What are Toy Libraries and How Do They Work?

A toy library is a type of store where you can borrow a large assortment of costumes, games, puzzles, educational toys, and so forth. There may or may not be an annual fee to pay but in most cases the annual fee is very low. There are many benefits for parents to become part of this increasing trend. Quality educational toys are expensive, and most children will become quickly bored with a particular toy. The toy library will provide your child with new play materials whenever he becomes bored with the toys that he has.

Toy Libraries can Save You Money

A toy library will allow parents to not only save money but they will be contributing towards the education and development of their children. Children learn in a variety of ways and one of the ways is through play. Playing is a natural way of learning while having fun. When purchasing new toys many parents are at their wits end trying to decide whether a toy is simply a fad or whether it has actual “play value”.

Parents are often perplexed on how they will be able to afford all the toys that little Johnny will need to be stimulated. A toy library can help you keep up with the fast rate your child learns and grows. If you are looking for educational toys for 5 year olds, once your 4 year old has outgrown his current set, you can simply return the unneeded toys and pick up new toys that are suitable for your growing child’s age level.

From a very young age children learn to love to play. For many children it begins in the crib as they stare upward at a brightly colored, hanging musical toy. These types of toys develop a child’s focus and eye tracking ability. Toddlers continue learning by means of discovery. Discovery such as when you put a toy into a box it does not disappear. This is one of the main reasons why children love putting toys into a box and then dumping them out. They can do this for hours, over and over again.

Libraries Offer Greater Variety

You will find that there are various sizes and shapes of toy libraries. Some are staffed by full-time employees whereas others are staffed by volunteers. A toy library may be adjoined to your local town library or it may be housed in a separate building and only open for a few hours each week. No matter what their size however, all toy libraries have one thing in common. The thing that toy libraries have in common is that they are devoted to assisting families. They want families to provide a stimulating environment for all of their children.

It is quite amazing to watch a child grow and learn. Playtime often offers an important foundation for essential skills such as writing, reading, and arithmetic. For example, children learn to love words when words are used in rhyme. They learn how to be attentive and follow an object with their eyes when they play catch. Playing catch is a simple playtime that will help a child to focus and track words on a page. Check here for a great playtime guide by age.

One of the earliest and simplest of toys is a block. Sometimes a block is made from wood or plastic and sometimes it may contain a picture or a letter on any of its 6 sides. Children who play with blocks learn how to use their hands and fingers independently. In the future, this process will help them to turn the pages of a book while at the same time holding it. A block also helps a child to learn about gravity, balance, geometry, letters, and basic arithmetic.

There are so many wonderful benefits for belonging to a toy library. Besides the variety of toys that your child can experience it is also a win-win for the environment as you share toys rather than use them and then discard them in a landfill. It is very common for a parent to buy their child a present only to soon find it gathering dust as it hides under a bed, in the back of the closet, or in a corner. A toy library membership simply means that your child will benefit from a variety of toys while you and your wallet benefit from having extra cash.

Yes, toy libraries are here to stay, and they are great idea. However, the next time you suggest that little Johnny needs to go and play, you may also want to think about how Johnny is discovering, exploring, and learning as he plays. You may even want to join in.

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Great Summer Camp Experiences for Kids

Summer camps are one of the best experiences that kids can have. They are usually camps with outdoor and indoor activities, team building exercises, confidence building exercises, leadership and trust skill building, and the chance to meet lots of new people from all over the world and develop new friendships.

Summer camps can be short term things, or they can run for a few weeks. Some are informal things that are run by local community groups. Others are run by accredited organizations and may even have an award or qualification offered at the end.

There are a lot of camps throughout the United States – some even do sport-specific things, and there are girl’s camps and boy’s camps that are associated with guide or scout groups or religious groups for those who are interested in those specific areas of activity. There are also a lot of new types of camps that weren’t around just a generation ago. For example, computer-related subjects provide a very popular type of summer camp for kids.

Some children are very shy and struggle with the idea of being in a camp. Some may dread the thought of being away from home. That is not something that you should really worry about though because the longer your child spends in a camp, the more confident they will become. The camp leaders have training in how to bring shy kids out of their shells, and they understand how hard it can be for a child to spend time away from their parents for the first time.

Summer camps aren’t just for the rich, either. There are plenty of scholarships available, and discounts for parents that might not otherwise be able to send their kids to a camp. Even if you don’t see such a thing advertised, it is well worth getting in touch with the people who run the camp so that you can find out whether they have any deals available. There are some camps, also, that are marketed specifically towards parents of children that would not normally be able to send them on an activity holiday.

If you have more than one child, consider sending them to different camps based on their interests and their personality. This will help you because if you send both of your children to the same camp, they might spend the whole time together, and they might not get the full experience because they won’t make as many new friends.

Choosing a camp is a personal thing, and what one child loves another child may hate. Talk to the people who run the camps, get to know the people who are involved with them and look at the activities on offer. Ask parents with older children where they sent their kids last year, and listen to what your kids have to say and what they would like to do. Think about what you did when you were a youngster, and whether you were glad that your parents sent you. The right choice can be a formative thing in your child’s life. The wrong choice could be something that will leave your child never wanting to be adventurous again.

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