The Wonderful World of the Brain

Brainstorming is defined as; a technique of solving specific problems, amassing information, stimulating creative thinking, developing new ideas, etc.

Studies indicate that the brain region that helps children sense and interpret the world around them is dramatically affected by early childhood experiences. Most researchers agree that the early years of a child’s development are the most critical and it is during these early years that educational and developmental skills prepare children for their future.

The truth be known, any toy that a child engages during playtime as well as every experience they have does affect and develop the brain. However, educational toys because of there interactive nature, when introduced into a child’s playtime contribute to their cognitive skills.

Even babies, although they do not play very much, still need to be introduced to the world around them because their gross motor skills begin to develop as well as their senses. But toddlers are in an entirely different world. Toddlers begin to quickly learn about the world around them. Their curiosity causes their imaginations to grow, eye hand coordination develops, verbal skills increase, logic helps them with problem solving, they learn to socialize with others and accomplish individual achievement. So hand out the educational toys and let your child's brain grow!

Educational Toys do Have a Lasting Effect

From the time a child is born, parents enthusiastically wait for the day that they witness the "Developmental Milestones" of their child. The joy that parents experience the first time that their child rolls over, crawls and then begins to walk will most likely be shared with everyone they know. These milestones are all signs of a child's physical development as well as the maturation of their brain. 

A CBS News Report entitled "Baby Toys Have Lasting Effects" reveals that a Stanford University School of Medicine researchers study indicate, "the brain regions that help children sense and interpret the world are dramatically affected by early childhood experiences, and educational toys that stimulate young minds and encourage them to explore the world in a new way may help build their brain for future tasks".

With that said, we now see that educational toys can play a major role in the development of fine motor skills for children from infancy to 6 years of age. The various shapes, colors and design configurations stimulate and challenge eye-hand coordination, visual tracking, shape and color recognition, depth perception as well as language development, all while having fun.

How the Years go by

Parents using daycare facilities for there children while they work is certainly an asset in many cases. In years gone by, my wife and I on many occasions would help a single mom by having a child stay with us, some times over a weekend. Today these children have children of their own and interestingly enough after 30 years we occasionally receive comments of the impact my wife and I have had in their lives. But even relationships like these can never take the place of the unique bond between parent and child. One of the things that we did that seemed to have a lasting effect was to provide each child with the various educational toys that our children used during some of their playtime.


The benefits of introducing educational toys into a child's the playtime during their early developmental years can provide the stimulation and experiences that create a foundation of learning and growing. As more parents grasp the idea of educational play as well as increased personal interaction with their children, we will all enjoy the benefits. It is much wiser and cost effective to invest into a child’s life today than to address the problems that could have possibly been avoided later in life.