Latest / Whys & Finds / Screen-Free Christmas Gift for a Toddler
Transcript
- Ben: The holidays are close, and you want to give your grandkid something that isn't one more screen. You open a gift list, and a lot of it lights up, talks or needs an app. So what do you give instead? Ellie: Welcome to Whys & Finds. I'm Ellie. Ben: And I'm Ben. Ellie: Today: what is a good screen-free Christmas gift for a toddler? Ellie: It comes down to two things. Pick something tied to what this child already loves, like a favorite animal. And pick something a grown-up can play with them, face to face. Ben: That's it? No list of twenty must-haves? Ellie: No list. A gift that gets played with, by the child and by the people around them. Ben: Okay. But why face to face? A toddler can play on their own. Ellie: They can. Here's where the face-to-face part comes from. The American Academy of Pediatrics has a page for parents about buying toys for young children. It explains an AAP report on choosing toys in the digital era. One line there: "Digital toys should never take the place of real, face-to-face play." Ben: "Should never take the place of." So they're not saying no screens at all. Ellie: Right, and I won't make it stronger than it is. It's about what a digital toy shouldn't replace. Real play, with a real person. Ben: Fair. I like that you didn't turn it into "screens are bad." Ellie: That's not what the page says. Ben: Wait, the first part. A favorite animal. Isn't that how you end up with one more stuffed thing in a pile? Ellie: It can be. That's why the animal is only the start. A toddler who loves dinosaurs will pick up a dinosaur. The question is what happens next. Ben: Meaning? Ellie: Can they do something with it? Carry it, hide it, line them up, take it out of the house. A gift that only sits on a shelf doesn't get played with, however cute it is. Ben: So what does get played with? Without a plug? Ellie: The same AAP page names what it calls the "traditional favorites," like blocks, shapes and puzzles. Ben: None of that is new. Ellie: No, and it doesn't have to be. Start from the child, not from a must-have list. Ben: Back to face to face. If I'm a grandparent and I'm not there every day, how does that part work? Ellie: The AAP page has a line about games and books. "Traditional card games and board games (not the video game or app versions) and even toy letters and books create opportunities for you and your child to interact and have fun together." Ben: "Not the video game or app versions." They really spelled it out. Ellie: They did. A book you read together counts. A simple game on the floor counts. Ben: And the toy that comes with a tablet app and promises to teach letters? Ellie: The AAP says to be careful with tablets, games and apps that promise to teach. In the AAP's words, most of them really aren't. Ben: Okay. So the gift is the thing, and the play is the person. Ellie: That's a good way to put it. Ellie: There's one more thing I'd look for. Can it go out of the house with them? Ben: Why does that matter? Oh, wait. The car. The waiting room. That's exactly when the phone comes out. Ellie: That's the moment I'd plan for. If the toy goes along, there's something in their hands. Ben: So what goes along? Ellie: One practical option: Naturally KIDS makes small backpacks with a removable plush animal on the front. The child takes it out for a hug and puts it back. Room for a snack and a treasure. There are dinosaurs, a T-Rex and a triceratops, and unicorns too. And other animals, like a mouse. Ben: So the favorite animal and the bag to carry it come together. Ellie: Two gifts in one box: a backpack and a plush friend. It arrives gift-ready in a kraft box. You can give it as it comes, or wrap it. Ben: Okay, so the Naturally KIDS backpack has the animal on the front and room for a snack. That covers the car. What about the kid who likes to line things up? Ellie: There are sets of six plush dinosaurs or unicorns. Each one is made so a child's hand can grab it and hold on. Some sets come with a drawstring bag for easy carrying. Ben: Six dinosaurs. That's a whole game on the floor. Ellie: It is. The child keeps five, hands one to a grown-up, and the story starts. And if you want the bag and the dinosaurs together, there's a T-Rex backpack that comes with four more plush dinosaurs to pack inside. Ben: One thing I'd change, though. You said pick something a grown-up can play with them. But if I'm mailing the gift across the country, I'm not the grown-up on the floor. Ellie: True. Ben: So I'd put the play in the box. A short note to the parents: "This one's for playing together. Here's the first game." Hide the dinosaurs in the backpack, take turns pulling one out. Nobody has to invent anything on a busy morning. Ellie: You're right. That's better than what I said. A gift meant for playing together needs someone to start the game. If you can't be there, hand that person the first game. Ben: Point to me, then. Ellie: Fair. It's yours. Ellie: Now, a few different situations. If the family has asked for no more toys, give a book and the time to read it together. The AAP puts books on the same list as games you play together. Ben: And if the child isn't into animals at all? Ellie: Then go with the traditional favorites the AAP names: blocks, shapes, puzzles. Same idea. Something to do together, on the floor. Ben: What if they love a different animal? Ellie: The same small backpack comes with a dog, a giraffe or a teddy bear. Ben: And if they already have a backpack they love? Ellie: Then a set of six dinosaurs or unicorns on its own is plenty. It can ride along in the backpack they already carry. Ben: So the point is the playing, not the wrapping paper. Ellie: Right. Ben: Okay, let me see if I've got it. One: start from what this child already loves, and pick something they can do something with. Two: the American Academy of Pediatrics says digital toys should never take the place of real, face-to-face play. Three: books and simple games give you and the child a chance to interact and have fun together, the AAP says. Four: the AAP says to be careful with tablets and apps that promise to teach. Five: if the gift goes along in the car, there's something in their hands besides a phone. And six: if you can't be there, put the first game in the box. Ellie: You've got it. Ellie: That's it for today. A reminder: the voices in this episode are AI-generated. Whys & Finds is made by Naturally KIDS. Ellie: That's today's why. See you at the next find.