Giving Our Children Experiences Rather Than Toys Helps Them Grow

Many parents believe that toys and birthday gifts for children replace everything. When we need to have a conversation with our children as their birthday approaches, we often think of toys as a distraction.

After all, we love to play, but these days toys also serve an educational purpose and are a great source of entertainment for children.

Children should have a choice, of course, but too many decisions can harm their tiny heads, and we should not give them toys. The theory is that we deprive children of the chance to be happy when we give them so many toys to play with. However, recent studies have shown that giving our children experiences can have a better effect on the growth of our children.

So does Dr David Lerner, a renowned child development researcher. Dr Lerner said: ‘The more toys you have, the less your child plays and the better they grow.

Too many toys lead to unproductive overload and can drive children to things that parents want to avoid, such as being alone or going out. Malone’s study showed that fewer toys led to better development in children, and this finding was later confirmed by another study by Dr. David Lerner and his colleagues. What should we give our children instead of toys and what should they give us instead?

A study of more than 3,000 children aged three to five showed that a child’s academic success is directly related to their home environment and parental involvement. Children who had no toys or electronics did better at school than parents who spent time with them.

This means that the attention a child receives from their parents is more important than the endless number of toys we give them. Gratitude and generosity are benefits children get when they get experiences instead of toys.

This was confirmed by a follow-up study conducted by Cornell under the direction of Professor Thomas Gilovich. This study has been running for more than a decade and has found something unique: it finds a link between children’s experiences and their long-term growth.

Children are much, much happier when they experience material things like toys, but happiness is what counts when they want to grow into healthy individuals. Money cannot buy happiness, and happiness cannot be bought with money, so stop spending so much on toys and focus instead on giving your child experiences. Instead of trying to buy happiness or affection with toys, your childhood will be filled with joy.

In the end, it all pays off, and if you leave them to their own devices, they spend more time with you and less time in the toy business.