1986 CHRISTMAS CATALOGUE EDUCATIONAL TOY... See ‘n Say is one of the more popular educational toys. By DIANA BOEHM If you want to kill a child's appetite for apples, just keep telling him how good they are for him. Same thing goes with toys: keep telling little Johnny how educational his new Christmas building blocks are and he'll probably exile them to the toybox But good educational toys aren't just intended to stimulate intellectual learning, says Pat Fenton, a mother with a special interest in pre-school toys. The toys can also contribute to a child's physical or social development, says Fenton, president of the Toronto chapter of the Parent Co-op Preschool Corp., a group of teachers and parents who work together in daycare programs. For example, she says her own two daughters, aged three and six, love to play “shopping” — with a toy cash register and shopping basket. With this game the girls must practice their counting, but they're also developing more abstract skills — more playing, social interaction and the value of money. MARKET GROWING Lenny Melvin, director of merchandising for Toy City, says the market for educational toys is expanding because parents are understanding how important play is to the growth of a child. “We have a more educated, aware and up-to-date parent and it's being reflected in the children,” says Melvin. Andrea Bricks agrees. The co-owner of Toy Town, a Educational toys a hit store where 75 per cent of the stock is educational toys, says sales are up 40 per cent over last year, which she credits to a greater awareness that toys are intended for more “than just keeping kids busy.” Ann Corrigan, president of Creative , a company that sells toys through home demonstrations, says she believes parents are turning to educational toys because “they have to fall back on quality rather than quantity for economic reasons.” Corrigan says some of the big sellers this season are a two-way microscope, a kite-building kit and a painting easel. INTEREST BUILDS “Our toys aren't the kind the kids will (initially) get excited about Christmas morning, but they'll still be playing with them the following Christmas.” But Corrigan fears some parents tend to push educational toys too hard on their children. “A lot of people want their kids not only to have the best but to be the best.” An early childhood specialist, Margaret Deeth, agrees the “superkid syndrome” can be damaging to children. “Often parents buy educational toys that are far ahead of where the child’s development level is,” says Deeth, co-ordinator of early childhood education with the Toronto Board of Education. She says the best educational toys are ones that can grow with the child, and perhaps be used in different ways by different age groups. ) HoldayVNardrobe H4 Dressy Blouses Lorge Assorted Sweaters Bright & Look for safe toys Everyone has a story about the Christmas toy that broke mere hours after being unwrapped. Sometimes these stories can have serious undertones, especially when the safety of children is at risk Toy manufacturers, pur. chasers and government all have tests to try to weed out gift merchandise that might turn tears of joy at Christmas to tears of pain “Toys have to meet chem- ical, material and flammab- ility tests before they can be sold in Canada,” says Wendy McNalley, product safety in- spector for the federal De- partment of Consumer and Corporate Affairs. The best guidelines to fol- low when choosing a toy, McNalley notes, is to follow the age category suggested by the manufacturer. The designation is not intended to indicate levels of intelligence, but rather the potential of hazard to younger children using the toy. Purchasers should also be on the lookout for factors involved in the construction of a product. Those cute button eyes on cuddly stuffed animals can be trouble. MeNalley says most companies manufacturing plush toys now use safety eyes and noses that include washers inside the animal to keep the parts secure. “You can feel the washer behind the toy’s eye,” she says. “These are much safer than eyes that have been sewn in.” Parents should examine toys with metal in the con- struction for sharp edges, and assess the overall quality before making a purchse. “They should mechanically test the toy,” McNalley says. “Give it a drop test of push-pull test to make sure that if it does break, there won't be any sharp edges as a result.” Another important consid- eration in toy purchasing is the toddler in the family, who could get into a gift intended for an older brother or sister. Although the Hazardous Products Act — which con. cerns itself with safety stan- dards for countless products from construction equipment to hockey helmets — has been in force since 1969, regulations involving toy safety only became part of the legislation as recently as 1978. TOUGH STANDARDS But the regulations are serious business. Toys not meeting safety requirements can be yanked off store shel- ves by government inspec- tors, McNalley says. “Or, we cantake the manu- facturer to court to face a maximum fine of $1,000 and prison for six months” on conviction. Retailers also keep an eye open for potentially unsafe toys. Simpsons and The Bay department chains, for ex ample, use a variety of agen cies to test toys, says pur chaser Dave Couglin. And some manufacturers like Fisher-Price issue an an nual report to purchasers, giving details of the products they will be handling. Parents who are concerned about a toy’s safety can con tact their local office of the consumer affairs depart ment, MeNalley says. “Parents have to keep in mind that after they buy, the safe toy is brand new, but it has to be safe as a used toy too,” she stresses. “The real responsibility comes after the purchase in the care and maintenance of the product.” Christmas customs vary around world Cherished memories, heart-felt joys, children's everywhere, laughter — these mean Christmas. The spirit of Christmas knows no boundaries. It lives in the hearts of men in many lands. Though its message of joy is always the same, the legends and lore of the season are as varied as the peoples who celebrate the Holy Birth. Customs of each country may be similar, yet marked by their own individual character. The Santa Domingo In. dian pueblo, in New Mex ico, performs a four-day long sacred ritual dance in honor of the Christmas season. It begins at 2 am Christmas day. After mid night mass, the Indians gather inside the church They are clad in colorful costumes, adorned with everything from fox tails to evergreen branches. The dancers carry on their ceremonials until daylight. At dawn the In. dians move to their sacred plaza in the center of the village, where they con tinue dancing throughout Christmas day On the second day the children dance, and the other members of the tribe take over for the third day. On the last day the entire pueblo joins in the day-long ceremonies. IN CALIFORNIA Communities as well as countries have their own special way of celebrating Christmas. In Joshua Tree, Calif., this small community transforms itself into a replica of Bethlehem. The story of the first Christmas is re-enacted, with the main street serving as a giant stage. IN NEWFOUNDLAND Citizens of Newfound land show their Christian ethics with the Christmas custom known as “Fishing for the Church.” On this day huge quantities of fish are caught and brought by the parishioneers of a vil: lage to the church, where they are sold. Proceeds of the sale go toward buying firewood for the curate. IN CZECHOSLOVAKIA It's customary among the Czechs to break off a cherry tree branch, at the beginning of Advent. The branch is placed in a pot of water in the kitchen and kept in the warm air. At Christmas time, it's hoped, the twig will burst into bloom and make a fes. tive decoration. IN SCANDINAVIA The Jultomten is a friendly gnome, who not only brings gifts to Scan dinavian children but guards the household and farm as well. To keep him happy, the children give the cattle extra fodder and leave sheaves of grain for the birds on Christmas Eve. IN TURKEY A unique holiday tradi tion in Turkey requires the head of the church to throw a wooden cross into the Bosporus. On Christ: mas Day, three boys dive after it The finder takes the cross from house to house and receives in return food and gifts from those who are allowed to see the cross. IN ICELAND Since trees are scarce in Iceland, families must use their ingenuity in creating a Christmas tree. A pole with branches of greenery tied to it is the solution in many Icelandic homes. And the valuable real trees are saved for industrial use. IN NORWAY The Norwegian Christ mas traditionally starts six months before Dec. 24. The celebration itself lasts three weeks. The period is known as the Julafred, or the Peace of Christmas. IN FINLAND Just before Christmas Day, families in Finland take a sauna bath. This is the traditional steam bath taken in a hut with a stone oven. IN FRANCE Traditionally, adults in France do not exchange gifts until New Year's Day In some French villages, shepherds bring their lambs to church on Christ mas. IN LIBERIA Liberians use an oil palm in place of the traditional fir as a Christmas tree. The palm is decorated with red balls, other palm leaves and ferns. Careful with The public health in ~/ spectors of the Central Kootenay Health Unit pre. sent a few tips on how you can ensure that handling and cooking of your Christ mas turkey will not cause food: poisoning. e A fresh un-frozen tur. key — should be washed inside and out and immedi ately stored in the refrig / 6 A frozen’ eviscerated unstuffed turkey — should preferably be thawed in the refrigerator. Leave the bird in the freezer bag and slit the bag along the back to permit moisture to drain away Thawing may be speed ed up by placing the bird in the unopened bag under cold running water. Never that turkey as this allows food pois oning organisms to multi ply © Frozen commercially stuffed oven-ready poultry should never be thawed before cooking. Stuffing may be cooked in a turkey to enhance flavor. Proper cooking is best determined by placing a meat thermometer into thigh muscle next to the body without touching the bone. When the bird is cooked, the reading should be 190° F. After cooking, the tur key should be held at 150° F. until served. The health unit staff wishes all the residents of the Central Kootenay area good eating and a truly No ‘big’ toys this year But retailers not concerned By RUTH FRANKLYN Buying Christmas toys for children this season isa bit of a mixed proposition. The good news is that, for a change, all the popular items are generally in stock. The news is that because there is no runaway phen omenon in the kiddie toy market this year, the de- cision-making process may be a little more difficult. Not that retailers are overly concerned. “Because there are no real promotional leaders, this year will be very good for us,” predicts Martin Craig, general manager of a toy store chain. “When the Cab- bage Patch doll was the rage, our (other) doll sales were down 60 per cent. Now we're up to standard levels.” Although such items as transformers and dolls mod. elled after TV characters and other personalities are still big in the fickle world of popular toys, store manager Joan Zys agrees that this year's excitement is spread over a wide range of prod ucts. “Traditional items and well-made brand names are selling well,” she says. “Tele- vision advertising creates fads on new products, but this year it’s back to the basics.” Recommended by retailers are Playmobile sets, a mod ern variation on the farm set concept. Craig says these toys, which include 7-cm fig. ures involved in house, boat or train scenerios, help chil dren exercise their imagin. ations by recreating real-life situations. You can start the child off with the basics for about $8, and gradually build the set with additional figures and accessories to a total of about ORI BIE AEE ~ Y . (EHR Presents the best possible selection of high quality fashions, at the lowest prices! As for this year’s newest variation on an old idea, Zys suggests rocker dolls. The ageless Barbie now can be purchased as Rocker Barbie, complete with punky hairdo and appropriate accessories — ineluding a stage. The basic doll is about $17. Also in the same price range are the Jem rocker dolls. With nine different characters to choose from, children can build a complete rock group. PAINT SETS BIG Retailer Diana Ferguson says standard printing kits — from $3 to $30 — and paint sets are also popular this year. She cites a double- sided easel, complete with paint pot tray and large sheets of newsprint, as an ideal gift for the two-child family. The set is available for about $79. Among new gift lines, Zys recommends Popples, a plush, bright-colored toy that folds down to a soft, huggable ball for four- to eight-year- olds. And for the young would-be engineer, there's the Robotect,hit, a robot that the youngster builds Himself. Also popular is Magnet Blocks, a collection of 16 magnets which can be ar- ranged and re-arranged to form 30 different vehicles. If gift ideas are still a problem, store manager Harry Bricks suggests dis- cussing the matter with the staff of toy specialty outlets. “We don't have 50,000 square feet to stock a lot of junk,” he says. “We spend a lot of time investigating our toys — we actually play with them.” Bricks says the Magnet Blocks, for instance, have be- come a local phenomenon just through word-of-mouth of his customers. IRTP ROKER KE Ee STMAS GE] 1986 CHRISTMAS CATALOGUE oo” iW * RUSSIAN WOOD LADLES © BABY SPOONS * SALT DISHES * WOODEN BOWLS © RECIPE BOOKS © L.P. RECORDS & TAPES OF EXPO CHOIR © GIFT CERTIFICATES FOR DINING .. Reg. Price $15.00 $9.95 PARTY CHRISTMAS TRAY .$4.95 All foods to go for a Homper Feast $19.95 ECIAL alae FOR SPECIAL FO NOW ACCEPTING RESERVATIONS FOR YOUR CHRISTMAS PARTIES » CALL 359-7855 7 Devs Aweek! ROSE'S RESTAURANT \—~ HOT ITEMS . . . Retailers say Rocker Barbie (top) and Popples (bottom) are popular toys this season. Barbie comes complete with punky hairdo, while Popples are a plush, bright-colored toy that folds into a ball. FORK ‘Ae 10-50% , OFF ON EVERYTHING IN THE LADIES WEAR! ‘sites honction ot agrees hE” Zz oe Rat 4 ‘Attention Spokane. | Bound Shoppers... Holiday Inn Offers You A Gift Package. = SINGLE OR DOUBLE ROOM, FREE CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST, FREE TRANSPORTATION, AND A PICTURE WITH SANTA. BRING THIS COUPON TO HOLIDAY INN WEST. 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VIX SCI WwW phoma eon onderfu or 1114-3rd Street J t ae f $ i A Stone | Castlegor, B.C (A Division of Mainline Distributors Ltd.) = ~? 23% Orecoumt $119 29% Otecoumt $149 Queen tes 5200 21% Otecoum $179 King tos. 5310 35% Diecovnt $199 WATERBED SIZES $20 MORE Single regio: #135 Single rey s475 Reg $210 ond deposit it in the entry box of WESTS TRAVEL of your aa a Ginerre's Pores tv VIN 129 LATE CHRISTMAS OPEN HOURS ry ‘tom 1217 - 3rd Street pec S11, 12,18, 19, 22,23 Castlegar 365-7782 Department Store Weat's Dept Store Le Melson 2