As I reported previously about possibly unsafe toys I came across an interesting 
article showcasing some Very Bad Toys. The list includes everything from coma inducing toxins, home atomic kits spewing radiation at your children, to Cabbage Patch Kids eating your little one’s fingers. Here’s hoping your Christmas toys go over much better than these in the list.
My daughter loves watching this Christmas light display, it is amazing not just for the lights strung on the house, but also for synchronizing the lights to music. Incidentally, she is convinced that this is Santa’s house—I’m not sure where the house is, but I suspect that Santa’s home is even more grand.
Both the Fisher Price farm and the Leapster2 contain significant levels of lead or mercury. Excessive exposure to these toxins will affect the nervous system leading to brain development problems.
Have you given much thought as to the safety of your child’s toys? Perhaps, now is the time to start as one in three toys tested by HealthyToys.org found significant levels of toxic chemicals. With a number of recent toy recalls, reports of high levels of lead, and an increasing concern over the safety of toys coming from China, we as parents are left in difficult straits—how do we choose safe toys for our children?
To help address that question, I’ve amassed a collection of resources to help you find safe toys, and ensure that every item in your child’s toy box is safe. First, it is worth noting that you cannot rely on the company or brand of the toy as an indicator of trust. It is tempting to think that a company like Disney or Mattel would have quality control processes in place to ensure dangerous chemicals are excluded from their manufacturing processes, but the reports in the links above suggest otherwise.
HealthyToys.org has done a wonderful job testing and classifying toys for levels of toxic chemicals. Parents.com provides a list of toys that have been recalled so that you can ensure that your toy box is filled with safe toys. If you find the parents site filled with too many ads you can get the same information at hickoryrecord.com. Finally, you can refer to the following Safe Toy Shopping Guide to help you avoid buying unsafe toys.
The reality is that toy recalls and toy safety issues have been increasing. To some extent the public concern has focused around the safety of toys coming from China. But, that is placing the focus in the wrong direction. Where our focus needs to lie is not with outside countries that you and I can’t influence, but rather with our own governments. The laws to protect our children are in place, but the laws are not being actively enforced. We need to urge our government to enforce the rules that are in place, and only then will we see our child’s safety as a primary concern.
The New York Times article, The Future of Reading, discusses attempts to narrow the gap between reading and games. PJ Haarsma wrote a book that has ties into his online video game. PJ’s approach keeps a book a book, and a game a game, it brings both mediums closer together by incorporating details of the book into the game.
The game leverages the book in ways that make those that have read the book become more successful in the game. This unique approach is interesting, but does little to change the form of either medium. I’ve often wondered how an interactive element could be brought into the reading experience, and that is where I believe the future will be found. PJ’s approach is to keep both the reading experience and the game play experience separate and unique, where the mediums do not cross over with each other, but rather the details of the story do.
The connection that people, including young children, have with stories is rich and deep. If that was ever in doubt simply watch my daughter read a book on her own—she will often scold characters shaking her finger at them when they do a naughty deed in the story. So, I would never want to sacrifice a traditional story book altogether. But, I do see a very different approach to bring books into the digital age. I see the future of reading where our books, television, and games blur their respective lines. Where the personal experience of reading in bed with my daughter incorporates our personal reading style of scolding the bad and cheering the good, but to also include the dynamism of television where the pictures come alive, and the interactivity of games where my daughter has control of key moments to make the story our own. I don’t believe that we are far from this future, and when it arrives it’s going to feel so natural that we’ll wonder how we managed in the past. In the mean time we’ll have to struggle along with awkward attempts at offering book tie-ins to games.
Welcome to the launch of “Technology for Toddlers”. Over the years I have come to realize that many people see technology as detrimental to their toddler and a thing to avoid. So, this is my forum to serve as a reminder that technology is simply a tool; to remind us that with the right application, technology serves our needs and the needs of our children. In this forum I will point out technology that is making a difference in children’s lives, I’ll share stories of learning, and you’ll have an opportunity to see a glimpse into the Soma Labs as we build interactive toys for young minds.
Welcome again to Tech for Tots.
Sincerely,
Joshua Heidebrecht
President of Soma Creates,
and father of two.
