Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Essential questions ( Answers )

Hi all. Here are the answers to our essential questions:

What are the usefulness of toys? How can toys help us in our daily lives?


Toys can help people in reducing stress, for entertainment, for fun. People play toys, including adults because they wanted to stay away from the problems or homework that they are facing in work or school. They will also play toys because they feel bored and wanted something to do.


Some educational games which may also be considered as toys may help people improve in their education. Such educational games are also considered to be creative and a few examples of them are:

  • Scrabble which can help people improve in their vocabulary
  • Maths Warriors which can help people improve in their Maths(calculation or strategy)
  • Monopoly may also help to improve our Maths calculation.
  • There is also these Science Games and Puzzles which will help us improve in the understanding of the concept of digestion(digestive system) in Science.
  • Geography Games and Puzzles helps us to understand the topics of Geography better.
  • Bingo, Sudoku and IQ games(Guess Who?) are also good for education.
  • Strategy games may also be included in these and they are games such as One Up and Maths Warriors, as mentioned above.
  • Risk is a board game with a world map, Geography.
  • One more, the Chinese chess and the chess will improve our thinking.



Actually, there are more educational board games then we think. Likewise, there are also educational card games. Now let’s examine educational card games. They are:

  • Conversation cards, flash cards and playing cards
  • Time’s Up can test your brain and how you think of possibilities against time
  • In flash cards, there may be action words, though some may be for younger children, it can still give us ideas on words to be used and may be useful in English Composition
  • Scattergories(the card game) can help us by making us think of combinations of words and the possibilities to group the letters(like scrabble) against time.



As we can see, most of the games on top requires us to race against time which will “squeeze our brain juice” and help our brain in thinking faster for ideas.

Sources for the Pictures: http://www.educationallearninggames.com/

http://www.educationallearninggames.com/card-games.asp


What kinds of stuff is fun and interesting for children aged 5 to 8 to learn from toys?


As mentioned above, children who are from the age range of 5 to 8 years old like to play with fun toys. They can learn about the different shapes and also about the sizes of the shapes, as some of this toys include them to fix something using the concept of shapes. They can also learn how to construct things(for more advanced toys).


How would the toys attract the children who are 5 to 8 years old?


They will attract the children who are 5 to 8 years old by giving them the idea that they are fun or letting the children have the idea that toys are fun and they will like to entertain themselves with it. Toys have special features and qualities like having colours to attract the children, having different and movable objects on it to make the children think that they can move them.


For example, toys like remoted control cars and aeroplanes, moving robots can let the children feel like playing with them. Some toys are not remoted and they can be controlled, like water guns, and children at this age will think that they are fun to play with as they will think they can use it to spray water at others.


What does it means by fun and entertainment?


Fun means to enjoy, have pleasure and can make children and people happy and smile. It is describing an activity that people like. It can be through games, learning or recreational activities. Fun also means that there is a time for you to cheer up yourselves and forget or put the problems you have in school or work at a side first so that you will not be unhappy.



Entertainment means having amusement or enjoyment, recreational activities, games, television shows and things you do doing free time that you like and enjoy can be considered entertainment. One example of this is to go to the fun-fair and play or enjoy the activities over there, the tryouts, and another one is to take part in voluntary work or other donation drives to help the needy.



Source: Apple MacBook Dictionary.


It is essential for toys to have these two elements so that it will attract children 5 to 8 years old to play.


What can children learn through toys? Can they learn something meaningful?


They can learn how to deal with different and various strategies for subjects or topics which they learnt in school, like Maths or even innovation and enterprise. Some educational toys or games may even help them to learn about the history of different countries, together with looking at the different countries’ culture and may also help them in Geography. One example of such educational games is the Geography games and puzzles. Yes, of course they can learn something meaningful.


What makes toys fun? Why do children like to play with toys?


Toys are fun as they are enjoyable and entertaining, it give children the enjoyable feeling. It will attract the children and they will want to play with it more. When children are free, they are bored and want to find something to do, that they would like, must be enjoyable. So our toy must b enjoyable and at the same time, enforce some learning into it.


Why are toys said to be associated with children and pets?


Toys are said to be associated with children and pets as there have the main features and qualities which will attract them, especially children. For example, if some toys are specially made for children, which most of them is today, there will most likely have colours on the toys and maybe also the ergonomics and anthropometric of the toy must be able to fit the size of the children’s hands, legs or even the head.


How can the user learn something through fun when they are using the toy?


They can learn the while using the toy, as it might require some thinking skills, like while trying to play the game, solving the problem, they have actually learn something educational. Like a mathematics game, or a creative thinking game and problem solving game that requies critical thinking.

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