Playtime!

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What do you remember when we talk about childhood? Your Playtime! Isn’t it? Childhood is so synonymous with ‘Play’ and Play is incomplete without toys. For any child, toys are his/her valuable treasure. They are so emotionally attached with that piece of wood or fabric or plastic. This is the time when they are learning, growing. Toys thus play an important role in 
child development.

A three months old starts responding to the sound of a rattle and what a joy it brings in for the parents! Well designed toys help babies to achieve their growth milestones in more pleasurable and engaging way. Pull string toy, holding and playing with a doll, playing with clay helps in motor skills development. Role plays and interacting with other children of same age group while playing help children build their emotional and social skills. Building blocks, puzzle games, board games help in development of cognitive and creative abilities. Toys and games provide opportunities for children of all age groups to grow and develop their skills on different levels in an interesting manner.

DIY toy using card board

Traditionally toys were crafted using child friendly local materials like fabric, wood or clay. Post industrialisation alike other products toys were mass manufactured too. Plastic toys were introduced. Soon ‘Toy and Game’ design became a specialised branch in industrial design. Toy designers study child psychology to understand children and their needs apart from basic knowledge of materials and manufacturing process for mass production. This study gives them insights about what a child needs for his/her age and what they could find interesting to explore.

There is a wide range of toys and games available in the market catering different age groups like dolls, animals, action figures, cars, construction toys, creative toys, education toys, role play kits, electronic toys, science toys, board games etc.The list is long. I feel DIY (Do it yourself) toy kits offer a different pleasure to children as they make their toy themselves. It sows seeds of creativity and innovation in children at young age.

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Toys are so fascinating or rather playtime is so stress relieving that even adults enjoy their playtime. There are corporate toys (executive/office toys) available which are popular for pleasure and creativity during short breaks in working hours. Fidget spinner is a good example of this.
In the age of technology, digital games have become integral part of our lives. More to come in the field of Virtual Reality in gaming. Still the physical toys have their own space in a child’s world and will continue to have.

When the market is flooded with toys, we still have creative parents who provide household things as toys for their children. But certain toys cannot have replacement. Parents and schools have to be wise and sensitive to choose appropriate one for their child’s dream land, after all it’s their Play-land!

Some useful links

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTgWnY_ZM3c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YhqaSiff5g

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pKbzWVKhPw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnCqR2yUXoU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOUxWugaspw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-7nSPfMpIs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8rkh1wW6BU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38MuobPctMc

Note:

The writer has no rights on the images used in this article.