I used to love my old wooden building blocks, my wooden tricycle and my little carpenters woodworking set. These are the toys from my early childhood that I remember. I never had computer games, TVs, playstations or Wiis ‘cos they didn’t exist in those days. Instead we used to play happily for hours, using our imaginations, creating make-believe worlds from a few cardboard boxes, a sheet and maybe a couple of old pop guns.

Are children today adequately stimulated by toys which are primarily entertainment devices? Do these toys provide the stimulus and encourage the imagination in the ways that older, traditional toys did?

If you need to buy toys for your children, or as gifts for relatives or friends, I heartily recommend that you consider purchasing some traditional wooden toys such as a useful and useable junior carpentry set, or maybe a candyfloss cottage as a first dolls house. If you are looking for something for the very young child then what about the shapesorter drum or the sorting house. Both of these learning toys will provide plenty of creative and challenging stimulation for the younger child. They encourage the development of psychomotor skills, manual dexterity, shape and colour recognition and are great fun! And why not go way back in time and buy a traditional bagatelle, lots of fun for the whole family, and you don’t have to plug it in.

Traditional wooden toys shouldn’t be overlooked in favour of expensive, modern electronic devices that offer minimal creative stimulation and don’t necessarily encourage interactive, imaginative play.