One of the most amusing assignments of this class was to evaluate an infant or toddler age toy. My group and I evaluated the Fisher Price "Fish Bowl." Here is what we thought:
This toy was very engaging! We thought it was great for ages 6-18 months. Children that age are attracted to bright colors and movement, and this particular toy was very bright and colorful. There was lots of movement and vibration. It was wonderful!
We thought this toy was very conducive to parent/child interaction. In fact, we decided that this toy was most effective when supplemented by parental interaction. It is a great way for parents to begin that initial cognitive development of their child. Parents can model ways to play with the toy for their children. The parent can easily stimulate the child by asking questions such as, "Where is the green fishy?" Parents can also help their child's speech development by putting names to certain things, such as, "Look at that BALL! That one is RED!"
This toy was very stimulating to many areas of development. One area that is stimulated is vision, because there is so much color and movement. There is so much to see! The tropical music played by the toy is very stimulating to the child's hearing. The fact that the bowl is open allows children to grasp the balls and place them in the bowl. Grabbing and dropping the balls in the bowl develops fine motor skills which are important to the future development of the child.
There are many ways for parents to utilize this toy as a teaching tool. It is a simple toy that is not difficult or confusing to children. Parents will discover that if they take the balls out of the bowl, roll them on the ground, and then let the child try, the child will catch on quickly. Parents can then introduce the concept of "in" and "out," by taking the balls out one by one and then placing them back in the same way. We felt that by being very repetitive, parents can nurture their child's cognitive development as well as their physical development.
Author:
Maria Cisneros
Last modified:
9/13/2005 1:35 PM (EST)
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