I am not excluding girls, it just doesn’t rhyme with toys. I would never have bought my daughter, or if I had one a son, a gun, toy soldiers, tanks, etc. I didn’t like war and didn’t want the toys in our home. I didn’t want Barbie in my home either, but that’s for another blog.
I asked my great nephew’s Mom what she thought he would like for his Birthday. She sent me a link to a set of remote controlled tanks. I am a softy for this kid, so I bought it. This year I happened to be visiting New York on his birthday, so I was able to give him the gift myself. I watched his face light up and he said, “How did you know this was what I wanted? Did you read my mind?” I told him that I was magic, then quickly explained that his Mom had sent me the link. The tanks were put to the side as he and his brother ate breakfast. Then they brought them out. I am not a fan of video games, as I think they are too realistic with the animation and sounds. They make Zombies out of some kids and there isn’t any physical activity. I am also a proponent of open ended playthings.
I sat and watched the boys play and this is what I saw. There was a lot of strategy and instant planning. They had to think quickly. After a few minutes they got up and rummaged around in Grandpa’s office for cardboard boxes to make barricades. They played this way for a while and then they went over to the playroom and brought out some construction toys. These became additional obstacles. I think they were aliens to shoot at and move around. The two brothers played together for 30-45 minutes. These two boys are 10 and 8 and aren’t usually in the same room for 5 minutes without some minor skirmish breaking out.
What I saw opened my eyes a bit more. These tanks lead to open ended creative play. They were visually, auditory and physically stimulating. They gave two brothers a chance to “shoot” at each other and avoid each other without any verbal or physical sparing that leads to anger or sadness. I am glad I decided not to let my prejudices against guns and war toys dictate my not purchasing what my great nephew wanted.
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