I bet many of you moms and dads had collections when you were children.
Some of you collected dolls, some trading cards. Did you realize at the
time though how much that activity added to your life?

As parents today, one of the best activities we can encourage in our
children is hobby collecting. Collecting is much more than just filling
up the shelves and drawers with stuff; it can be way for our child to
gain self esteem, define themselves, and to bond with us.

Self Esteem comes from having something they did themselves. The act of
gathering a collection requires the child to make choices, do research
and go after items to add. Each piece a child gathers can be a hallmark
of achievement.

Special significance and positive feelings will be attached to
especially difficult to find items. In my case that would have been
first edition comics or custom made belt buckles. Finding those and
being able to display them isn’t trivial and even children will
appreciate those they put some effort into acquiring.

Defining yourself as a child and on into your teens is a constant
process. Being a collector can help by setting them apart from their
peers. Lots of kids collect baseball cards, but almost all children
that do have a favorite team or favorite position. That’s what will
express or show how they define themselves.

Going beyond the ordinary really gives a child a chance to be unique.
Your child might like music, why not encourage them to focus on a
specific genre, becoming an expert. Another child might enjoy models,
but what will really speak to that’s child personality will be a
particular type. It could be the materials, the factory(Revell), or the
subject. Some kids will love jigsaw puzzles, but a true collector will
often want the more challenging or unique puzzles. Finding that
specific avenue will tell you and the child a lot about them.

Bonding for me is a huge part of working on a collection. It’s one of
those activities that a parent can spark interest in easily, and just as
easily be the primary supplier of new items. My father helped with my
buckle collection. He’d help me spot that one unusual buckle at the
booth at a fair. My dad would bring back buckles from his travels as
well. It was something we could talk about, discussing where it was
found, how it was made, the materials and more.

Another part of the bonding comes from allowing our children to share
their collections with us. Encouraging them to talk about how they came
by each doll or coin, what’s different about it, and why it’s special to
them. Consider how working together to come up with a creative storage
method would bring you and your child closer.

Beyond self esteem, defining themselves, and a bonding opportunity,
collecting can foster imagination, and a sense of adventure. Collecting
can be an expensive hobby, and rare coins may not work for every family.
There are lots of cheaper alternatives though, such as foreign currency,
stamps, and insects.

Start them collecting today.

Still a collector today,
Todd

Todd Jordan is a father of two boys, and now has three granddaughters as
well. Besides blogging here, he has his own blog, The Broad Brush. Todd
can be found on Twitter as tojosan, and lots of other places too.

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In case you need some ideas, I polled people on Twitter; here are some
of the items they collected:

katforshort – Quilts, Rubik’s cubes, pet rocks, match boxes, little hotel lotions & soaps, marbles, magnets.

kmprattrealtor – Every early fall my Dad took me to the Alton Expo when it was on the Mississippi rive front and bought me a unicorn.

Sweetpeazz – I collected leotards ( I was a gymnast) and star wars figures…hows that for a combination!

jenn_if_er – I collected Beanie Babies and, of course, Barbies

onedadslife – Stamps and Keys. Somewhere in my attic is a whole pile of skeleton keys! In fact, my ATTIC opens with a skeleton key!

chinacat – I used to have a stuffed camel collection.

KellyFerrara – teddy bears. And rocks. And glass figurines called “birthday angels” that were made for each month – I collected “April”s.

creativereason – Standard stuff: Comics, baseball cards, ticket stubs, etc.

codyks – rocks… kinda seems symbolic now. Rocks are deep.

Macala – As a child I collected Breyer Horses.

spifbv – I collected classic Space LEGOs, built indestructible ships. Also pennies and comic books, mostly X-Men and related titles.

LizScherer – vintage hats and dolls

doctorsound – business cards. When I was younger my grandpa (ex car dealer) passed away, I found all his clients old cards
and added more.

ziolablu – the wax figures you use to be able to get from the machines at the stl zoo… The only thing I’ve collected ever.
I’m anti-stuff.