Resources

 

How do our products support your child's development?

Being a paediatric speech therapist I developed these suitcases in collaboration with occupational therapists. The aim was to offer children the opportunity to explore while using their fine motor skills (like operating the bridge, the tunnels and the park garage) and of course to have fun. Furthermore through enjoyment they will 'train' hand-eye coordination, pincer grasp, bilateral hand coordination and finger strength which they need later for developing handwriting skills in school. The suitcases contain different materials and shapes which give the child various sensory inputs.

Problem solving and persistence are other skills that can be acquired during play by figuring out how things work (for example by using the parking garage in the car suitcase or matching shapes to the shape sorter in the ocean suitcase). The ocean suitcase offers a lot of visual perception inputs through exploring various shapes which enhance shape and colour recognition and learning about quantity.

Our aim with this product is for children to be able to dive into their imagination and bring in their own unique ideas. We support and encourage this by having created matching playmats which stimulate a child’s imagination with colours and visual inputs which can lead to new play ideas. The car playmat offers a whole town scene where a village could evolve and the ocean playmat offers an underwater world full of possible stories. These stories will be the ones the child creates based on their existing experiences and their new explorations. An experience like spending time at the beach can get revisited in this form of play and then expanded. When play connects with imagination the opportunities for learning are endless. 

Our suitcases make it easy for children to live out their imagination. By simply adding a play figure or another kind of vehicle to the car suitcase a whole new play scenario can be created. The ocean suitcase can suddenly become a boat with a little figure representing a fisherman and a playmat can become a deep ocean full of fish. The suitcases also grow with the child’s stages of play, offered through little adding so that many more play options are created. The best thing is that you can take it all easily with you everywhere you go. No more boredom in places where you have to wait and no more stress about what to fit into a car when you are off for a weekend.

For more information about the benefits of play go to:

https://raisingchildren.net.au/newborns/play-learning/play-ideas/why-play-is-important

 

How do children learn through play?

Through play children have the opportunity to use their creativity while developing their imagination, fine motor skills, physical, cognitive, emotional strength, persistence and resilience. Play is essential to healthy brain development. It is through play that children engage and interact within the world around them. It allows them to explore a world where they can develop new competencies and resilience which they will need to face future challenges. During play nerve cells stimulate the brain to make new connections which helps to develop motor skills like bilateral hand coordination, gross and  pincer grasp, finger strength hand-eye coordination and more. These are essential skills that help children to build foundational muscle strength needed for learning to write. It also boosts speech & language development  with an increased understanding of words and their use, listening and speaking skills. Imaginative play is a great way to support and enhance speech development as children have the chance to recreate experiences, communicate thoughts and feelings and share ideas with others. Language often increases during role play as it enables children to practice the language skills they have already learnt and build on their expanding vocabulary.

If you have any questions about our toys regarding your child's development, please contact Angela at info@wonderfulsuitcases.com. 

 

Why is creative play so important?

In the article 'Help your children play out a story and watch them become more creative' already published in 2016  by University Professor Sandra Russ and University Professor Louis D. Beaumont from Case Western Reserve University, Ohio (USA) they write about how more and more institutions these days are looking for creative people who can innovate in high-quality ways and contribute to the progress of science, engineering and the arts. Exactly these creative expressions start from an early age. Children express creativity through 'pretend play' by using imagination. They make up stories and ideas 'from scratch' and use props to represent different ideas and objects. Their research shows that the amount and quality of imagination, story-telling skills & emotional expression that children show in pretend play is associated with creative thinking abilities.  Link to article.

 

The Importance of Pretend Play: Nurturing Creative Thinking in Toddlers and Preschoolers 

by Angela Mischkulnig, published in BRAINZ magazine in May 2023.

Observing children being engaged in pretend play is fascinating. It may appear as simple child’s play, but it is far more complex as it nurtures creativity and is a fundamental aspect of a child’s emotional, physical, social and cognitive development. Link to article.