Positive Play with Just Play Toys

Positive Play with Just Play Toys

Disclosure:  I was provided with product samples for review purposes, any and all opinions expressed are my own and have not been influenced.

It’s Black History Month and as an African American mother I try to teach my kids about their past, so they are aware of their roots and know about some of the struggles of their people.  Black History Month is about celebrating our past, but I want my children to also see role models in their present so that they can become role models in the future and those present day role models can be either real or fictional as long as they are positive and promote education and helpfulness.  See my kids not only have an African American background but I was born and raised in Trinidad so they also have a Caribbean background as well.  My husband and I try to encourage and promote learning about both cultures.  We want our kids to enjoy playing and I love that they can find positive play with Just Play Toys.  As one of the manufactures of Doc McStuffins toys Just Play Toys aids in the creation of positive role models for children, especially my children.  I remember growing up in Trinidad and not being able to toys in my skin color.  I just love being able to find toys that they can identify with and toys that look like them.  Just Play Toys sent us two items from their Doc McStuffins line and they were a huge part of our Family Love Dinner to celebrate Valentine’s Day.

One of the toys we got was the Doc McStuffins: Doc & Family Playset.  I really love this set because it promotes family.  That’s one aspect of the Doc McStuffins show that I love and why I love that my kids love it.  Not only is Doc a super smart pretend doctor for toys, her mother is actually a doctor.  They show them as a family.  So many kids don’t have entire family units and some shows on television also leave out parents.  I love that the parents are celebrated on this show and with these toys.  You can purchase the Doc & Family Playset from Toys R Us it’s priced at $29.99.  *Product Description – Meet Doc McStuffins Family! Dad is a chef and makes the healthiest food for Doc & her friends! Mom is a doctor & helps her figure out her toys problems! Donny is her 4 yer old brother who would spend ALL DAY with her if he could!*

My son got his very own Stuffy’s Check-Up Set.  I loved this because it’s for the boys that are fans of the show.  My daughter already owns the Doc Check-Up Set and it’s pink with lots of glitter.  This is perfect for my son and great to help him pretend to be a doctor as well.  The set is identical to the one Doc uses in the show and my son loves it.  He’s been playing doctor and fixing up all his toys since he got it.  These toys really build imaginative play with children as well and it provides a positive outlook.  You can also purchase the Stuffy’s Check-Up Set on Toys R Us online.  It’s priced at $19.99.  *Product Description – Stuffy, one of the most beloved characters from the hit TV show Doc McStuffins, is ready to help fix your toy friends in need with his very own check up set! Stuffy’s set includes his unique doctors bag, light up and sound stethoscope featuring silly phrases, play syringe, blood pressure cuff with working gauge, otoscope, bandage cuff and sticker sheet. Requires 3 AG13 batteries. Ages 3+ years*

Since it is Black History Month and on the show Doc McStuffins they always highlight doctors I shared some facts about African Americans in medicine with my children.  Here’s some of the facts I shared with them when teaching them about parts of their history:

• James Derham (1762-1802?) First recognized Black physician in the United States – Born a slave in Philadelphia, his early masters taught him the fundamentals of reading and writing. Derham was owned by a number of doctors, ending up in New Orleans with a Scottish physician, who hired him in 1783 to perform medical services. When he was 21, he bought his freedom and went to New Orleans where he set up his own medical practice. He was invited to Philadelphia in 1788 to meet Dr. Benjamin Rush, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Rush was so impressed with Derham’s success in treating diphtheria patients, that he read Durham’s paper on the subject before the College of Physicians of Philadelphia. In 1789, Durham returned to New Orleans, where he saved more yellow fever victims than any other physician in colonial Philadelphia. During an epidemic that killed thousands, he lost only 11 of 64 patients. He moved back to New Orleans and was lauded by prominent local doctors. Despite his skill, his ability to save so many lives, and his flourishing practice, his practice was restricted in 1801 by new city regulations because he did not have a formal medical degree. He disappeared after 1802. The idea that Black people were incapable of understanding medicine remained widespread for decades. (SOURCE: African-American Registry)
• Dr. James McCune Smith (1813-1865) First African-American to earn a medical degree, 1837 (University of Glasgow, Scotland). Not only the first black American to obtain a medical degree, he was a prominent abolitionist and suffragist, compassionate physician, prolific writer, and public intellectual. He was denied admission to colleges in the United States, his native land, and earned his medical, master’s, and baccalaureate degrees at Glasgow University in Scotland. On his return to New York City in 1837, Smith became the first black physician to publish articles in US medical journals. Frederick Douglass, Gerrit Smith, and John Brown personally collaborated with James McCune Smith in the fight for black freedom. As the learned physician-scholar of the abolition movement, Smith was instrumental in making the overthrow of slavery credible and successful.(SOURCE: US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health)
• Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler (1831-1895) First Negro female to earn a medical degree, 1863 – Rebecca Lee Crumpler, M.D. was born in Delaware in 1831. Dr. Crumpler is recognized frequently in history books as the first African American woman to earn a doctor of science degree. According to National Library of Medicine (NLM), she graduated in 1863 from the New England Female Medical College. Crumpler in her published writing entitled, “Book of Medical Discourses,” mentioned observing the aunt who raised her, skillfully care for the sick and credits that experience for awakening a passion for the field of medicine. Additionally, she cared for newly freed slaves after the Civil War while living in Richmond, Virginia. After several years there, she relocated to Boston with her husband, where according to Partners of the Heart, “Crumpler established a practice at 67 Joy Street dedicated to serving women and children, especially through nutrition and preventative medicine.” (SOURCE: National Medical Association)
• Dorothy Boulding Ferebee, M.D. (1898-1980) Dorothy Boulding Ferebee, M.D., was born Norfolk, Virginia. She graduated from Tufts Medical College at the age of 37 and as with many young health care professionals of African descent born during that tense racial era, this consistent honor roll student was denied professional access into predominantly white hospitals. Determined, she moved to Washington DC for an internship at Freedmen’s Hospital (now Howard University Hospital). Dr. Ferebee was actively involved in countless organizations until her death at the age of 90. Here are some of her life’s work: Founder of the Southeast Settlement House; 10th President of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc; President of the National Council of Negro Women; Medical Director of the Mississippi Health Project; Vice President of the Medico-Chirurgical Society of the District of Columbia; Vice President of the Washington Urban League; Chair of the Washington Community Chest; Chair of the Women’s Division of the United Negro College Fund; Board Member of D.C. Social Hygiene Society, the Washington Housing Association and the Council of Social Agencies. (SOURCE: National Medical Association)

The next time you’re shopping for toys for your children I encourage you to take a look at the many offering of Just Play Toys, especially if you have a Doc McStuffins fan in your house.  They also offer other Disney related toys & Skylanders.  You can connect with them via Facebook & Twitter.