Her conclusions have been backed up by British research looking at children with relatively few toys whose parents spend more time reading, singing or playing with them. It showed such children surpass youngsters from more affluent backgrounds - even those who had access to computers. Kathy Sylva, professor of educational psychology at Oxford University, reached her conclusions from a study of 3,000 children from the ages of three to five. When they have a large number of toys there seems to be a distraction element, and when children are distracted they do not learn or play well. Sylva's research, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, was prompted by concerns that childhood is being irrevocably altered by parents substituting toys, computers and television for spending time with their children.
Some parents notice the impact early.
Now we just get out one or two toys and hide the rest in a box. When indoors, they use boxes and board games rather than Barbie dolls. Alexander believes many toys restrict children's imaginations. But a cardboard box can become anything. The only limitations are in the child's mind.