Running Head: CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS

Choosing Quality Toys: How Early Childhood Programs Can Best Support Families

Cathy Schmidt University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS Section One: Problem Statement Parenting is a very difficult job with many pressures and responsibilities. As early childhood educators, part of our responsibility is to act as a support system and resource for families in raising their children. On a daily basis in my program, I see evidence of families making decisions that may not be the best for their children, from the food they send in lunches,

to the discipline techniques that they use, to the toys they buy. All parents want to do what is best for their children, and there are a wide variety of reasons these other choices are being made, including not being aware of other options. Early childhood educators have education and experience in many of the areas in which parents might want support. One of the areas we have a lot of information about is choosing high quality, developmentally appropriate toys. We make every effort to choose high quality toys for our programs, considering the types of play that each material will promote and how they will meet the various developmental needs of the children. Many program work to be a family-friendly resource for parents and families, but often struggle to share information in ways and contexts that will be most helpful. Families sometimes ask early childhood educators for advice, and educators sometimes pass on unsolicited advice through newsletters and other traditional means, but both of these approaches seem like haphazard ways to truly support families in making decisions for and about their children. This project aims to find out how families make decisions on what toys to buy, and whether they are looking for additional support in making those decisions. My guiding question is, How can early childhood programs best support families in regards to choosing quality toys for their children?

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS Section 2: Literature Review My research followed my thought process related to the problem I have identified. My approach was tri-fold in nature, first considering what we know about play and toys, second looking for information about how parents make decisions, and third examining how early childhood educators can best support families. Play and Toys I first looked for resources to explain what we know about play and toys; specifically, which toys that lead to types of play that most benefit children. I searched early childhood education journals for research done on play, choosing toys, and planning classroom environments.

Play is how children learnthis fact has been established by countless studies, and has been a given understanding for many years by experts, teachers, and parents alike. Over the years, though, we have seen changes in the way that children play (Elkind, 2005; Levin, 2012). In surveying people over age 50, Levin (2012) concluded that a number of things have changed about play over the last half-century. These include a loss of outdoor play, increasing dependence on screens, an overabundance of toys, more toys that are highly structured, less imaginative play, fewer ongoing play relationships with other children, and adults playing more of a role in structuring childrens play (Levin, 2012). One of the things that may have effected this change in play is the increase of academic expectations on pre-school age children. The push-down of academics has resulted in learning standards being required of younger and younger children, which has changed the way in which many adults approach childrens play (Almon & Miller, 2011). Though there is little to no research showing that introducing academics at an earlier age leads to better academic skills,

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS many seem to feel that children need to be taught reading and math skills earlier and earlier in order to be successful in life (Almon & Miller, 2011). What this means is that children may not be given enough opportunities to engage in the types of play that will lay the groundwork for

later success in academics, things like problem-solving, curiosity, perseverance, communication, and self-control (Galinsky, 2010; Levin, 2012). What children learn as they play is affected by how they play. When play arises from childrens own imaginations, experiences, abilities and needs, it is likely to more fully meet their social, emotional, and intellectual needs and to contribute to a solid foundation for later learning. It also teaches them how to learn as they work out their own problems and build their own understandings. (Levin, 2013, p. 35). Many experts believe that the best kind of play to encourage these life-long skills is free, imaginative play (Agee & Welch, 2012; Kohn, 2011; Wenner, 2009). This type of play helps children learn flexibility, problem-solving, and negotiation, as well as how to delay gratification and deal with frustration and failure (Agee & Welch, 2012; Wenner, 2009). Knowing that the type of play children engage in has an effect on the skills they learn, it follows that the toys that adults provide should determines the type of play that children engage in. Unfortunately, very little research is available about how specific toys affect the way that children play. One of the only studies available was done by Jeffrey Trawick-Smith as part of his ongoing Timpani Toy Study (Trawick-Smith, Russell, & Swaminathan, 2010). They studied how young children play with a variety of toys (Trawick-Smith, et al., 2010). In an interview discussing his study with the National Association for the Education of Young Children, Trawick-Smith said, Some toys have a powerful influence on childrens thinking, interaction with peers, and creative expression. Other toys do not (NAEYC, n.d.) Trawick-Smith

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS recommended giving children basic, open-ended toys, ones which allow children to use them in more than one way (NAEYC, n.d.). There are many articles and books available for teachers about how to choose toys and set up their environments (Carter, 1993; Guyton, 2011; Neugebauer, 1997; Wardle, 1993). Such

articles generally recommend toys that, among other things, are open-ended and versatile, appeal to a variety of ages, keep childrens interest, arouse imagination and creativity, are not linked to the media, and are pleasing to the senses (Carter, 1993; Guyton, 2011; Neugebauer, 1997; Wardle, 1993). Teachers are able to use such information when choosing new toys for their programs, but that still leaves one wondering what information like this is available for families? Family Decision-Making The second focus for my research involved looking for information about how parents choose the toys that they buy for their children. My experience led me to believe that parents struggle with making these choices. I looked for evidence of this theory, as well as general information about the resources parents use for making decisions about parenting. Historically, it is known that families used word of mouth as a primary way to make bigger decisions, such as about childcare options. In todays technology-driven world, word of mouth seems like it may no longer be the primary way that parents make such decisions (Wassom, 1994). Many families are now forced to be savvy consumers, and they seem to look to a variety of resources when choosing child care. There are numerous resources available online pointing them toward which questions to ask in order to make the best child care decisions (Booadwell, n.d.). However, studies have shown that parents overestimate the quality of their child care program, based on researchers assessments of the same programs. In their article about quality in child care, Helburn & Howes (1996) suggest that, parents are not well-informed

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS consumers and do not accurately judge child care quality (p. 70). If this is the case for something as crucial as choosing child care, it makes one wonder whether parents are making well-informed decisions about other things related to parenting, such as purchasing toys.

Some research has been done about this topic from a psychological perspective, including one study by Fallon and Harris (1989). They acknowledged the lack of research on this topic, saying that most past studies have focused on whether parents choose toys based on childs gender, rather than on the variety of other factors that could contribute to how toys are chosen. In their own study, Fallon and Harris were interested in which factors parents view as important when selecting toys for their preschool age children. Parents completed a questionnaire rating 17 factors that may have influenced their recent toy-buying decisions. They found that safety and teaching a new skill were the two factors that were rated as extremely important, both being significantly more important than the 15 other factors listed on the questionnaire (Fallon & Harris, 1989). Factors that were rated as significantly less important to parents included child requested toy, recommendation from another and cost. That these other factors were rated so much lower is somewhat surprising given the other research I have found. It is hopeful, though, that parents seem to be giving some thought to what children learn from their play, even if it is just in regards to knowing that toys can teach skills. My search for information about how parents make decisions about purchasing toys led me to a number of studies from a marketing perspective, which are used by toy companies when selling their products to families. One such study considered the nag-factor in buying toys. It appears that children seem to play a large part in toy-buying decisions in the family. A Toy & Game Family Decision Making Study prepared for the Toy Industry Association (2013) said that,

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS only 21% of moms and 35% of dads now say they consider themselves to be the person in the family who has the final word on family purchases. This has been replaced by various forms of democratic collaboration in decision making, with varying levels of kid and parent influence depending on the category. (p. 4) The study went on to describe a number of hurdles parents face when making a decision to purchase a toy. Along with their childs expressed interest, parents also consider price, age

appropriateness, reason for purchase, and the perceived quality and value (Toy and Game Family Decision Making Study, 2012). Though this study was most likely done with families with older children, it can be generalized that parents of all ages of children consider their childs expressed interest in toys when deciding what to buy. Childrens influence on their parents decisions regarding purchases can mean that families may be buying based on the influence of marketers selling to children. Studies have shown that children even as young as two seem to be aware of brand names (Valkenburg & Buijzen, 2005). This information has had a large effect on toy marketing, as marketers are now targeting younger children, instead of focusing on children over the age of 6, as they had in the past (Valkenburg & Buijzen, 2005). There has also been a change in how items are being sold. The de-regulation of the marketplace, which occurred in 1984, has led to a huge change in how things are sold (Levin, 2013). The marketing of all sorts of products, from toys and clothes to food and toothpaste, is now media- and character-related. Many children become obsessed with these products, and there is often competition among even very young children about having the right things (Levin, 2013). The presence of familiar characters on a product does not necessarily mean it is good for children; instead, marketers are relying on the familiar characters to sway both children and adults toward buying their product.

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS Elmo or Bugs Bunny have no meaning for babies and will only gain meaning as the babies associate those characters with pleasure and become familiar with them through daily exposure. What the marketing industry wants is for your baby to transfer those warm feelings toward any product including junk food featuring that particular character. (Linn, 2004, p. 46) If, as studies show, the nag-factor plays heavily into purchasing decisions, then parents may be choosing to buy toys, food, and other items that are not the best for their children just to keep their children happy.

On a more encouraging note, there is some evidence that parents can be smart consumers, able to evaluate advertisements and choose toys based on their own value system. One study looked at characteristics of toys and marketing effects parents perception of what toys are important for their childrens well-being (Gardner, Golinkoff, Hirsh-Pasek, & Heiney-Gonzalez, 2012). They found that parents place high value on social and intellectual development and recognize the positive effects of toys which encourage unstructured play. The authors conclude that Findings indicate that on a host of dimensions, parents are a good judge of toys.This is encouraging because it suggests that parents appreciate toys which promote unstructured play; consistent with what experts have learned is best for children (Gardner et al., 2012, p. 388). This study gives one hope that parents can resist the heavy marketing and make buying decisions that are good for their children and their families. Program Role in Supporting Families The third part of my research plan involved how early childhood educators can best support families in regards to choosing toys. I looked for research about family involvement, parent education programs, and developing supportive relationships with families.

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS For years, early childhood programs have worked to involve families in the daily details of their programs. Traditional approaches include such things as reaching out to families with newsletters and seasonal programs, inviting parents to bring in snacks or chaperone a field trip, and asking them for help with fundraising efforts (Mercado, 2003; Stephens, 2005). While these types of efforts are still occurring and are necessary to some extent, some believe that limiting

family involvement to these approaches implies that families are only welcome to participate on special occasions or when it is beneficial (financially or otherwise) to the program and its staff (Stephens, 2005, p. 18). To avoid this implication, many experts are now recommending working to connect with families on a deeper level, to develop relationships with families in order to create a support system between families and child care programs (Carter, 1996; Mercado, 2003; Stephens, 2005). Developing relationships with teachers, administrators, and other families allows parents to feel less isolated, develop a sense of family & community, and have more resources at their disposal through the relationships they have developed (Mercado, 2003). In an article about how to make parent involvement meaningful for families, Stephens (2005) suggests ways to connect parents to the classroom and to each other, including setting up an on-line chat room for parents in the program, developing a parent buddy program for new families, and creating opportunities to share or trade resources like books, clothing, or toys. Along with getting families involved in their programs, early childhood programs often have an additional goal of educating parents about issues related to child development and parenting (Baskwill & Harkins, 2009; Floyd, 2013; Raikes & Edwards, 2009). As the approach to parent involvement has undergone a change as of late, so has the approach to parent education. Floyd (2013) describes the old approach:

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We held meetings for parent education where we talked to them about our philosophy, curriculum activities, and parenting tips. It was many years before I began to see not only the limitations of this approach, but also the unspoken assumption that we teachers knew best and should call all the shots. (p. 61) This approach risks parents not becoming involved due to concerns about being judged by teachers (Baskwill & Harkins, 2009; Carter, 1996; Floyd, 2013; Raikes & Edwards, 2009). It seems to intentionally set parents and teachers in opposition to each other, rather than as a team working together for the benefit of the children and the family (Baskwill & Harkins, 2009; Floyd, 2013; Raikes & Edwards, 2009). The new approach, in contrast, puts parents and teachers on equal standing as co-learners, with everyone involved sharing their own knowledge, advice, and resources (Baskwill & Harkins, 2009; Floyd, 2013; Raikes & Edwards, 2009). Just as with the new approach to family involvement, this begins by developing relationships, including those between individual families, and those between families and early childhood educators (Baskwill & Harkins, 2009; Carter, 1996; Floyd, 2013; Raikes & Edwards, 2009). Once relationships have been developed, families can use each other and the program as a support system for raising their children (Baskwill & Harkins, 2009; Raikes & Edwards, 2009). This does require a shift in thinking for both the teachers and the parents. A higher stage of development is necessary for teachers to convey a sense of partnership to parents when an aspect of the program is to enhance parenting. However, one way around this concern is to realize that all parents need information and support. It is not disrespectful to convey the types of information that parents may not have had access to. (Raikes & Edwards, 2009, p. 52)

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS If done with thoughtfulness and respect, teachers can successfully share their knowledge and resources with families (Carter, 1996, Baskwill & Harkins, 2009; Raikes & Edwards, 2009). Encouraging these deeper conversations and knowledge sharing, whether between teacher and

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parent or between parent and parent, will help everyone learn from each other, as well as helping them develop a better understanding of each others perspectives (Carter, 1996, Baskwill & Harkins, 2009). Once programs develop relationships and work to create a support system with families, early childhood educators still need to determine good methods of sharing information and providing the support. Many experts recommend using technology to reach out to families (Mitchell, Foulger, & Wetzel, 2009; Schleig, 2012; Stephens, 2004). In todays world of email, facebook, and twitter, people have become used to receiving information instantaneously through their devices. As early childhood educators, we must make sure that we are using this technology to our advantage in developing and strengthening our relationships with the families in our program. Its a time-saving service that allows parents to explore your program from the convenience of their home, workplace, or local library computer. When it works, and the user works it right, communication technology strengthens the bonds of parent-program partnerships. (Stephens, 2004, p. 14). Though face-to-face communication is still the best way to develop a strong relationship between parents and teacher, technology should be considered an additional tool that can be used in strengthening that relationship, one which may meet the diverse learning and communication needs of your families (Schleig, 2012; Stephens, 2004). There are many ways to use technology to reach out to families, including simple things such as emailing newsletters and classroom announcements, posting digital photos online, or playing videos of children in action on a laptop to allow parents to glimpse the day at pickup

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS time (Stephens, 2004). Other slightly more complex ideas include developing an online chat

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room for parents, or setting up a program website (Schleig, 2012; Stephens, 2005). A number of educators recommend that, if a program has a website, it can be a good place to provide links to online resources that families might find useful. Such links could include topics such as parenting resources (health, child development, discipline, etc.), financial resources, education or advocacy issues, or even family-friendly local activity or travel destinations (Schleig, 2012; Stephens, 2004). Early childhood educators also need to be conscious of the fact that, though it seems like everyone uses technology to communicate, there are some people who do not have the resources or the desire to relate in this manner (Mitchell, et al., 2009; Stephens, 2004). This means that technology cannot be the only means of delivering information, and that teachers need to get know each family well enough to determine the best ways to meet their individual needs (Stephens, 2004). Section Three: Approach Through research, I was able to validate a number of my theories, plus learn new information. My research demonstrated the following main points in each of my areas of focus: Play and Toys I felt like my background in early childhood education gave me a good understanding of this topic before I even began my research. After reviewing available literature, I learned that the research did back up what I already knew about the important aspects of childrens play: Unstructured, imaginative play helps children learn a wide variety of skills that will benefit them throughout their lives.

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Though not much research is available that shows that the toys adults provide may have an effect on the how children play, it is suggested that teachers, at least, be thoughtful about the materials they provide for children.

It is a logical step, then, to conclude that parents should also be thoughtful about what toys they choose for their children, and should look for basic, open-ended toys which promote imaginative play. Family-decision making Before doing this research, my knowledge about how families make decisions were mainly based on personal observations and conversations with children and parents. Based on this knowledge, I did not think that parents made thoughtful decisions, and believed that they were easily swayed by the media and/or their own children. The research I found on this topic was somewhat enlightening, as I found that: Parents do consider a number of factors when choosing toys for their children, including the skills that the toy will teach. The media does have a large effect on childrens desires, which in turn can effect parents buying decisions. Parents can be savvy consumers who are able to see through marketers ploys.

My research in this area validated my belief that the media has a huge effect on toy-buying in our society, and challenged my assumption that parents werent thoughtful in their toy selection process. The research did not, however, give me a clear picture of exactly how parents go about making the decisions about buying toys, or whether they are searching out information about how to do this better. Family support

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS My years of experience and background knowledge of early childhood education led me to

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believe that early childhood programs needed to have strong relationships with the families they serve. I found research that demonstrated that, as well as the following facts: Early childhood educators want to provide a support system and resources for families. Programs want to help parents learn from each other, while respectfully giving them access to new information. Technology can be used to supplement the more traditional face-to-face and printed communication. Based on this research, it is apparent that early childhood educators need to act as a bridge between parents and new information, giving them opportunities to learn about things from each other and a variety of other resources. Action Research Though my literature review gave me more knowledge about how families might choose toys and how programs might support them in this, I still was left with a number of questions: Where do parents go for information about choosing toys? What are the factors that play into their decisions? Is this a topic about which parents are looking for support?

I decided to conduct a survey of a group of parents to find out about their comfort level in choosing toys and whether they want more information about the topic. The survey also addressed what toys they have, what toys their children prefer, and how they approach their toybuying decisions. The survey can be found using the following link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PBKG8Q6

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS I sent the survey out to approximately 200 families at two different childcare centers, and received 100 surveys back. Half of the surveys were distributed through the web-link and half through paper survey. The web-link resulted in a greater rate of return (80 responses) than the

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paper survey (20 responses), which could be due to the ease in filling out and turning in on-line surveys. However, the difference could also be attributed to the fact that the paper surveys were distributed at a center where I was not known to the participants, while the web-link was provided to families at the center where I work, and am therefore a familiar name and face. I do not believe that this had an effect on the actual results of the survey, only on the rate of return. Following is a description of the results from the main questions under study. Though ten questions were included in the survey, only five of them directly related to the questions I was trying to answer. The other five questions provided background (age of children, etc.) and additional information (childrens favorite toys, etc.). Due to this, I will only be discussing the results from the main research questions, which were items number 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. The answers to Question #4, What influences your decision when buying a toy? lined up with the research I had found in this area. The top three responses were: Encourages creativity (83%) Educational (70%) Further childs interests (66%)

The bottom two responses were: Price/affordability (28%) I played with it as a child (20%)

It seems that families do consider how the toy is going to impact their childrens development, specifically focusing on their creative and academic qualities. This demonstrates that parents are

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at least somewhat thoughtful about what types of toys are best for their childrens development. However, it does not necessarily take into account whether parents are aware of what types of play they should be trying to promote. The answers to Question #5, What resources do you use when deciding what toy to buy? did go against one of my research findings, though the results were generally expected. The top three responses were: Word of mouth/recommendations from other parents (71%) Internet searches (Google, Amazon, etc.) (69%) Your childs wants/desires (64.9%)

The other responses were all considerably lower, with the bottom two responses of: Advertisements (tv, magazines, etc) (8%) Parenting Websites (4%)

I can draw the conclusion that parents talk to each other about toys and use their own knowledge to determine which toys are best for their children, rather than searching out the expert opinions in magazines or websites. This did contradict the research I found which said that word of mouth in making decisions seemed to be moving out of favor. In the case of choosing toys, I believe that my survey results make more logical sense than the articles I found about general decision making. I was surprised by the ratings of parents comfort levels with choosing toys, This item, Question #6, asked parents to rate their comfort level with choosing toys on a scale of 1 (not at all comfortable) to 5 (completely comfortable). The majority rated their comfort level as a 4 or 5: 5, completely comfortable (42%) 4 (36%)

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS 3, sort of comfortable (21%) 2 (1%)

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1, not at all comfortable (0%)

This indicates to me that perhaps parents do not struggle with buying toys as much as I thought they did. However, in drawing conclusions from this, it should be taken into account that parents may be comfortable with choosing toys, but may not be aware that they could learn more about the types of toys that may be best for children. Questions #7 and 8 addressed whether respondents were interested in more information about choosing toys, and if so, how would they like to receive that information. The answers to Question #7, Would you like more information about choosing toys were: Yes (63%) No (37%)

Sixty-six people then responded to Question #8, If yes, how would you like to receive this information?. Interestingly, this response apparently included three people who said no to the previous question. The responses were as follows, in order of most to least interest: Online articles, newsletters, etc. (72%) Discussion with others, in-person (31%) Printed articles, newsletters, etc. (31%) online forum (13%) Workshop/class (6%)

I was originally surprised by the large percentage of people who were not interested in more information about choosing toys, based primarily on my earlier assumption that people struggle with these types of decisions. However, given the respondents reported comfort levels with

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS choosing toys, their lack of interest in more information was not a huge jump. Regarding the answers to how respondents would like to receive information about choosing toys, I am not surprised that the majority would like to receive online articles, given the great amount of time

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people spend on computers or devices. This relates well to the research I found, both about how people get information about making decisions, as well as about how early childhood programs could use the internet to reach out to families. The fact that in-person discussions ranks in the top three also lines up with what the research says about parent involvement and education. Giving parents an opportunity to gather with other adults (parents and teachers) to discuss this issue might be a good way to help everyone to work through the issues involved with choosing appropriate toys. It is also not surprising that classes/workshops were less popular, considering what I learned about the possible judgmental implications behind teaching parents about parenting issues. The general conclusions I can draw from my survey results are as follows: Parents consider a variety of factors when choosing toys, including how toys contribute to childrens development. They rely on recommendations from other parents, as well as their own ideas and research when making their decisions. Most parents feel comfortable with choosing toys already, but would be open to learning more about this topic, especially if the information is shared online. Section Four: Strategies for Change My original research question was based my belief that parents struggle with selecting toys which will lead to appropriate play, and suggested that early childhood programs may be good resources for educating parents on choosing toys. A literature review of topics related to this issue in conjunction with an analysis of my survey findings have led me to conclude that

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parents do need some support in this area. Though my research indicated that parents may not be struggling with toy selection as much as I had originally thought, it seems that they could still benefit from information and resources about choosing toys which promote the unstructured, imaginative play that is so important for childrens development. I also conclude that early childhood professionals have the knowledge and resources to share information about making good toy choices, especially if done in a respectful and thoughtful manner. Any new information parents receive could then supplement the knowledge and information they already use when buying toys. Based on my findings that information presented online may reach many families, my next step will be researching various online options for presenting families with information about choosing toys, such as blogs or web pages. I will be specifically be looking for options that could easily link to child care centers websites, making information available to parents if and when they need it. Once I discover an appropriate online tool, I plan to put together my research and findings into a family-friendly format, and will include links to a wide variety of other websites, books, and articles about the subject. My hope is that any program who uses my website could more easily support their families in making good toy choices. In my research on beneficial parent education, it was also apparent that providing opportunities for parents to learn from each other is a good way for early childhood programs to support families. Based on this, I plan to investigate ways of creating parent discussion groups which are moderated by early childhood educators. In this role of moderator, a teacher or administrator would be able to guide the discussion and act as a resource rather than trying to teach parents, which may make parents more likely to share their own knowledge and learn

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS from each others experiences. Resources similar to those listed on the website could also be provided at these discussion groups, as well as examples of quality toys. I would like to try both of these ideas out in my program first, with families that know me. Eventually, I plan to make this information available to other child care programs. I have considered writing an article or developing a workshop about my project and this topic. I have

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also considered creating some sort of Take Action Pack that guides teachers and administrators in setting up similar support systems in their own programs. Though this project looked at how child care programs can support parents in choosing toys, I believe it has implications beyond this specific topic. Knowing that parents are hungry for information about parenting issues, we, as early childhood professionals, have a responsibility to support them in any way we can. We have access to knowledge and resources on a variety of topics, including feeding issues and healthy eating, toilet learning, discipline, books and literacy, and many others. My project will hopefully provide a springboard for programs to find ways to help families and develop stronger support systems as they expand their parenting knowledge. Section 5: Evaluation of Process and Results I am pleased with the process of my research and the results I found. When I began with the literature review, I was originally frustrated at the lack of research that related directly to my question. As I broadened my search, however, I found that information was available on similar topics, and was able to piece ideas together in a way that addressed some aspects of my question. For instance, I considered toy-buying from a marketing perspective, rather than an educational perspective. Not only did this approach teach me about a different way of doing research, it also allowed me to look at a familiar issue in a new way.

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Conducting a survey was not in my initial plan. I was hoping to find enough research to develop a plan of action, but, after researching my topic, I was still left with questions that needed to be answered. The survey was done in order to try to find answers that were not currently available. I feel that it achieved this goal, as it gave me information from actual parents about their thoughts and behaviors around the issue of choosing toys. It allowed me to draw conclusions about what parents already know and how early childhood teachers can support them in gaining more knowledge. Because of both my literature review and my action research, I am able to see that my original assumption may have underestimated parents knowledge and abilities. I began by thinking that parents needed to be taught about how to select toys for their children, but now have shifted my thinking. I now believe that many parents are looking for any information they can find about a number of issues in parenting, and that early childhood educators can serve as an excellent resource in helping them find this information. This is evident in my action plan, which uses both technology and personal relationships to pass on new information to families, and to support other programs in doing so as well. As I continue down the path of turning my research into action, I believe that this project will lead me to become a more active advocate for choosing quality toys, as well as for helping early childhood professionals develop stronger relationships with the families they serve.

CHOOSING QUALITY TOYS References Agee, R. & Welch, M. (2012). Imagination deficit. Exchange, July/Aug. 72-77.

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Almon, J. & Miller, E. (2011). The crisis in early education: A research-based case for more play and less pressure. Published on www.alliance forchildhood.org in November 2011. Retrieved February 13, 2014 from http://www.allianceforchildhood.org/sites/allianceforchildhood.org/files/file/crisis_in_ear ly_ed.pdf Baskwill, J. & Harkins, M. J. (2009). Children, parents, and writing: Using photography in a family literacy workshop. Young Children, 64 (5). 28-33. Broadwell, L. (n.d.). 8 Tips for choosing child care: Tips for choosing a good day care center. Retrieved on February 23, 2014 from http://www.parents.com/baby/childcare/basics/tips-for-choosing-child-care/ Carter, M. (1993). What makes a good toy? Developing teacher understanding. Exchange, Nov. 49-50. Carter, M. (1996). Communicating with parents. Child Care Information Exchange, July. 80-82. Elkind, D. (2005). The changing world of toys and toy play. Exchange, Nov./Dec. 11-12. Fallon, M. A. & Harris, M. B. (1989). Factors influencing the selection of toys for handicapped and normally developing preschool children. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 150 (2). 125-134. Floyd, S. (2013). Family gatherings that build partnerships. Exchange, Jan./Feb. 61-63. Galinsky, E. (2010). Mind in the Making: The Seven Essential Life Skills Every Child Needs. New York, NY: Harper Collins. Gardner, M. P., Golinkoff, R. M., Hirsh-Pasek, K., & Heiney-Gonzalez, D. (2012). Marketing

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