Traditional toys - not screens - best tools for teaching kids

Traditional toys like blocks and puzzles are still the best teaching tools for kids, according to a research review.

U.S. researchers say that these more hands-on toys are better at teaching spatial relations to preschoolers than "screen-based" entertainment like video games, computers and cell-phones.

"Skills, including early geometry and knowing the names of shapes, help kids learn the math skills they pick up in kindergarten. And if they already have those (before they begin school), they are ahead of the curve," lead author Brian Verdine, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Delaware in Newark, told Reuters.

Playing with blocks and shapes and other toys helps kids visualize and manipulate objects, and when their parents talk to them during playtime, it also helps with their spatial relations.

"When a parent is directing the play and narrating, that kind of conversation is such good learning for children. Parents should be like sportscasters and keep a running commentary on what's going on," said Marsha Gerdes, a psychologist at The Children's Hospital of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia who was not involved in the review.

Spatial skills aren't the only benefit from old-school-styled play. Kids' social skills benefit, too, the researchers found.

"One reason these old-fashioned toys provide a lot of benefits is that they involve other play partners or adults in some way," Verdine added.

"Parents provide a lot of additional language input, and they can respond to children in ways that electronic toys really aren't able to do at this point in time," he said.

What's more, kids who play mostly with screens tend to have more attention problems, lower reading scores and an inferior ability to use spoken language compared with peers who don't spend time in front of screens, Gerdes said.

In 2013, The American Academy of Pediatrics released screen-time guidelines, advising that children under the age of two stay away from them. After the terrible twos, they recommend only one to two hours a day.