"That's a tool, not a toy."
This is a mantra that I repeat frequently when curious kids want to pick up everything in sight and, well, play with it.
I'm all for banging on pots and pans or stacking every plastic storage container pulled out of the cupboard, but sometimes kids pick up things that are off limits. This is when I chime in with my trusty saying I came that I coined years ago. "That's a tool, not a toy."
This goes for the universal remote, scissors, metal tape measure, vintage typewriter, and every other thing my kids grab that can easily break or injure unfamiliar, inexperienced hands. It's not to say that they may never touch those items. Rather, it's imparting the knowledge that different objects have different functions and not everything is a kid-friendly toy.
What tips do you have for helping kids understand that not everything they want to play with is a toy?
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