The Developmental Benefits Of A Model Train Hobby For Your Kids

As a parent, you always want good hobbies for your child. However, there are a lot of things that can be distracting and that can compete for your child's attention. Video games, television, and other activities can sometimes be addictive and time wasting if they are done too often. This is why it is so important for children to have hobbies and crafts that can have real and lasting benefits and that can assist in their development. Playing with model trains and railroading is a hobby that kids will not only love doing, but that can help them grow in a number of ways. You can talk with a professional, like Ann's Hobby Center, to see how kids can benefit from this hobby. Below are a few ways that model trains are able to help your child.

1.  More Creativity. When taking up the hobby of model trains or railroads, your child is free to use their imagination and artistic creativity in a number of ways. Railroad tracks can be put together in a number of unique ways; many scenes can be built; and, a countless number of scenarios can be imagined on how to play with the trains. This imaginative play can translate into better problem solving in school and innovation for future jobs; in fact, prospective engineers can use this hobby to not only unwind, but to improve their skills. Indeed many successful people have been model train enthusiasts from a young age. People like Walt Disney, Elton John, Winston Churchill, Tom Hanks, and the like have been into model trains.

2.  More Patience. Model trains can be particularly beneficial for a child that struggles with patience. By nature, creating a model train and building a railroad scene can take a lot of time to get right. Ever hear of the "Marshmallow study"? It showed that children who weren't adapted to patiently waiting were less confident and more troubled later on. In an age of instant gratification where kids want everything right away, learning patience and feeling a sense of success through a fun hobby that takes time could be just what is needed.

3. Refined Motor Skills. Every parent knows just how important it is to develop fine motor skills early on in life. By playing with model trains, your child will develop these skills even more quickly since they will have to put tiny pieces together and have a steady hand to paint and glue pieces. This can be a lot more beneficial than simply watching TV or engaging in other activities that do not help in this kind of physical development.

These are just a few of the benefits that model trains and model railroading provide for your child. Most importantly, it is good, clean fun.