What reminds us of early childhood? Our parents’ house, close friends with whom there is always something to talk about and secrets to share, a mother’s smile, the scent of spring flowers, familiar books and, most of all, your favorite teddy bear – that witness to a child’s dreams and perhaps an involuntary participant in them.

What’s so special about Russian toys? After all, toys are made all over the world and you can get a simple assembly model set or teddy bear practically anywhere in any country. All kinds of toys from all around the world are gathering dust in stores across America.

But let’s consider for a moment why Russian toys are so essential for Russian kids. There are several reasons to buy Russian toys specifically:

1. Adults have fully formed world views with mature ideas and a mentality that allows us to freely assess situations and dismiss what upsets us. But a child’s personality is just taking shape with each passing day, week and month. Growing up, forming and acquiring experiences is at this time a child’s only occupation. Just as adults work, children play, which means the kinds of toys they are surrounded by largely affect their future independence and success.
2. A toy is not only a means of getting to know the world, but also a tool for developing many abilities and skills that will be useful throughout a little one’s life. With Russian toys, you will find ones that are not just beautiful, but also interesting and educational. The assembly models develop fine motor skills in kids ages 6-7, while other games cultivate attentiveness and logic (blocks, tiles, dominoes).
   No less important are games that develop coordination and spatial thinking in infants up to age 3 (rattles, pyramids, spinning tops). Meanwhile, board games for kids ages 4-7 constitute their first steps toward so-called socialization, including their interaction with peers during games, team work skills and ability to obey rules.
3. Bright, colorful and attention-grabbing Russian games promote the early development of a child’s artistic taste. Playing with them, a child begins to differentiate colors, understand the difference between smooth and rough surfaces, and see the world in all its color and diversity.

But that’s not all! The most important thing in a toy is that it’s to a child’s liking. Talking about it and endowing it with a fantastic character make it an even more interesting playmate. Let the child fall in love with the toy as if it were alive. And when your child grows up, they will never forget that first Russian teddy bear and will talk about it with sincere warmth to their own children, as you did with yours.