The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1939-12-28
TOYS WHICH ARE
CONSTRUCTIVE
EMMA GARY WALLACE

Many older people take it for grant
ed that children of the same age are
almost certain to enjoy playing with
the same sort of toys.
By way of proof of this, they remind
us that the baby likes to play with
rattle or squeaky rubber dog or doll or
a ball, while older little girls, for in
stance, are interested in dolls, the
clothing of which can be taken off and
put on, and little boys are sure to be
pleased with wheeled toys.
There is no gainsaying these facts.
Nevertheless, young children of today
are admittedly farther advanced
mentally in a great many cases, than
children of the same age were fifty,
thirty, or even twenty years ago.
The reason for this greater develop
ment, age for age, is changing times.
The child Of today accepts the auto
mobile, the radio and the telephone as
a matter of course. He is not as
tonished in the least by what would
have amazed his grandparents or his
father or mother when they were his
age.
The -year-old is no longer con-
tent, for long, to sit on the floor and
play with blocks which can be pushed
over very easily, wrecking the struc-
ture even before it is completed. He
wants something with which he can
make more lasting forms. A new
kind of block has come on the market
which has locking device so that the
pieces stay where they are put. This
is more satisfying.
The head of retail toy department
recently explained to the writer that
toys which sold readily even two or
three years ago, now have less appeal,
while certain kinds of toys, which
were not bought for young children a
year ago, are now in demand.
He explained that in his experience,
it was the parents themselves who
were delighted with electric trains
and things of that kind. The children
liked to see them work a few times,
and then they were ready to go back
to the sets with which they could
make things with their own hands
mechanical erector sets, lifting de-
vices and toys which may be used in
various ways and for different pur-
poses. This is true, though no little
child should be urged to play with
such sets. When he is ready for them,
if they are at hand, he will make use
of them.
All this goes to show that the child
of today is eager to work out his own
problems and to answer as we'll as he
can his own questions. The child of
today enters into his play as the child
of years ago did not dream of doing.
The child of an earlier time liked to
hear story read and reread and still
read again and again. A very young
child still enjoys this.
But it is different with little Madge
who is thirty eight months old. She
had the gift of small book for
Christmas. When it was read to her,
she accompanied the reader the first
time, through the book. When Santa
was reported as having seated himself
in a chair, she exclaimed quickly,
santa Urea. -dI uIle SdtHe llille olI-
N cling down on wee chair and relaxing
as she imagined he had done. When
he was described as hiding behind a
door, she ran quickly and played that
role herself, and so on.
When the story was read to her
again, she did not wait to dramatize
it after it was read. She went ahead