Toys and the Real World

A few years back, my hometown grocery store, Albertsons, made some strong efforts to make the often-mundane shopping experience just a little more “fun,” in the broadest sense of the term. One element of this was strictly for the kids: metal shopping carts in just their size. The store probably only had two dozen of them, and they sure became a hot commodity fast. We knew when to go so my little sister could be one of the lucky ones with a cart!

Thanks to Melissa & Doug, all kids can enjoy the real experience of grocery shopping from their own perspective!

The Melissa & Doug Metal Grocery Cart Toy is sturdy and well-constructed, and just like what you’d find in the store. (Well, except that it is kid-sized of course, at about two feet tall.) The wheels swivel for easy maneuvering through the aisles, and the seat even folds so a favorite doll or stuffed animal can come along for the ride.

Looking for ways the cart could enhance your next shopping trip? Here are some simple ideas:

• Teach kids about frugality and list-making, and maybe even let them pick out a couple items. What a great way to learn about healthy foods and saving money!
• Use the small cart for the ingredients to make a favorite dinner: say lasagna noodles, sauce, cheeses, a loaf of bread, and frozen yogurt for dessert.
• Fill the little one’s cart with little things: collect baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, baby mushrooms, miniature marshmallows, or any of the many items that now come pint (or smaller) sized.
• Have trouble remembering to bring your reusable bags along when heading to the grocery store? If your kid falls in love with this cart, you’ll probably not have a hard time remembering to stick it in the back of the car. Just put your bags inside.

Of course, this cart is perfectly suitable for all kinds of pretend play at home. Sure, the kids can round up wooden play food (or perhaps food from your pantry!), but imagine what else may make its way into this cart. Maybe it can even aid in tidying up around the house!

(Colourful Shopping Carts photo by Jim, accessed via http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Colourful_shopping_carts.jpg)

The highly entertaining 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia came to a close with a thrilling gold medal game in men’s hockey between the United States and host Canada. In what was the most publicized and popular hockey game since the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” U.S. victory over the then-U.S.S.R., the commentators acknowledged how kids would be on their rinks and streets back home pretending to be the stars of the game.

Perhaps, though, some kids don’t need to wait for “superstar” status. Between periods, pro hockey games often feature on-ice entertainment, from funny games to shot competitions. In a 2009 Boston Bruins game, 9-year old Oliver Wahlstrom may have fooled everyone with this crafty goal.

He hardly even looks like a 9-year old in the video! Can you imagine how impressed the fans (and maybe any scouts in the stands!) must have been?

Stay tuned for more kids doing amazing things here at the Growing Tree Toys blog.

Clipping coupons, searching out sales, saving before spending – this economic recession has adults evaluating their spending habits and looking for ways to make sure they are economically sound. And, while kids do not necessarily understand all of the ins and outs of making, spending, and saving money, one thing they do know is that they like to imitate their parents and caregivers in their daily tasks. For many people, these tasks involve looking at their finances and finding ways to save money – what a great opportunity for kids to learn through play!

Math games are fun and help kids understand how to add and subtract money, but there are also a number of toys that give kids a deeper understanding of how money works in their daily lives. One of the important first concepts regarding money about which children learn is how to save, and we have many toys to help make children excited about this important lesson! In addition to standard piggy banks or banks that children can decorate, we also feature a high-tech version of the piggy bank, which is a large part of adults’ lives – the ATM.

The Bank AmeriKid ATM from Educational Insights is a real working ATM machine that teaches kids to save their money just like they would at a real bank, which helps to prepare them for the day when they really will have to use a checking and savings account. This Bank AmeriKid ATM is perfect to help teach the concept of saving money, as well as taking out money when it is needed! And, since kids have to go through the step of accessing their money, it will help them realize that they have to evaluate each financial decision, particularly regarding the amount of money they want to save versus the money they want to spend.

In addition to this “high-tech” toy that teaches kids how a bank works and how to manage their own “accounts,” parents can also take time to teach kids about bigger picture financial decisions. While people have to evaluate their own financial needs, they also should take time to evaluate the various charitable contributions they can make. The LearningCents Bank is the perfect bank for kids to help teach children about the concept of sharing their money with those less fortunate.

The LearningCents Bank not only helps kids realize there are multiple ways that they can divide up their money, but it gives them a structured way to do it, while also emphasizing the importance of creating financial goals. And, since this bank includes 3 areas – sections for spending, saving, and giving – it helps kids plan their expenses ahead of time, put the money in the proper place, and learn that they need to follow the savings structure and goals they created.

And, after kids have a solid understanding of these important monetary concepts, parents can transfer this to real life experiences. Not only can kids then open a checking and savings account at a “real” bank, but they can take part in fun spending, saving, and planning exercises based on real life experiences. One of my favorite activities when I was in elementary school was working with a “fake checking account” and planning real life expenses – including a Thanksgiving dinner! I had to evaluate the money I had, pour over coupons and flyers, and try to come up with an economical way to serve this dinner within my budget. Talk about a great learning experience that helps kids understand how parents plan to use their money! This real life experience might even help keep children from constantly asking for different items, knowing that their family is on a budget and needs to spend money on many things and not just the things they want.

In addition to building math skills and helping kids understand currency, these money toys will also serve to introduce children to “bigger picture” financial concepts, fostering an early understanding of a lifelong skill. And hopefully, this early practice and learning will turn them into financially responsible adults when it is time to spend their own money!

The grocery store, the coffee shop, the toy store. Kids, from an early age, start visiting these places and watching their parents shop, and ultimately, buy from an associate at the checkout register. And once they get to that magical early pre-school age, they want to start imitating mom and dad’s daily tasks, including the all important job of shopping. And no toy is more perfect to help them with their shopping lists than the Teaching Cash Register Toy from Learning Resources – a great pretend play toy that also teaches children important skills and educational lessons.

The first function that this Teaching Cash Register Toy serves is as a pretend play toy for the youngest of preschoolers – allowing them to press buttons, “ring” up customers, play with money, and swipe credit cards. And while they may have no idea how to count change or do simple math, the joy of the noises and sounds will keep them more than entertained. And, this provides parents the opportunity to be “customers” in their child’s world, all while helping to teach them about how shopping works and the concept of paying for items that they need. These lessons can even be reinforced – and we see this all the time at our store – by encouraging young ones to provide money with an item they want to purchase to an associate at the cash register. While they don’t know the math behind the transaction, this step helps them understand the process!

While this Teaching Cash Register Toy still offers amazing pretend play opportunities for growing children, once preschoolers start understanding basic math, counting, and money skills, this toy provides a whole new level of play value. Parents can then throw different mathematical elements into their pretend shopping, by associating costs to different items, and asking children to “ring them up” for an order total. This game can start simply, with parents providing the exact money amount and teaching children how the money adds up to reach their total. And, as math skills improve, this game can incorporate children providing change to adults based on the money amount provided. While kids are learning to do some of this math in their heads, the Teaching Cash Register also helps to reinforce those math skills with noises and words, which encourages kids to keep playing with this math machine.

And, when parents are not playing with children and helping them with their math, the cash register includes 4 different games that help improve math and money skills in a fun and interactive way. Once kids master the money counting tasks of this toy, all that remains is for parents to put these skills to the test. We know that the first time children go to the counter and pay for an item – and completely understand the costs, the money needed, and the change issued – is a very proud moment in their lives. And, playing with the Teaching Cash Register not only prepares them for the task, but gives them the confidence to know that they can do it right.

Best of all, the lessons learned with this toy are something that a parent can share with children, teaching them not only the etiquette involved with shopping, but the money component of this daily task as well. And, since the Teaching Cash Register Toy is a toy that grows with children from the early pretend play stage to the learning and math stage, it makes this toy more than worth the investment.

We think you will agree that the Teaching Cash Register Toy from Learning Resources fits the bill for educational fun, for young kids and adults alike, while also serving as a great tool to introduce kids to the real world experience of shopping!