Toys that teach - educational toys for African-American children
Author: Ebony

THE land of fun and imagination moves a step closer to reality and relevance for African-American children this season. A multitude of brown-skinned superheroes, pride-driven games and puzzles and dolls the color of the Black rainbow, will probably give a needed boost to the self-esteem of Black children.

Responding to the pleas of Black parents who want more culturally sound toys and gift items on the holiday shelves, an increasing number of toy manufacturers and major retailers, such as Toys |R' Us, have responded to the wave of ethnic awareness and are producing new, alternative and supplemental playthings that specifically target African-American youngsters. Their efforts have been met with great enthusiasm and soaring profits, making the mounting retail toy industry $17 billion strong.

This year's treasure chest, filled with trinkets meant to educate as well as entertain, captures the attention of toddlers, teens and the in-betweens with goodies rich in the history and heritage of the African-American culture.

Girls peek into the past with the Pleasant Co.'s Addy Walker doll, a 9-year-old girl growing up in the midst of the Civil War. With a trilogy of books that details her life through Reconstruction (three more books are to follow next year), the collectible doll clothed in a prairie dress, the company and field boots, celebrates the courage of African-American pioneers. Made of cloth and soft brown vinyl, she bats her eyes, walks and coyly swings her brown hair.