All play and no imagination?  

Yes, that's the natural process for a child. But we tend to bog them down with so many toys since they are so little that they expect to be entertained as they grow older.

Yeah! I had all the material comforts I needed as a child (much more than my kids have now)...but I remember creating games and making things out in the open. We would play 'seven tiles'...change rules, create new ones. We would play pretend....and we didn't need too many toys to keep us occupied...the toys took various roles as we grew.
I'm glad my kids are not as fussy as the kids I see today when it comes to toys...but my older one did ask for a PSP because 'all my friends have one'.

It is really sad that the educational system and we adults are trying to make them 'grow up ' before their childhood is enjoyed.

How many of us do that anymore? And I also feel that we are much more concerned as parents of the present generations...much more than our parents were. I do not remember my parents telling me what to play or spend time with me (beside the occassional board games and dinner and time we spent to talk) playing and guiding in my play.

When I shop for toys for little children, I get bored even before I've started....a monkey drumming, a seal twirling a ball, a dog flipping over! How long can a child sit and look at these and not get bored? There's nothing to do with them! Unless a child figures the dog wants to jump over the sofa and be 'Super dog'! But mummy doesn't want too much noise and 'playing' inside the home!
'Kaleidoscope' (not the one where we looked at different creations...the game) keeps my son occupied for hours...and he loves creating his on designs not just the ones given in the booklet...and that's something he can do when his friends aren't around.
Now that we have stopped the boys from playing football and cricket inside the apartment premises(due to lack of space and damage to property), they have started creating their own games with things they can find outside or in the home. I'm glad they are putting their brains and creativity to good use. The older boys (the teenagers) and their mothers have started complaining. I wish they would utilize that energy to do something constructive...there are so many games they can play with balls in the space that we have.

I used to love to play ball games as a child, and in fact I still do. I guess that is why I go bowling 2 to 3 times a week now that I am retired. Games that involve healthy exercise also stimulate the mind. Sounds like you are doing a great job providing a good environment for youngsters. I imagine you get all the exercise you can handle just keeping up with them!

I'm not against ball games and I agree the kids need exercise...but there isn't enough place within the complex for ball games and we all knew that when we took up our apartments. There is an open ground right next to the complex(not ours but no one's using it at the moment and can be used by the kids to play...another advantage is we can see the kids playing here from our apartments...it's not too far that we need to take them there). I'm just a little irritated that they insist on the games that have been forbidden.

lol..sounds like your son is like my older son.
My younger son is very different from my older one but he's creative with his toys in his own way.
My point was that the kids didn't really need other people or newer toys everyday to keep them occupied. Of course, my younger one keeps asking for vehicles because he is fond of them...but he learnt to count and read with them...and invents new games almost everyday.

But there is one important thing Snadhya. In our days we ahd friends with whom we could play , who would brandish these makeshift swords and blow whistles out of a coconut green leaflet[or whatever you call it] and play four corners and simpple games.How we loved the company!
I must confess that I kept an eagle eye over the company that my son had kept and was watchful all the time lest he falls into bad company.Today, I hear of a neighbour's adoloscent son [13 yrs old] falling into bad company and bunking classes , justifying my extra protective attitude.
Coming back to the point, these children do not have the opportunity or time that we had in spending with our friends and as Aussie had pointed out, if people are going to get readymade toys why would children look for makeshift ones?

My sons have friends in the apartment. There are groups of boys and girls of different age groups here. Except for the adolescent boys who are a bad influence (more so because of the backing of their parents - 'boys will be boys, you know'), the company is good. I was trying to get the other boys to realize the importance of other games like 'Seven tiles' and '4 corners' and games they can invent. The tweens are excited about this aspect and the teenage boys were also ready for something new and creative....but their parents refuse to budge and force them to play football in the apartment complex where there is no place. Talk about killing creativity!
I keep a watch over my son's friends too. But unless it is a really serious issue , we talk about how he can handle the situation better without being influenced by the peer group. If most of their activities are against what I believe in, then I might have to stop him being with the particular group because however mature and responsible my son is, repeated interaction will influence him.

OOps! I wanted to say - children are now a days have become habitual on playing games on internet and PC and the innovation is no more there.

Yes DEEPAK; as such they do not get the time, space and opportunity to play outside and run around amidst good surroundings[with pollution all around].On top of it these computer games is another idiotic diversion.

So instead of prending they are a super hero, they use an avatart on some videogame. It is sad.

Yes, that was exactly my point,Deepak. Even you get them a PSP, one needs to keep up with them by providing a stream of new games or they are 'bored' with the previous ones.
It is so easy to get addicted to the video and PC games. When parents know the effects and are trying to get them to play well, I wonder why they get them these games...hmmm

Kala!
You have summed it very well, they are missing the outdoor environment, which
they otherwise should enjoy.

Sarah!
I agree with you that they would become a hero in a video game, instead of enjoying outdoor activities.

SV!
It is so true that you get them a PSP, they would demand new games
every now and then. Actually working parents sometimes succumb to the pressure
of their children and allow them these kind of luxuries.

Yes...and as you said...they want the next new thing in the market. We hd new toys when coming out when we were growing up too. But most parents I knew couldn't afford to get new toys for their kids everytime..and so they either shared with their friends or tried to 'make' something similar. There was a lots of pretend play, sharing, outdoor play. Now I see that even with outdoor play, it's either the same game every single day or asking for new toys almost every week.

Though I hadn't thought of that angle, hey, you are right!
Parents are trying to get the all the new gadgets in the market...even when their old one is functioning quite well. They are like big kids in the toy store...lol

Aussies 2007

Yes, space is a constraint. We live in an apartment complex where there is not enough place to play football or cricket but cycling and other games which will not cause damage to property or people is allowed. I remember growing up in an apartment which didn't have as much place as we have now. But we still managed to play more games and occupy ourselves constructively.
Almost all the kids in the apartment complex have the PSP and the latest games to go with it. And keep asking for more and more games once they have mastered the ones they have got (which is within two days of getting it)