Barbie's Super?: An Argument for a Toy Work Bench

Most people who don't have children probably are not aware of the fact that nearly every toy company sells some form of "toy work bench" for children to play with, should they choose. Most of these people, upon finding out this news, are likely not surprised. After all, Fisher Price and Playskool have been manufacturing miniature kitchens and homemaking spaces for decades, catering to the little housewife-to-be. Aren't all Barbie dream houses and Matchbox cars made to fulfill some kind of sociological need in normal children to emulate the world in which they live? Either way, it seems fitting that, if certain young boys like playing with dump trucks and similar construction-themed fare, shouldn't a toy work bench complete with plastic tools be an instant hit for such a crowd? It seems like the perfect tie-in for the popular children's show "Bob the Builder", which is themed around a construction site.

There is a bit of discourse, however, about the idea that a toy work bench could set a child up to never strive further than a "menial" blue-collar job. While countless arguments abound against such a concept, there are still proponents of it who warn that a child should be given a toy chemistry set or a book rather than a plastic emulation of the area where "paw" and his buddies get drunk and use the Lord's name in vain. Let's look at the most basic fact first. Most people don't simply buy a child something he or she never asked for or maybe even begged for in the toy aisle. That is to say that few, if any, parents would go out and buy their child a toy that the child disliked and then force the child to play with it and feign enjoyment. That sort of thing happens later in the child's life with a musical instrument or enrollment into soccer.

Basically, kids like to imitate what they see. A young boy or girl with a toy work bench is no more uncommon or pervasive than a young boy or girl with a Fisher Price airplane. People who overreact to possibilities that haven't shown any likelihood of occurrence typically make for the proponents of most of the outlandish rumors and fears you hear about. Perhaps, for these people, a bit of inward attention is the most beneficial idea. A look at your own state and the state of your family should be a prerequisite for anybody who is quick to judge the lives of others. If your child is playing with plastic tools, it doesn't mean your son is going to be a plumber in fifteen years. Playing with Barbies didn't give you an E cup, did it?