The Goddard School Announces Preschooler-Approved Toys

By BRIAN DIGGELMANN If you’re a parent, chances are good you’ve already started shopping for Christmas presents, many of which will undoubtedly be toys. The toy industry is big business in America—last year, U.S. retail sales for toys topped $21 billion. Unfortunately for parents, that means the market is swamped with a mind-numbingly large selection of products. To help parents wade through the options, preschool franchise The Goddard School created the Goddard Toy Test in 2008. The goal was simple – provide a list of products that were approved not only by educators but also by their harshest critics – kids. Each year, toy manufacturers send Goddard their latest products to be included in the Toy Test. The initial criteria are simple—Goddard engages educational experts to evaluate toys for safety, relevance and their ability to encourage playful learning. Brian DeLong, Goddard’s director of communications, says toys fit perfectly with the concept of playful learning, the core of The Goddard School’s philosophy. “We believe that children best learn through play,” he says. “It’s less about structured and defined academic activity and more about those teachable moments that occur every day through play.” Once a group of semifinalists is identified, toys are sent to 20 randomly-chosen Goddard schools across the nation to be tested by their students. Nina Lee owns and operates the Goddard School of Westford, M.A., with her husband Fred and was one of the schools chosen to test the toys. She says the event provided helped showcase how her business is different from similar educational daycare concepts. “This type of program gives our families and community the opportunity to see what goes on above and beyond the everyday activities of our school,” Lee says. Lee says the list is also a wonderful resource to share with the community. “We always have parents and grandparents asking us what children like and what presents to buy for them, especially during the holiday season,” she says. “They know we don’t have video games in our schools, so they turn to us for education-based toys.” Goddard released their top 15 toys on November 1, but the Toy Test isn’t quite over yet. A secondary round of voting, this time on hosted on social media, is giving the public a chance to pick their favorite toy from a list of 10 Toy Test finalists. Goddard will then donate 100 of the winning product to Toys for Tots. Click to see Goddard’s Top 10 Toys or to vote on your favorite.