I realize that this article has the potential to get me labeled as ready for quiet days on the rocking chair, but here goes! In the world of technology the distinction between ‘natives’ and ‘immigrants’ is often made. Simply put, an immigrant is someone who can remember a time before a certain piece of technology existed, while for the native the absence of it borders on the unimaginable!
As the generations march past the immigrant/native fault lines keep shifting. My grandfather was a native as far as the automobile was concerned but could still remember a time before their farm had a telephone. My father was a native when it came to using the phone but recalls the day when he first saw a television flicker to life. For me the TV in the sitting room has always been there. Not so the computer that we plugged into it one day!
What does all of this have to do with the world of toys? Well, toys have been excellent ‘bridges’ across the immigrant/native divide for many centuries. This means that they provided an area of ’shared experience’ to people at completely different stages of their lives. There are many older people who have never even touched the controls of a gaming console, but everyone can remember how it feels building a ’skyscraper’ with some wooden blocks. This ’shared experience’ meant that the older generation was able to enrich the play of their kids by sharing stories, memories and techniques related to specific toys. I wonder, however, for how long this will still be the case?
The world of toys is certainly keeping in step with technological advances and this is happening at such a rate that many older people are slightly bewildered by what they find in the toy box these days. It’s not that they don’t like all the bells, whistles and computer chips. It is just that there are fewer and fewer things about which they can say: “I also played with that when I was a kid!” This is a pity since shared ‘play experiences’ can add a very satisfying layer to the parent-child relationship.
I am not calling for ‘no-tech toy boxes’. Far from it! I guess what I am calling for is a bit of balance. I have no problem with parents buying their kids the latest technological marvel. It would be good however, if they could expand their kids horizons every now and then by adding something they enjoyed when they were young. In this way the line between immigrants and natives can be blurred slightly, to the benefit of both sides!
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