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No toy is better than a parent's attention

January 8, 2006 12:50 am

PARENTS OFTEN ask me about developmentally appropriate toys and activities for their children. It seems that in the last few years, there's been an explosion of toys, videos and activities marketed to "stimulate development."

Parenting magazines and daytime television are full of ads for these expensive items, making affluent families feel they must have them all, and families with less disposable income feel guilty if they can't buy them. Like Starbucks, the toy producers created this new niche for their products, making us "need" something we never knew we needed before.

I have to laugh when I see products like the WombSong Prenatal Sound System, which lets parents address their fetuses via microphone, or the BabyPlus Prenatal Education System, a 16-week course for fetuses on rhythmic sounds. Honestly, it's a wonder I ever made it to medical school, because all I heard in the womb was the Beatles.

One of the most amazing examples of creating a new need we didn't know we had is the plethora of classical music toys and videos. Don't get me wrong, classical music is great. But this industry is all based on a study demonstrating the "Mozart Effect," which was carried out in college students who had a temporary, small improvement in performance on spatial-temporal tasks (involving paper cutting and folding) after they listened to Mozart music. Similar studies have not reproduced the original results.

There have been studies showing that listening to Mozart improved rats' ability to get through a maze. And there are studies showing improved math performance, or increased IQ, in children who have music lessons before age 7, particularly in piano playing. But after correcting for the fact that kids who have piano lessons tend to come from more educated and affluent families, the effect is minimal.

There have not been, as far as I'm aware, any studies showing an effect in infants and toddlers passively listening to Mozart, or any other composer. Yet the huge Baby Einstein line of products has made millions off this belief that watching videos with classical music will stimulate babies' development--despite the American Academy of Pediatrics policy on TV.

The AAP policy states: "Pediatricians should urge parents to avoid television viewing for children under the age of 2 years. Although certain television programs may be promoted to this age group, research on early brain development shows that babies and toddlers have a critical need for direct interactions with parents and other significant care givers for healthy brain growth and the development of appropriate social, emotional, and cognitive skills."

It's wonderful for kids to be exposed to all kinds of music (except maybe the kind with explicit lyrics), but you can do this by singing, playing the radio or a CD that you already have.

I'll freely admit I've parked my kids in front of Baby Einstein videos quite a few times while making dinner, taking a shower, etc., (yes, even before the age of 2!). But it's entertainment and distraction, not stimulation.

It's infinitely more developmentally stimulating to read to them or get down on the floor and play with them, talking about what you are playing with, taking turns. This doesn't cost any money. You could sit down with a plastic bowl, wooden spoon and some plastic cups, and make up a more stimulating experience for your infant or toddler.

The other activities that have become popular for very young children are geared toward preparation for school, like toys, flashcards and games to teach the alphabet and numbers. Exposure to letters and numbers at a young age is helpful for school readiness, but it can be better done by reading books or playing with puzzles, for example.

Sitting down and flipping flashcards to a toddler is probably going to bore them, and your time and money could be better spent.

It's important to gear learning experiences to your child's developmental stage. The National Association for the Education of Young Children has published statements in support of developmentally appropriate practice for preschool teachers, which would also apply to experiences that take place at home.

All learners, but especially young children, learn best when they are exposed to new information in context, so that they can build on prior knowledge. So, for example, pointing out letters in a beloved and well-read book would be much more useful than flashing cards with letters and random words. I had an incredible anatomy teacher in medical school who was familiar with this concept. To this day, I remember all the little anatomical associations he pointed out to us, like that the psoas muscle is the filet mignon in cattle. Gross, I know, but I'll never forget where it is or what it looks like!

Developmentally appropriate practice is all about "teaching children in ways that meet children where they are and help each child reach challenging and achievable goals." As a parent, you don't have to be a child development expert, but a little bit of reading in this area would go a long way. Check the source, though. Sometimes I see that parenting magazines and Web sites, with an eye to their advertisers, quote experts who encourage the use of the kind of products I mentioned above. Take their advice with a grain of salt. You would probably get a less biased point of view from the National Association for the Education of Young Children or American Academy of Pediatrics resources, or any basic child development text.

So, before you spend a lot of money on all these products, remember your child will learn more from interacting with you. Even daily, mundane activities offer the opportunity for learning. You can teach math by counting the items you are dropping off at the dry cleaners, and the change you get back. You can teach reading and writing by having your child help you with your grocery list.

For more information on developmentally appropriate practice, check out naeyc.org and their new publication, Basics of Developmentally Appropriate Practice. The AAP (aap.org) has a great series of books on child development from prenatal to adolescence.

DR. ROXANNE ALLEGRETTI welcomes reader comments and questions. Write her at Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia St., Fredericksburg, Va., 22401 or e-mail at
Email: newsroom@freelancestar.com.