Hello! I am a college senior at RPI and I am writing a thesis on the effects of age recommendation labels on toys on parents who buy toys. I was wondering if you could answer a couple questions so I can write about it in the thesis, I would really appreciate it. I've been having tons of trouble getting permission to survey people at toy stores because of corporate policy so this forum is perfect!

What was the last toy (or a recent toy) you bought, and who was is for (relation of child, age, and for girl/boy)? Did you look at the age recommendation on the product? Why or why not? What is your general strategy in terms of picking out toys? Do you aim to buy toys that are recommended for older or younger age groups in relation to the age of the child and why? (Such as picking out easier toys so kids are more successful, etc.) Do you think the age recomendations of toy labels is helpful? Why or why not? What happens to the toy when the child surpasses its age recommendation limit?

Thank you again so much, I truly appreciate it. You can also email me at moisea@rpi.edu. Thanks so much for your time!

~Amy Moise

The most recent toy I bought was a Beauty & the Beast Tea Set for my daughter's 3rd birthday. The age recommendation is 3+, but I didn't look at it until after I got home. I generally do not look at the age recommendation because I think a lot of them are off (like dolls, why does someone have to be 3+ to play with a baby doll). I choose toys based on what my child is interested in or what I think they would have fun playing with not age recommendation. The only thing that may be helpful about age recommendations on toys is for people that are completely out of touch with what the child would enjoy. From our experience it seems that many of the toys recommendations are wrong and kids that are 'over the age limit' tend to be the ones most interested in them.

I also don't pay too much attention to age recommendations. I have a 2.5 year old son, and the most recent "toy" I purchased was a "My First Clock" meant for 6 year olds. Mainly I wanted it so he could see the gears working when he turned the knob on the back (plus I got to put it together, which was fun for me , and I figured he could put it together when he's older). It's not really a "play" toy, but it is something that I knew he would find interesting (he did, and loves to interact with it). I've also purchased toys that were designed for children younger than his age because I felt he could work on the skills required for those toys.

Generally when I see recommended ages, I figure it's a liability issue lol. Probably not the best attitude, but that pretty much sums up how I see it. Nonetheless, I also agree with Zack_Jenn about how age recommendations would be helpful. Before I had kids, I wouldn't have a clue what to buy for a young relative, and the age recommendations made it much easier. Now that I'm "in the know" lol, I can select toys for my son based on what I know about him.

As far as what happens to a toy after the age limit has passed... I still incorporate them into the rotation because there's usually something else we can do with them. The $7 shape sorter we picked up before he was one still gets action! We can talk about the names of the shapes, we can place them in a bag to see if he can tell the shape just based on how it feels, we can sort them by color, by shape, stack them, build with them, I could go on...

Hope this helps!

One of my recent purchases was a Handy Manny fix it radio, I am unsure but believe its ages 18months and up and it was for my 7 year old. However my 7yo has autism and functions at the 2 year old level so it was inappropriate agewise but developmentally appropriate.
I NEVER look at age but at the developmentally skills required and if the child in mind has those skills. The same for safety, examining if the item is safe for the age and abilities of that child. IF we all went by the printed age kids under 3 would have hardly any toys. AND alot of toys for 6-24 months are what I call stupid toys since they only require the child to haphazardly push a button with no thought process, thus encouraging the zombie stage of thinking already promoted by TV, computer, and video games.
With all that said I do have to complain that if you want to write a true thesis none of this will count since you have no control and statiscal stance on which to make a hypothesis. I STRONGLY recommend using a valid survey website and simply providing a link from a variety of message boards. Those website will collect and put together the date for you. There is one I believe called monkey survey or similar name. Good luck on your research.