The fewer toys kids have, the better it is for the development of their imagination and creativity.
Researchers from Toledo University (USA) conducted a series of intriguing experiments involving 36 toddlers aged from one and a half to two and a half years – 9 boys and 27 girls. Before each child, either 16 toys or 4 were laid out and given the opportunity to play with them for half an hour.
Scientists, whose work was published in the journal Infant Behavior and Development, closely monitored how children behave during play. As a result, researchers concluded that a small number of toys makes the process of play more qualitative and creative. When children had only four toys, they played with each of them much longer, came up with more scenarios for the game, and their play was complex. Each toy kept the child’s attention for a long time and awakened his imagination and creativity.
But if the room was cluttered with toys, children simply switched from one to another, showing interest in them very superficially.
The authors of the study advise parents to keep children’s toys in an inaccessible place. It is recommended to change the set of toys given to the child every day or several times a day, the number of which should be very limited. This will create a sense of novelty for the child, his attention will not be scattered on a large number of bright objects in his field of vision, and therefore the benefits for development will be greater.