Wooden Toys are Better! Top 5 Reasons to Switch!
There are several reasons why wooden toys can be considered better than plastic toys:
- Durability: Wooden toys are typically more durable and long-lasting than plastic toys, which can break or wear out more quickly. This means that wooden toys can often be passed down from generation to generation, making them a more sustainable option.
- Safety: Wooden toys are generally considered safer than plastic toys, as they do not contain harmful chemicals or toxins that can be found in some plastics. Additionally, wooden toys are less likely to break into small pieces that can pose a choking hazard to young children.
- Developmental Benefits: Wooden toys can offer a range of developmental benefits to children, such as promoting fine motor skills, problem-solving, and imaginative play. Wooden toys often allow for more open-ended play, which can encourage children to use their creativity and imagination.
- Eco-Friendliness: Wooden toys are typically more eco-friendly than plastic toys, as they are made from natural materials that are renewable and biodegradable. Additionally, wooden toys often have a lower carbon footprint than plastic toys, requiring less energy.
Overall, while plastic toys can have their benefits, wooden toys are often considered a better choice for children due to their durability, safety, developmental benefits, and eco-friendliness.
“Why did I buy that junky plastic toy?”
Why should you consider switching to wooden toys? Have you ever asked yourself after returning home from a shopping trip, “Why did I buy that junky plastic toy?” Are you overwhelmed by the number of plastic toys accumulating in your house that are being ignored? Do you feel like you constantly search for the “right toy” to entertain and teach your child for even 30 minutes? Does your child seem bored after only moments, jumping from toy to toy, never to enter “that engaging play zone?”
Your constant search for the “perfect toy” has left you will find a playroom full of unused plastic toys destined for a landfill. For additional information to consider when buying toys, read my 3 questions you should ask. Here are my five reasons below to switch to wooden toys and avoid plastic ones:
1. Wooden toys are open-ended and promote creativity
Plastic toys usually come with batteries, buttons, and a character theme and are often a one-trick pony. Creativity is lost when a plastic toy “tells” the child what to do or how to play with it. The child asks the toy, “What buttons do I push? What sounds do you make? How am I supposed to use this toy within its theme?” The toy dictates and controls the child’s play. This is significantly limiting to the child’s imagination and concentration development. Most wooden toys are sound-free, allowing the child to make up the dialogue or noise during play. Wooden toys offer more basic open-ended play where the child dictates the play’s theme.
Your child becomes the driver and controls the toy, not vice versa. Today she/he can make a barn with wooden blocks; tomorrow, it will be a space station. The sky is the limit when your child can create anything! This is where the magic happens. Learning, creativity, and concentration develop when your child is in that deep play zone.
2. Plastic toys are made with chemicals
It’s no surprise to anyone that plastic toys are made with chemicals. No matter how safe the plastics are said to be, they are still a cocktail of unnatural substances and never biodegradable. Plastic toys are produced using “acceptable amounts” of toxins in manufacturing. Buying wooden toys for babies is best as their systems get overloaded quicker with toxins than adults. They also mouth and ingest toxins more than older children, which is part of their development process. When their hands are wet, the skin can absorb toxins from plastic toys. Switching to natural or unpainted wooden toys or water-based dyes on wooden toys is best for babies and toddlers.
In my post, “Are “Made in China” Toys Safe? | Are Chinese-made Toys Bad?” I demonstrated many enlightening facts about plastic toys from China.
Are “Made in China” Toys Safe? | Who is to Blame for Toxic Toys?
A recent study in India showed nearly 67% of imported toys have failed the testing survey of the Quality Council of India (QCI) coming from China.
According to the QCI report, as many as 30% of plastic toys failed to meet the safety standards of acceptable levels of phthalate, heavy metals, etc., and 80% of plastic toys failed on mechanical and physical safety properties. I imagine the toy standards in India are similar to those in the United States. As outlined below, even the largest American toy manufacturers have been caught utilizing unsavory conditions and having toy products with harsh chemicals, including lead.
Alarming level of plastic in children’s bodies: German study shows plastic byproducts were found in 97% of blood and urine samples from 2,500 children tested between 2014 and 2017, according to a study by the German Environment Ministry and the Robert Koch Institute. The German weekly magazine Der Spiegel published the findings, part of a federal study focused on “human biomonitoring” of 3 to 17-year-olds. Traces from 11 out of 15 plastic ingredients were found in the test samples.”Our study clearly shows that plastic ingredients, which are rising in production, are also increasing in the body,” Marike Kolossa-Gehring, one of the study’s authors, told the magazine.
Maple Landmark Games
3. Switching to Wooden toys is better for the environment
Plastic toys are filling landfills fast and will sit and pollute the planet, never biodegrading or breaking down. Once new plastic is produced, it stays with us forever, leaching chemicals into our soil at landfills. Wooden toys are biodegradable with minimal to no plastic parts, making them a more sustainable alternative. Switching to wooden toys is an easy, sustainable swap your family can make to help the planet! Also, wooden toys tend to be more “heirloom quality” than “landfill quality.”
You may pay more for some wooden toys, but your grandkids could someday experience the same enjoyment as your children. Most wooden toy packaging is cardboard-based with limited plastic and often doubles as the storage for the toy. This helps eliminate the need to buy another plastic toy bin for storage.
“There is a price for everything, and someone always pays that price.”
It is never a win/win when a price is too good to be true. If the product is “cheaper” or “a better value,” that price is passed on to the toy corporation or the toy manufacturer, ultimately passed on to the environment, the product integrity and material, or as below, the factory workers. These factory workers are paying that difference!
An eye-opening article was written on “The grim truth of Chinese factories producing the West’s Christmas toys,” demonstrating standard practices in toy manufacturing.
I love to use Plantoys as an example. First, they are passionate about child safety. PlanToys makes some of the safest toys in the world. They are the “gold medal winner” in terms of eco-friendly manufacturing of safe toys. They pay close attention to the safety standards of their production process manufacturing in a non-polluting way to the environment. Among many awards, PlanToys holds many prestigious awards for eco-friendly manufacturing processes. They exceed international safety standards and hold ISO 9001 & 14001 for environmental management. I go in-depth below on my Brand Spotlight on them.
4. Wooden toys grow with your child
Can you imagine any plastic light-up baby toys your eleven-year-old will play with? This is a definite “no” in my family. Most plastic toys are theme/tv character-based that your preschooler will quickly lose interest in as they grow the popularity dwindles. Many wooden toys will last from toddler to preteen. For example, when you buy standard unit wooden baby blocks for your 1yr old, your child can get ten years of play.
My older children still love building and creating with these blocks. This is very economical for your wallet and sustainable for the environment. This “open age” toy can enrich your child for years because there are 1001 ways to create and not get bored. I have seen toddlers to teens who love both Keva planks and Kapla. It is awesome that your toy investment can last years in your home.
5. You need fewer toys for your child if they are suitable! Be a toy minimalist!
Think of your toy box as a “box of creativity” for your child to create an open-ended play. If fewer toys work together as creative tools, there are endless ways to play. For example, various-sized wooden plank-type blocks, plus wooden balls will allow the child to make a ball run. A set of wooden Lincoln Logs can allow a child to make a house, shop, or farm.
So what is a toy minimalist?
Toy minimalism is a modern movement or idea. Fifty years ago, kids didn’t own that many toys (that needed to be minimized). Most of our grandparents had very few toys, and the ones they did have were cherished and loved. Is that a coincidence? When we have fewer possessions, the ones we truly love, we are more content. There is a scientific truth that correlates between unhappiness and consumer materialism. Most modern parents want contentment for their children. No parent wants a begging child at the store, especially when they hear “I’m bored” in their playroom daily.
Basic wooden figurines or figurines can be made into any character or person to play with buildings. When the child has the right tools to manipulate/build and create, they stay engaged and play longer. Wooden toys are more aesthetically pleasing to the parents and the child. Simplicity in the home offers an easier time for your child to focus on play and not an overwhelming mess of plastic toys around him/her. Having 10 of the right toys for your child is better than a room full of plastic toys just sitting around collecting dust! When your child has suitable toys, you will enjoy playing/building and creating with them.
Stay organized with my Toy Organization Article:
1. Decide where to store all the toys
2. Set up a rotational system
3. Decide where to display/offer toys for playtime
In Summary:
In a world of endless plastic toys accumulating in your house, making the conscious decision to switch to wooden toys is not only an investment in your toys but, most importantly, an investment in your child. Look here to see my Top Wooden Toy Block Sets. Thank you again for reading my blog. I’d love to hear from you! Are you making the switch? Have you found the perfect wooden toy? Do you have an idea for my blog? To learn more about my Top Sustainable Toy Companies, please see my most popular post:
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