Introducing a New Toy Line That Teaches Kindness and Empathy

I’m a mom to two adult children. I miss the days when they were younger. Being a parent to adults is just a weird thought for me.

As a parent, I always looked for toys and games that offered a little more than just a regular play thing. What I mean is, if a toy/game was a bit educational (in a sneaky way so they didn’t realize they were learning), or a toy/game that can be utilized in more than one way, I would seek it out for my kids. I was especially keen on toys/games that promoted imagination and creativity.

I work with children. I am a site director for a program servicing children ages 5-13. When it comes to purchasing toys and games for them, I think the same way I would when my kids were little.

Let me introduce you to a new toy line that is not only fun to play with, but also promotes kindness and empathy. They called Bene Bear and Bene Buddies.

Here is some information about the brand.

Bene Bear® and the Bene Buddies™ toy line! These award-winning plush toys come with 15 tokens and a storybook that teaches children the importance of kindness, respect, empathy, and giving. As good deeds are performed, children can collect tokens to store in the animal’s pouch and trade them in for a future reward.

Bene Bear® is joined this season by Sparkle the Dog and Seawhee the Turtle, each with their own unique focus on character traits and causes. And with an entire page dedicated to local and national charities seeking support, Bene World is committed to making a difference in the world through its toys.

“Promoting kindness, empathy, and other positive character traits in children,” explains Bene World founder Karalyne Ley, “will reinforce those traits that will last a lifetime, bring them happiness and empower them to make the world a kinder and better place.” Echoes Bene World business partner and mother to Ley, Martha Moore, “With a new school year in session, now is the perfect time for parents to start focusing on kindness, respect, empathy and other character traits with their children.”

As you can see, Bene Bear and Bene Buddies are toys with a purpose.

I was sent Sparkle the Dog to review.

Sparkle is a cute, scruffy looking dog that is just asking to be hugged and snuggled. He’s an adorable plush toy. As someone who used to be obsessed with plush toys as a kid (and frankly, as an adult I still am), I would have gone crazy for this toy.

The Sparkle the Dog package comes with a book (Sparkle for Pets), fifteen Bene Buddies tokens and an activation code that allows you to activate your Sparkle toy. There you can also create an adoption certificate.

Right away the act of doing this makes me think of going to a shelter and adopting a dog in real life. As a “mom” to eight (yes, eight) adopted cats, and someone whose adopted dogs, cats and other animals from shelters, I can appreciate how this toy teaches kids the meaning of adopting a rescued pet.

Sparkle is a pet focused Bene Buddy. He teaches children kindness and empathy towards animals and pets in need.

To use Sparkle, every time you see your child has shown empathy, kindness, respect or giving back to someone or an organization, give them a token. They can insert the token into Sparkles back. The tokens got into a special pouch in the back so they can be reused again and again.

As a parent (or educator – this would be great in a classroom), you can offer your child a reward when they use all the tokens. That is totally up to you. I personally have found that children are often excited about rewards.

In the back of the Sparkle the Dog book is a place where your child (with or without your help) and write down what kind thing they did to earn the tokens.

I think this is a wonderful idea! I wish I could give Sparkle the Dogs to all the kids I work with (23 kids) because I am trying to teach them about kindness and helping those in need in the community.

Currently I am gathering up supplies for the kids to make toys for dogs and cats (and perhaps small animals) to donate to the local animal shelter. For Christmas time I want the kids to make cards and draw pictures to donate to a local nursing home.

I wish there was a way to use what I’ve learned from Sparkle the Dog and come up with a similar idea to motivate my school kids. This is such a genius idea!

A portion of the proceeds of each Sparkle the Dog Package that is sold will go to an animal shelter or rescue group. As a pet parent and animal lover, I appreciate this very much.

If you are interested in learning more about Sparkle the Dog, Bene Bear, or Seawhee the Turtle, visit BeneBearGiving.com. They can also be found on Facebook and Instagram.

This would make a great gift this holiday season.

What do you think about this idea? Does it sound like something you’d want to use with your child?

Kimberly

*I received a free product sample in order to do this review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.