Interactive play helps kids learn

  • Children learn from interactive, back-and-forth communication with trusted adults
  • Kids learn from your facial expressions and reactions
  • "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" is true! Playing is how kids learn

Toys: tools-for-play

  • Safe, high-quality, stimulating toys enable learning
  • Open-ended toys, which can be played with however the child imagines, tend to induce more creative play
  • Kids learn to play independently and entertain themselves

Screen time does not benefit children

  • Spending too much time on screens is harmful to your child's development
  • Excessive screen time has been linked to sleep issues and missed developmental milestones

Our Mission

We aim to increase enriching, interactive play -- and reduce sedentary screen-time -- by empowering parents with information, play coaching, and affordable access to toys-as-tools.

  • Reduce screen time
  • Increase developmentally-benefical play
  • Coach caregivers on enriching play
  • Ensure access to quality toys

children’s screen time

An increasing body of research suggests excessive screen usage by young children may be related to missed developmental milestones. Additionally, children tend to stay still and not move around as much when using screens.

play is important

Kids learn through play. Open, exloratory play is how children discover the world around them. When kids do not spend enough time playing – due to screen time or too much focus on “education” (letters, colors, etc.) they do not have the same opportunities to learn about their world.

play-coaching

By providing media and materials to help caregivers promote enriching play, we facilitate increased play, strengthen bonds, and give families alternatives to screen time.

Research Highlights

Here’s a small sampling of the research upon which we’re basing play-day.

  • Play with electronic toys is associated with decreased quantity and quality of language input compared with play with books or traditional toys. To promote early language development, play with electronic toys should be discouraged. Traditional toys may be a valuable alternative for parent-infant play time if book reading is not a preferred activity.

    Association of the Type of Toy Used During Play With the Quantity and Quality of Parent-Infant Communication

    Anna V. Sosa, PhD

    doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2015.3753

  • Light‐induced melatonin suppression in children is greater than that in adults under conditions of both high color and low color temperatures of light, blue‐enriched high color temperature of LED lighting has a greater impact on melatonin suppression in children and inhibits the increase in sleepiness during the night in children… even lighting with a low color temperature could be a factor of melatonin suppression in children when it’s illuminance is adjusted brightly.

    Melatonin suppression and sleepiness in children exposed to blue‐enriched white LED lighting at night

    Sang‐il Lee, Kouhei Matsumori, Kana Nishimura, Yuki Nishimura, Yuki Ikeda, Taisuke Eto, and Shigekazu Higuchi

    doi:10.14814/phy2.13942

  • It is through play that children at a very early age engage and interact in the world around them. Play allows children to create and explore a world they can master, conquering their fears while practicing adult roles, sometimes in conjunction with other children or adult caregivers. As they master their world, play helps children develop new competencies that lead to enhanced confidence and the resiliency they will need to face future challenges.

    The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds

    Kenneth R. Ginsburg, MD, MSEd; and the Committee on Communications; and the Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health

    doi:10.1542/peds.2006-2697

  • Screen time and sleep duration have important implications for the health and well-being of children. For instance, excessive screen time and shorter sleep durations are predictive of behavioral and social problems, poorer academic performance, and health conditions such as obesity. Screen time and sleep duration have important implications for the health and well-being of children. For instance, excessive screen time and shorter sleep durations are predictive of behavioral and social problems, poorer academic performance, and health conditions such as obesity. Screen time and sleep duration have important implications for the health and well-being of children. For instance, excessive screen time and shorter sleep durations are predictive of behavioral and social problems, poorer academic performance, and health conditions such as obesity.

    Bidirectional Relationships Between Sleep Duration and Screen Time in Early Childhood, 2014

    Magee, Christopher A. et al

    doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2013.4183

  • Data from US population-based studies show that ∼30% of preschool-aged children and between 50% and 90% of school-aged children and adolescents do not get as much sleep as they may need. The pervasive use of screen-based media is a likely contributor to widespread sleep insufficiency. Screen-based media devices are present in the bedrooms of 75% of children, and ∼60% of adolescents report viewing or interacting with screens in the hour before bedtime.

    Digital Media and Sleep in Childhood and Adolescence

    Monique K. LeBourgeois, PhD,corresponding authora Lauren Hale, PhD, Anne-Marie Chang, PhD, Lameese D. Akacem, PhD, Hawley E. Montgomery-Downs, PhD, and Orfeu M. Buxton, PhD

    doi:10.1542/peds.2016-1758J

From our blog

We write about childhood development, play, screen-time, and how parents can help their kids develop communication skills.

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We Need to Talk About Screens

By Markie on February 26, 2023

A hypothesis: If screens helped children learn to talk, and screen usage increased over the Covid-19 pandemic, then, today’s toddlers would have better language skills than expected. In fact, the opposite is true. “Covid babies” babble less and take fewer conversational turns source Raise your hand if you feel personally victimized by the screen time guidelines put out by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)? Go ahead and put both hands up if you’ve got a covid baby or two.

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Favorite things for 25-36 months

By Markie on February 21, 2023

Have you heard about the terrible twos? This age does not have to be terrible; though at times, you might be terrified. Yes, two year olds can be tiny tyrants: demanding their way and saying “no” to everything. They’re also incredibly curious and silly. If you can meet their curiosity with wonder and their silliness with fun, you’ll both have a great time. At two years old: Your kiddo should be walking confidently and learning to run, too; walking up and down stairs holding on to a rail; and climbing up and down on furniture.

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Favorite things for 13-24 months

By Markie on February 17, 2023

The best toys for 1-year-olds are those that stimulate their senses, foster their cognitive, emotional, and social development, and promote their creativity and imagination. Light the candle! Your baby is 1 year old, but other than cakes to smash, what else can your baby play with now? As your baby grows into a toddler their curiosity and need for exploration also grows. The right toys serve as tools in a child’s “job” of play.

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Did you know babies can play?

By Markie on February 16, 2023

…as soon as babies figure out that they can move and interact with things in their environment, they will love exploring infant-friendly toys! Congratulations! You’ve had a baby. Now you will ask yourself, maybe for the first time, but definitely not the last, “What do I do with this kid?” The first 3 months can be a bit of a blur or a slog or some sort of combo: a blurring slog or a slogging blur.

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