Panel discussion on role of toys in kids development

NEWDELHI: A panel discussion was held on the importance of toys and games in the development of children at India International Centre on Friday.

Organised by The Toy Bank, discussions were done on how toys can help in early childhood development, especially for children with special needs.

Roopa Ganguly, MP, Rajya Sabha said, ”Right to Play’ needed to be reinforced in existing institutions. “Parents should understand what their kids want. Each child has the right to play with whatever that interests him or her,” said Ganguly.

Vidyun Goel, director of The Toy Bank, talked about how the major focus should be on providing a holistic early childhood development through toys and play, since it is during these early years that a child develops social, cognitive, physical and emotional skills that forms the foundation needed to succeed in life.

The panelists shared examples on how toys can lead to empathy and social bonding between children, which are as important as teaching them mainstream subjects. They talked about how toys can play an important role in breaking gender barriers and how adults should let children decide the toys for themselves.

“Toys engage a child in a play situation. Intellectual development happens in that manner. We need to provide toys to underprivileged kids. Also, simply buying toys isn’t enough. How it is being used is important,” said Dr. Nandita Babu, professor of Psychology, Delhi University.