Unwrap the Secret to Giving Timeless Gifts

(ARA) - The holidays are a time for families to celebrate together, share traditions and make lasting memories. Finding the perfect gift that will elicit squeals of delight upon opening and remain at the top of the “everyday play” list for the rest of the year to come can be a challenge. This is especially true when the recipient is a discriminating preschooler!

To anyone who has ever purchased a toy for a child, the fact that kids are among the hardest people to shop for comes as no surprise. Sure, they’ve got long lists of “wants,” but a gift-giver’s biggest challenge is distinguishing between those toys that are destined to be short-lived fads and those that will become daily favorites and provide hours of play, year after year.

This year as you traverse the toy aisles, pay attention to your own instincts. For while technology has taken toys to new dimensions, there is no substitute for classic, timeless toys that unleash the imagination and inspire creative, open-ended play.

Wooden Train Play: On the Fast Track for Fun for Over a Century

Stop by any local specialty toy store and watch the kids gathered around the Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway playtable. They are mesmerized. Lost in the world they are creating in their minds and in the treasured Thomas the Tank Engine stories they are re-creating using the wooden track and vehicles with familiar faces. They will play for hours.

The sheer fact that a toddler can and will play with a single toy for hours on end is reason enough for Mom to get on board with a toy. However, wooden train play appeals to parents and kids from so many other perspectives that it’s no wonder it’s been a part of our American heritage for more than a century.

Child development experts recognize that wooden train play helps children develop physical, social and cognitive skills, as well as a sense of pride and accomplishment. These developmental benefits are not lost on parents today who are seeking toys that not only provide great play value, but also offer developmental value as well. In addition, wooden trains have an heirloom look and feel and they tap into a young boy’s fascination with motion, power, control, action, movement and how things work.

Always on the go, wooden trains reflect the lives of busy boys.

Research shows that while girls do play with wooden trains, young boys are the most avid wooden train play enthusiasts. It will come as no surprise to parents or grandparents of young boys that they crave action and motion. Train play is one of the only miniature worlds that enables these little engineers to experience and control the motion and action they crave in a wholesome, non-violent way.

The non-violent nature of wooden train play is critical when you consider that even kids as young as 2 years of age can and do play with wooden trains. Train play is open-ended. Yet unlike other open-ended toys such as blocks or modeling clay, train play has a variety of stimulating, challenging potential activities for kids to discover within a structured world.

Open-ended means more than one way to play.

Wooden train play also offers an unending number of levels upon which children can enjoy the play patterns. When they’re young they can find great pleasure in moving a single engine or two around a track. As kids age they can discover more and more complex ways to interact with the train and track world. It’s a building toy then it’s a thinking toy. It grows and changes with kids.

Train play is also so very engaging because it is not just one activity. It is a multitude of activities. Unlike most toys, train play feeds an almost unending circle of curiosity to confidence, no matter what the child’s age.

Captivating for kids . . . and parents, too!

Wooden train play not only captivates kids, but offers a great way to spur interaction between parents/caregivers and kids. With children taking the lead character-wise and Mom or Dad getting involved in the intricate details of track architecture, it’s an activity that appeals to multiple generations. Father and Son or Daughter build the track layout together and play together, too. This is a significant benefit for fathers today, who are more concerned than ever before about being in touch and in tune with their children. Wooden train play affords a very early interaction, meaning parents can relate to their children in a play and learning environment from the very early preschool years rather than waiting for traditional older boy “sports” activities to get involved.

Age-old appeal combines with a new face for today.

The nostalgic appeal of wooden train play is one reason this type of play has withstood the test of time. Today’s parents remember playing with their parents and grandparents and want to pass on that familial bond to their children.

However, as much as the core play patterns have remained the same over the years, today’s wooden train enthusiasts have so much more to choose from when selecting sets and systems. Quality offerings, such as the award-winning Thomas Wooden Railway, offer everything from basic figure 8 track and train sets to elaborate destinations. All the items are based on Thomas & Friends stories, such as the interactive Chocolate Factory where kids power the oversized lever to press their own chocolate bars and load them into waiting train cars. In addition, there is a wide variety of exclusive sets, offering gift-givers a complete gift in a range of price points. From the value-leader Conductor’s Figure 8 Set at $39.99, to a self-contained Tidmouth Travel Set that packs neatly in its own carrying case for $79.99, to the deluxe $300 Sodor Rescue Team Set that features a favorite theme complete with Fire Station, Rescue Hospital and Harold the Helicopter, the Thomas Wooden Railway system provides endless opportunities for wooden train adventure. It’s no wonder people are still getting on board with this timeless, developmental and sought-after type of play!

For more information, visit www.rc2corp.com or call (800) 704-8697.