Toys not to get your kids

[V.C. Brunswick]

There was a huge debate about the BFing doll on another forum I visit from time to time - some people thought it was a great idea and some found it a bit on the creepy side. If it's the same doll we are talking about there is a bib that has flowers on it that are meant to be nipples - I find that a bit unnecessary myself - if a little girl wants to pretend BF she will just put the doll up to her chest - I don't see the need for the bib as I don't think a small child would care about the ins and outs of what BFing is and what it entails - she just wants to copy her Mum - anyway I could see that part of it being discarded pretty soon after and the doll just being used as a regular doll. Another issue I have is the price of it - I think it was over €60 which I think is a crazy amount of money to spend on what is really just a regular doll.....

The breast feeding doll reminds me a little of the Baby Think It Over doll used in high school Human Development courses. As for the other baby doll that was profiled, the less said the better! :doh:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvGhipyK8uo

 

[bunnyb.gal]

I wonder if that ^^ would make a dent in our high teen pregnancy rates? That is an amazing bit of kit.

Crikey, I couldn't even deal with the egg we had for the same purpose in high school (and I'm happily child-free these years later).

 

[sheeplady]

If you look at the box for the cleaning setup it says specifically "Girls only" on the box. There's a picture of a little girl behind the trolley, and of course the cotton-candy pinkness of the box is a dead giveaway. It's definitely the gender thing that is offensive here.

I don't understand why they'd make that for girls only though... I actually know more custodians that are male than female. I did miss the "for girls only" part, and I agree that's very offensive.

I'm personally not a fan of suggesting that certain toys are for girls or boys. I always loved the "boy" toys. I hated baby dolls, princesses, and Barbie's with a passion, and I mean I hated them. I turned out totally hetereosexual and quite feminine (despite several teacher's worries). I think our society will do enough gendered toy selection, you don't have to say for girls or boys only.

 

[scottyrocks]

I thought about a spark plug like Lizzie had, but I'm afraid it will be thrown at a mirror or window.

Speaking of stuff that aren't really playthings, when I was growing up there was a lot of construction nearby. My friends and I would go into the construction site and find broken pieces of sheetrock (wallboard) that turned out to be hours of fun used as chalk on the street.

 

[Miss Golightly]

The breast feeding doll reminds me a little of the Baby Think It Over doll used in high school Human Development courses. As for the other baby doll that was profiled, the less said the better! :doh:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvGhipyK8uo

I think that may work for a lot of young people - it gives them a taste of the reality of caring for a baby - I'm not sure it would work for everyone though. I think you can't replace parental guidance (or your guardian whoever that might be) when it comes to these matters - but sadly a lot of young people don't have parents who will take the time to advise and guide them.

 

[bunnyb.gal]

I don't understand why they'd make that for girls only though... I actually know more custodians that are male than female. I did miss the "for girls only" part, and I agree that's very offensive.

I'm personally not a fan of suggesting that certain toys are for girls or boys. I always loved the "boy" toys. I hated baby dolls, princesses, and Barbie's with a passion, and I mean I hated them. I turned out totally hetereosexual and quite feminine (despite several teacher's worries). I think our society will do enough gendered toy selection, you don't have to say for girls or boys only.

Male custodians, yes, but then again, you always seem to get "cleaning ladies", or "chambermaids", or, of course, "housewives". To me, custodian also implies maintenance, i.e. changing light bulbs or unblocking drains, and we all know women aren't very competent at that sort of thing...

 

[sheeplady]

I think that may work for a lot of young people - it gives them a taste of the reality of caring for a baby - I'm not sure it would work for everyone though. I think you can't replace parental guidance (or your guardian whoever that might be) when it comes to these matters - but sadly a lot of young people don't have parents who will take the time to advise and guide them.

The vast majority of the young women I knew growing up who got pregnant and carried to term came from very bad situations at home- abuse, abandonment, not enough food to eat, absolutely little to no love at home.

I knew a young lady who got pregnant becaue she could then be placed in a "home for unwed teenage mothers" to escape the physical abuse in her home. When this girl went to a social worker she was told that because she was turning 16 in a few months, the only way she could get help is if she was pregnant. I knew other girls who moved in with much much older boyfriends just to get out of the home. I know other people who tried to "get arrested" and placed in juvie to be removed from their home situation.

Desperate times call for desperate measures type of thing. Combine a teen's inability to understand consequences and make rational decision with a situation most of us would do anything to get out of and you get these kinds of results.

 

[PoohBang]

what does teen mothers have to do with this thread on toys?

 

[bunnyb.gal]

What do teen mothers have to do with this thread on toys? Well, toys, children, mothers...pretty logical progression. I'm sure if we meander too far off the beaten track one of our lovely bartenders will nudge us back on to the straight and narrow...

 

[PoohBang]

makes perfect sense. Meander away....

 

[hellsbellslolly]

My husband wanted to buy our 5 yr old son an ipod touch (to my sheer horror) instead I decided on a pop up pirate game, a marble run (a nice sized one) arty stuff crayons and suchlike and a Dr Who doll/figure.... ipod seriously....I think not

 

[sheeplady]

My husband wanted to buy our 5 yr old son an ipod touch (to my sheer horror) instead I decided on a pop up pirate game, a marble run (a nice sized one) arty stuff crayons and suchlike and a Dr Who doll/figure.... ipod seriously....I think not

So the people I run with are techies- and they would think of nothing of giving a child an iPad or an iPhone/ SmartPhone at 5 or younger. One of my colleagues bought his child an iPad at 3 years old. I don't understand why, that's just asking for it to be broken.

They say that a child shouldn't spend significant time in front of a screen (TV, computer, or other device) until they are at least 2 years old. I think that's a smart guideline.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I had a phone of my own when I was 3.

 

[PoohBang]

Doctor Who's pretty scary to a 5 year old isn't it?

and that phone has probably more dangerous lead paint on it then having the kid stare at an ipod.

 

[kamikat]

My husband wanted to buy our 5 yr old son an ipod touch (to my sheer horror) instead I decided on a pop up pirate game, a marble run (a nice sized one) arty stuff crayons and suchlike and a Dr Who doll/figure.... ipod seriously....I think not

An iPod is fine but not a touch. My younger son got an iPod shuffle at 5, but a iPod shuffle is no different than getting a kid a Walkman 20 years ago. The shuffle only plays music, it doesn't do anything else.

 

[sheeplady]

and that phone has probably more dangerous lead paint on it then having the kid stare at an ipod.

Well, that would be true if electronic devices were free of lead. Either way, I don't think suggested delayed development, developmental disabilities, or behavioral problems are anything to sneeze at. If you look at the symptoms that have been associated with 2 or so hours of screen time at and under 2 years old, they look like very mild versions of lead poisoning: delayed language development, behavioral issues, etc.

It's not that hard to avoid screen time under age 2. And there is absolutely no evidence that "denying" these children (who, let's face it, are very very young) leads to poor technological skills. And under age two or so, there are also concerns about choking hazards on electronic devices, particularly handheld devices. They are not built to the same standards that modern or even older toys are/were.

If someone is concerned about lead exposure one ought to test every toy; not just the old ones. A lot of modern toy companies have been found to use lead paint on their toys. Lead testing kits are available in most hardware stores. People who are nervous should also test their dishes (esp modern dishes produced overseas), crystal (including glassware), walls and woodwork, and painted furniture. It's typically not exposure to one thing that causes lead poisoning, but exposure to multiple things that causes an environmental load that leads to lead problems.

 

[PoohBang]

I haven't read any papers on the symptoms that have been associated with 2 or so hours of screen time and under 2 years old, so I'll take your word for it.

But the poster was talking about a 5 year old, not a 2 year old.

I personally wouldn't buy a 2 or a 5 year old an ipod touch or even an ipod for that matter, but it's their kid and they can buy them whatever they want.

Perhaps a better gift in the same realm might be a DS or something similar to that.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I had a portable phonograph when I was three or four -- with a 110-volt AC motor and a pointy needle I could have put my eye out with. And I survived.

Screen-viewing fears aside, I wouldn't ever give a kid that age any kind of techno gizmo. Because you *know* it'd get stepped on, stuffed down the register, or dropped down the toilet when you weren't looking. And there goes your $250 with it.

If kids want music, give 'em a toy ukulele with rubber-band strings, or a toy piano, or a kazoo, and let them play their own music.

 

[kamikat]

I

Screen-viewing fears aside, I wouldn't ever give a kid that age any kind of techno gizmo. Because you *know* it'd get stepped on, stuffed down the register, or dropped down the toilet when you weren't looking. And there goes your $250 with it.

My kid's shuffle was less than $50 and has gone through both the washer and dryer in a pants pocket and is still working. I know I had a Walkman in 1st grade and I don't see it as any different.

 

[Mr. Hallack]

Our oldest has gone through two Nintendo Gameboys. The first one his younger brother tried to flush down the toilet, the 2nd one, the oldest try to "fix" it by washing it in the sink. Both DOA.

I've had it personally with electronic crap!!