How long a youngster will enjoy and play with a toy is one of mum and dad's biggest concerns when picking baby toys or children's toys. No one wants to witness the old cliché of shelling out lots of money on a toy and find the youngster playing with the box it came in! Yet another major issue but one that most mum's and dad's fail to take into consideration are the beneficial effects a toy may exert on the growth and maturation of the child.

Infants grow in a number of ways namely; cerebrally (mental ability), muscularly (strength and co-ordination), and communally (through interaction with other children and adults). A well designed kid's toy can, as well as being great fun to play with, assist to trigger maturation in one or more of these fields. So when we visit the toyshop are there any simple rules we should be considering when selecting that all important toy?

Digital toys and educational toys that are PC based should be avoided. Research studies reveal that these toys restrict children's creative options as they pursue single pre-determined goals and do very little to trigger a child's mental development.

Toys that steer the child and thereby reduce the child's involvement and cognitive process in play will not encourage development. This type of toy does not allow a youngster the chance to think creatively or explore new methods of cognitive thinking. As all mum's and dad's know, the mind of a youngster is like nothing else. It is the capability to think differently than an adult would which enables children to develop mentally at an astounding rate. By playing a toy with a single purpose and sole outcome the youngster is not stimulated to think around a problem.

Researchers have discovered that traditional toys are more use for a kid's cognitive development, because traditional toys can be employed by the kid in a variety of ways for avariety of purposes. This allows a wendy house to be anything from a doctor's surgery to a store to the NASA control centre for the latest mission into outer space. Child physiologist Jean Piaget created the notion of 'schemas', which means new methods of thinking. Youngsters can produce these schemas with this kind of symbolic thinking.

As well, conventional toys for infants also top the list for developing physical skills. A baby's physical maturation can be divided into two chief areas; gross motor skills (the development of the large muscles so we can run, lift and move) and the fine motor skills (these allow us to manipulate objects with our fingers with enormous skill and care). Classic, wooden toys such as sorting cages and hammering benches are super fun for young children to trigger hand-eye co-ordination, while bikes, tricycles and toddler cars keep older kids on the go as they develop their growing muscles, strength and co-ordination.

Finally, it's apparent that the most straight forward toys might be the solution for social growth as well. Understanding and the skill to play well with others are stimulated by toys that encourage interfacing and team work. Pretend play toys are amazing at this, allowing a kid to practice new situations in a secure place and also to interact with other youngsters to produce more advanced make believe situations. This situation allows a kid experience and understand unfamiliar situations by acting them out within the comfort of their own playroom. The capability to do this allows them to feel secure.

So when you go purchasing toys for that killer Festive or Birthday gift for your child think about the following guidelines.

1. Can the toy be used in a number of alternative ways?

2. Can a child modify the objective of the toy with his or her own creativity and intelligence?

3. Is the toy amusing, safe, durable and exciting?

4. Be sure to select a toy that will continue to challenge your kid as he/she get older.

5. Can the toy enable the child to interact with additional children?

6. Will this toy remain popular with a child in a years time or simply an advertising fad?

Remember that despite all the expensive marketing, glossy adverts and eye catching packaging the latest robot dinosaur won't offer a child anywhere near the same level of developmental opportunities as the simple pull along wooden dog. The spotty dog will still be taking walks even with the batteries drained on the Robo-Dino.