We all want our children to grow up happy, healthy and well adjusted.  But not everything children learn is in school.  Children learn an incredible number of crucial life shaping skills from playing.  Before even entering school, playing has taught them physical and language skills, problem solving skills and other social skills.  These lessons shape their character and often are only refined, but not changed, as they age.

Now what influences play?  Toys!  The toys we choose for our kids influences their play, which directly influences their character education.  So the toys we choose directly impact our children’s entire lives.  That is a pretty powerful statement.  You may think it is obvious, but due we really give toy selection the time and attention it deserves? Have you ever actaully considered your “toy decision making” process?

In broad strokes I’m sure the answer is yes.  One of the main reasons Sesame Street Toys are so popular is parents’ confidence in the underlying values of Sesame Street.  Sesame Street embodies the character traits we want our children to learn and emulate.  But even if you stick to Sesame Street toys, given the influence these toys have, you should consider what each toy is bringing to the table.

First and foremost you must consider safety.  It is important you follow the toys age recommendations.  And, before giving a new toy to your child, search the web for any related toy recalls.  They are rare, but even Sesame Street toys have had serious issues and needed a recall.

After safety, you can consider the value of the toy in terms of your child’s development.  Here are some qualities to consider:

1. Engagement: Does it engage your child’s imagination and creativity?
2. Development: What aspects of your child’s development does it support? Physical? Cognitive? Emotional? Social?
3. Interpretation: Does it help your child interpret the world around them in a positive, open and unbiased way?

Of course not all aspects of a toy are positive.  So you also need to consider what negative characteristics this toy may promote and weigh them against the good.  Its possible to spin a negative trait into a positive by making it a learning experience.  A great example from the world of Sesame Street toys is Cookie Monster.  Although Cookie Monster’s overwhelming positive character puts us at ease; his obsession with cookies could be seen as a negative.  But parents the world over use Cookies little problem as a tool to teach their children about the benefits of restraint and self control.  A negative to a positive.

We hope we raised your awareness of the importance of picking the right toys.  Its tough to resist the giant marketing campaigns out there designed to circumvent your selection process.  We are planning a series of posts with tips and advice to help you develop those “toy picking muscles”.  We want to help you become the Arnold Schwarzenegger (or should we say Big Bird) of toy picking.  Our goal is for you to tackle the huge assortment of Sesame Street toys confident you are making a great choice.