Choosing safe toys for eye and brain development

Electronic devices are kid magnets, but they aren’t always the best choice for development, doctors say.

According to doctors of optometry, Kellye Knueppel and Mary Gregory, of the American Optometrics Association, parents should try to avoid electronics in favor of more developmentally beneficial toys.

Many games and other applications on smartphones and tablets are likely to overstimulate the senses of developing children and don’t provide many opportunities for actual thinking and processing skills.

For example, building toys are a great way for children to improve their eye-hand coordination starting at around one year. They can begin with wooden blocks or Mega Bloks at that age, move to Lincoln Logs and TinkerToys at around three years, and then tackle more advanced toys such as LEGOS, erector sets and basic robotics as they are able over time. These toys also encourage creativity and allow children to experiment in imaginative ways.

Toys that develop visual thinking are important because this skill is fundamental to school subjects such as math, reading, and spelling.

Classic games like Battleship encourage visual memory and sequencing while strategic board games like chess, checkers, and Chinese checkers promote visualization for future moves.

Rounding out the list, puzzle-style games like the Rubik’s Cube will add pattern recognition and visual discrimination into the mix.