unplanned, unstructured time to play. In fact, playing alone and with siblings, friends and caregivers is a crucial part of what your child needs to do in her formative years. It is through old fashioned, simple play – away from technology – that your child learns highly valuable and essential skills. These skills include
- social skills
- fine-motor skills
- gross-motor skills
- creativity
- delayed gratification
- frustration tolerance
- teamwork
- patience
- attention and concentration skills
- learning through failure
- balance and co-ordination
- cognitive functioning
- visual perceptual skills
- numerical reasoning
- spatial reasoning
- imagination
- visual tracking
- eye-hand co-ordination
- self-awareness
- personal and psychological growth
- short term memory skills
‘Children in Mind’ is now selling playboxes that contain simple toys and games and activities – carefully and specifically selected to help children develop these skills. The playboxes are made up according to age and gender, or they can be tailor made and adapted to suit any child with special or particular needs or circumstances, such as physical illness, anxiety or attention deficit disorder (ADD). To order a playbox for your child, visit our online shop or contact jenny@perkel.co.za.