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Original poster

Should I buy my daughter a Nintendo DS or a dolls house for christmas?

41 replies

Padda · 17/10/2011 12:22

She's coming up to seven and personally I feel that generally it?s a good idea to buy a dolls house, rather than send kids off into a virtual world where they do not develop social skills, and not ?talking? to other human beings.

There are some great quality dolls houses around that will develop and grow with her and they're under about £250 so it would be her main gift from us apart from stocking fillers. Lots of role play, discussion etc.

But there's lots of peer pressure on the Nintendo.

Help!!

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ChippingInToThePumpkinLantern · 17/10/2011 12:24

I would have thought that at 7 she would be growing out of a dolls house and not into it (which is a shame, but it does seem to be that way).

What does she want?

Original poster
Padda · 17/10/2011 12:28

Thank you - but I was thinking more of something like this than a toddler one:
www.dollshouse.com/dhe/product-dolls-house.aspx?house=ocean

Ocean Drive from the Dolls House Emporium - a relative had one as a youngster and it has become a hobby after starting out as a game

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Original poster
Padda · 17/10/2011 12:28

She would no doubt be happy with either!

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vixsatis · 17/10/2011 14:18

Dolls house, definitely. There's a limited few years for her to enjoy this and the whole of her teens to mess around with computer games.

I'd love a dolls' house. Not sure that DS would be too keen

hanahsaunt · 17/10/2011 14:48

Dolls house.

picnicbasketcase · 17/10/2011 14:54

Ugh, not again. Prepare for starry-eyed people who want their children to be playing outside in the 1950s every day until midnight, telling you that technology makes all children into drooling couch potatoes.

Dolls house - very lovely if she's the one who wants it, My DD loves hers but she's only 4, your DD might be getting a little bit too old for it.

DS - Not necessarily antisocial, can be educational, but don't buy it because of peer pressure.

Pros and cons on both really.

ByTheWay1 · 17/10/2011 15:01

DS - my girls would go for it every time.

The world is changing and the kids who have a handle on technology will be the ones who get ahead. Every electronic device they get to grips with will only aid their future. My eldest going up to Secondary in Sept - they positively encourage smart phones and use them in the classroom!! So get ahead when you can!

PetisaPumpkinHead · 17/10/2011 15:10

Dolls house

GrimmaTheNome · 17/10/2011 15:21

Every electronic device they get to grips with will only aid their future. My eldest going up to Secondary in Sept - they positively encourage smart phones and use them in the classroom!!

Really? DDs school has a strict policy of phones off in school hours (not even on at break time. IME they learn how to use their smartphones very quickly on the school bus, really not something difficult they need to 'get ahead' on. (though you're right that at that age - not 7 -they really do want a smartphone - plan ahead to hand down your own seems to be the way to go)

Have you asked your DD - £250 is a lot for something which she might absolutely love or might might go Hmm at. TBH mine would have opted for something other than either of those (she's never wanted a DS - played with her friends and been totally 'meh')

quirrelquarrel · 18/10/2011 08:22

Gosh, dolls house every time. Seven is not too old!! Shock
What, kids don't have an imagination past six? How sad. And you know where to point the figure- games consoles and computer games. What was wrong with the 1950s where games were concerned? If you tell your kids they're too old for dolls, they'll think like that...because they certainly won't realise it all by themselves (and by "they", I mean everyone...the media plays into it, of course, etc etc).
What benefit can a Nintendo bring to her? It's tiny little figures moving on a screen. It's an hour completely wasted. So she'll get nimble fingers and better hand-eye coordination, at a stretch. Piano lessons would be better for that. It won't turn you into a drooling idiot but think how little they're getting out of it...think how easy things are, just at the touch of a button, no mental stimulation whatsoever...even if it's for "educational" games. School work should be linked with effort and hard work if it's really meant to be beneficial for later on, not easy to switch to and from and off.
If it's just to satisfy some playground conscience...get her something she really likes!! Nothing worse than kids who mooch around the place moaning about how they want a go on a Nintendo and can't engage with anything else. I know a family who've got a playroom absolutely full of toys, playdough, things to do etc etc, and they go for the iPad every time. To watch TV programmes on CBeebies.

quirrelquarrel · 18/10/2011 08:24

Re: the "Nintendo as essential" point- wtf! If you learn to navigate your way around a laptop by 18, you're not going to be missing out on any big career prospects. It's ridiculous to say that lots of effort goes into learning how to get around a glorified version of a Gameboy and even more ridiculous to say that you can't do without it.

GrimmaTheNome · 18/10/2011 08:32

TBH my DD didn't play with her dolls house much by this age (though its still in her bedroom, a treasured possession) - she started to prefer building her own houses/playgrounds etc from lego and k'nex and at 12 still does. I think at 7 that sort of thing might be better than dolls house or DS - but then, every child is different!

wigglesrock · 18/10/2011 08:58

My dd1 is 6.5 and she is getting a DS this year, she has a much cheaper dolls house (Asda) and is a bit meh about it. Re talking to other human beings etc, I was speaking to a speech therapist last week and she told me that one of the greatest things you can buy your child at around 18 months - 2 years is a teaset. She recommends teasets for anyone coming through her door with children.

GrimmaTheNome · 18/10/2011 09:10

At 7, for 'talking to other people' - dolls' houses are probably about as solitary as DSs. The child may talk to the dolls but typically they're played with alone.

Make sure the 'fillers' include board games (Cadoo is good) and active games.
Anyone who feels the need for electronic games, I reckon Wii type games are good because (a) they aren't sedentary (b) they are great for playing with someone else.

TroelsHartmann · 18/10/2011 09:36

my dd would love a dolls house and a pram, she's 9!!

she already has a ds though Grin

maybeyoushoulddrive · 18/10/2011 09:37

Padda I love that dolls house!

My 8 year old dd still plays with her dolls house, but the thing she plays with most is Sylvanians... and then uses her dolls house furniture separate from the house IYSWIM. They do a dolls house too...

My dd doesn't want a Ds though, but you say your dd is keen to have one, so that might change things. Hmm.

TroelsHartmann · 18/10/2011 09:37

in fact, I would say she's growing out of the ds now as she hardly uses it

Original poster
Padda · 18/10/2011 09:44

Interesting, I suppose it's as much getting her into a hobby that will last as for development.

And steering away from barbies!!

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reckoner · 18/10/2011 10:04

DD never played much with her dolls house or her DS. She is now 10 and looking back I would have not bothered with either. But if I had to choose I would buy the dolls house.

LtAllHallowsEve · 18/10/2011 10:28

DD is 6, she has had a dolls house since she was 3. It wasn't as expensive as yours, it was this one here

At 3 and 4 she was happy to just play with it. At 5 she painted the outside, at 6 she is now 'decorating'. We spend happy afternoons in Homebase asking for wallpaper samples that she can use.

It looks a right state at the moment! Decorating / painting is not her forte - I'm just hoping she improves with time Smile. What I am trying to say is that DD has had more fun doing this than actually 'playing house' so I'm glad I didnt spend a fortune on the Dolls House - If I had I'd be scared to let her touch it!

(Oh, and I did exactly the same as a child with the dolls house my dad hand built - changing the rooms and adding carpets etc kept me far busier)

So - my choice would be dolls house over DS, but a cheaper one until she's a bit older maybe.

ByTheWay1 · 18/10/2011 10:35

LOL - different folks, different ideas on life - never said it was "essential" but life is changing.

We are surrounded by computers and different ways of interacting with both technology and people. The more au fait kids are with this from an early age the better in my view. My girls (10 and 9) play on many different systems - and have designed their own game on an electronic game designer.

p.s. They ALSO play outside, play the piano, do karate, netball and football, play with friends and read a lot... and we play board games (Monopoly, Cluedo, Destination, Scrabble and the Game of life) as a family at the weekend.

Computer gaming/entertainment, communications and computer aided living are THE growth industries in the world around us, so I do not "get" the animosity to toys that help.

Oh, and "Professor Layton" DS games have recently really opened up the world of Mathematics and reasoning in my eldest, more so than any primary school teacher or I have managed to date.

quirrelquarrel · 18/10/2011 13:11

Yes- computer aided living- think how they will profit from the extra effort going into replacing the aid.
Things shouldn't be so easy. I don't know. Especially not for kids when their attitudes to things are malleable.

Fennel · 19/10/2011 13:50

Does she say she wants a ds? I might give her that if she was begging for it. but otherwise I'd always choose the imaginative, tactile play.

My dds haven't actually played much with their dolls' house though, they play more with the Sylvanian family range, which is good for the over 7s as it merges from toy to collectable. They also like playmobil and animal hospital. The actual dolls house is used to store all these other animal types.

hippoCritt · 19/10/2011 13:54

Another vote here for Sylvanians, plus they keep their value so she could always sell on if she wants a DS later on

haggisaggis · 19/10/2011 13:59

Agree with the others - my dd (now 9) pretty much ignores the dolls house and plays with SYlvanian families and playmobil instead. The dolls house furniture is brought out of the house to be desks and chairs with her playmobil school - but the house itself is never used.
She doesn't have a ds either - she has access to mine and a few of her own games but rarely uses it.