Since ancient times, people have realized the need for toys for the development of a child. At first they were miniature copies of real objects. So, for girls, toys were of a domestic nature, for boys objects of hunting and agriculture were created. Later they were an entertaining thing. Also, it was through toys that one could observe the cultural characteristics of each people.
History of toys
Archaeologists have repeatedly found various toys at the excavation sites. For example, in ancient Egypt, carved wooden figures of animals were discovered. They depicted cats, cows, dogs, tigers, etc. Also, types of toys with moving parts of the body were found, which indicates a complex design of the product. Similar items were found in large numbers on the site of Pompeii, Greece and Rome. In addition to figures, various rattles and rattles were popular there. It was believed that their noise drives away evil spirits from the baby.
During excavations in Siberia, a large number of animal figures were discovered, such as a mammoth, a rhino, and a tiger. It is amazing, but despite the time of creation, they were executed with tremendous accuracy. And on the territory of Ukraine were found objects made of soft stone and mammoth tusks. Archaeologists have estimated that the age of the finds dates back to about the past era.
We should also talk about dolls. Their first prototypes were found in ancient Egypt. In ancient Rome and ancient Greece, they had a special role: before marriage, the girl played them, and then sacrificed to the goddess of love. After such a ritual, it was believed that the union would be especially strong.
Middle Ages and further development
It is not known for certain how toys developed in the Middle Ages. But the word "toy" itself originated and became widespread in the Renaissance. The ancestor country is considered France. It was there that caring mothers sewed pieces of fabric and filled them with straw, forming small dolls. Already in the XVI century, various types of children's toys began to be made to order and sold. But since they were made a piece goods, they cost a lot of money, therefore they were available only to the aristocrat. Dolls at that time often acted as mannequins for fashionable clothes. Their mass production appeared only in the 19th century.
Types of soft toys became diverse after the development of industrial production. Then there was a fashionable tendency to print various patterns of toys in women's magazines. So, in 1879, a resident of a German town, chained to a wheelchair, sewed several Christmas gifts to her nephews. Wonderful little animals gained fame among their neighbors, and soon orders fell on Margaret. After some time, she was able to open a workshop where she worked with her sisters. A few years later she already founded a factory where many types of toys were created.
Creating a popular beast
Few people know, but this character did not appear immediately. Margaret has patented a soft toy in the shape of a teddy bear. His peculiarity was that he rested on four legs. A year later, a teddy bear appeared, which forever went down in history and became popular among children. Its feature was the combination of an articulated doll and a soft toy.
Why did the bear become Teddy?
Everyone knows that the teddy bear is called Teddy by default. Where did this tradition come from? Since the birthplace of the bear was Germany, one of the Russian emigrants took the amusing toy to the United States and placed it in the store window. Visitors were delighted with the news, and offers with orders rained down on the bench. Therefore, the owners of the store started the production of bears and asked permission to call them Teddy. Then the president was Roosevelt.
In parallel with this, the story about how the president refused to shoot a bear, who was specially brought to him, gained popularity in the newspapers. He justified this by saying that hunting should be fair - you, the gun and the beast. Then everyone has equal chances.
Porcelain dolls
Some dolls did not literally become toys. For example, porcelain became more a subject of decor and gained fame among adult collectors. The mass production of such copies worsened their quality, so only beauties made in a single copy were valuable. Such dolls possessed individual facial features, names, unique clothes. The master devoted a lot of time to creating his brainchild.
Having become a collectible, porcelain dolls turned into characters of creepy stories, as it was believed that a striking resemblance to real people makes them a receptacle for demons or evil spirits.
Their minus is the severity and fragility of the material. Therefore, such products can not be considered a full-fledged toy for children. Masters still make porcelain dolls in small print runs or in a single copy.
Special toys for the Slavic people
Every nation in the world has its own special toys. For example, a nesting doll has long been considered a symbol of Russia. In fact, it appeared among the Slavs only at the end of the 19th century and served as a prototype of the Japanese hollow toy with inset figures. They were amulets from evil forces. As a result, the Russian craftsmen Konovalov and Zvezdochkin created a red-cheeked girl. But in fact, the types of folk toys in Russia are not limited to nested dolls. For example, the very first fun for a newborn baby is rattles and rattles. For their manufacture, poppy heads and dry peas were used. Two halves were molded of clay, peas or a head were put inside, and after part were fastened. The ratchets were made even simpler: wooden plates were fastened to the handle, which during rotation began to creak and make noise. Such devices were important for introducing the kid to the world of sounds.
What types of toys were popular in Russia? For girls they made rag dolls. They are very different from modern specimens. They can not be considered native Russian, since dolls were of all nationalities, but in Russia they had their own characteristics. They were made of straw and rags.
In Ukraine, such a toy was called a motanka, in Russia - a twist. The doll was not so much fun for the child as a talisman for him. Therefore, her mother traditionally did it, reading special conspiracies. A feature of rag dolls was the absence of a face. It may seem to some that the reason for this is the laziness of the master. In fact, this was due to superstition: the eyes can “jinx” the child, since, by painting the face, a person can endow an object with an evil spirit. Psychologists are convinced that such a doll without a face gives an excellent impetus to the development of imagination. Another belief was related to the ban on the use of piercing and cutting objects in the manufacture of dolls. Since it should be done with love, so the rags just tore their hands.
It is noteworthy that until seven years old the types of toys for children were the same. That is, both girls and boys played with dolls. Children up to this age did not share on the floor and wore the same shirts to the toes. Later, the boys put on pants, and the girls - dresses. It is interesting that there was no “mother-daughter” game, but there was a “wedding”, where the branch played the role of the groom. So the girls were preparing for their future marriage.
With the development of pottery, there are still types of toys for children. While men were engaged in the manufacture of household utensils, women sculpted cute figures for babies. After sculpting, they were burned in an oven and fully functional toys were obtained. Colorfully painted, they fascinated the child for a long time. Mostly clay was made of soldiers, animals and compositions (weddings, tea parties, etc.). Over time, some special clay toys appeared in some regions of Russia .
Clay toys
So, the authentic type of toys for Russia is Dymkovo. They were created in the city of Vyatka. Initially, these were animal whistles. But later on they didn’t sculpt anyone from red clay! There were horsemen, and animals, and mistresses. A bright palette of colors, unforgettable motifs made this type of toy a brand of Russia. The most commonly used characters are rams, turkeys, nannies with children, deer, buffoons and much more.
Many types of toys were based on someone else's ideas. So, the residents of the village of Kargopol slightly altered the Dymkovo specimens and came up with their toys. Their peculiarity was that the figures wore traditional clothes, and mythical animals appeared, for example, centaurs and fauns. They were also dressed in national costumes.
In the Tula region, they came up with toys, the hallmark of which was a three-color coloring. Most often these were green, yellow and crimson colors. Also, all characters had a very long neck. Scenes with a mother who had an animal and a child in her arms were most often used as plots.
Folk toys
Every nation has its own unique toys. For example, Nenets children had fun with dolls in national costumes. They did not have ears, eyes and faces, since it was believed that with such organs the doll would take away the soul of the child. The realism of the toy was not welcomed, since it could come to life and kill the child.
A special place in Japan is occupied by such types of toys as kokeshi and Daruma. Kokeshi is a wooden doll. Her body was cylindrical in shape and her head was round. The whole body was covered with patterns. Daruma is a tumbler doll, the personification of Bodhidharma, the deity of fortune. It is made of wood or papier-mâché, has no arms and legs. According to legend, the limbs atrophied after nine years of meditation. The tradition of making a wish is associated with Daruma. Having formulated it, you need to draw a pupil to the chrysalis. It takes a year to keep it in a conspicuous place, and if the wish comes true, the second eye is finished on the chrysalis, and if not, it is burned. So it will be clear to the deity that other ways of fulfilling desire are sought.
New Year's and Christmas
In addition to toys for children, during the history of the existence of mankind, special traditions have developed for decorating sacred trees. This practice was also among the pagans, who performed rituals and donations. In the modern world, we cannot imagine life without Christmas trees. Christmas decorations were popular, the types of which were not limited to balls. For example, in the Middle Ages, a green beauty was decorated with products: waffles, sweets, fruits, etc. It had a religious basis. So, apples were a symbol of the forbidden fruit that was picked by Eve. Waffles belong to the sacrament. Later, a tradition appeared to decorate the Christmas tree with paper figures.
In Germany, types of Christmas toys were invented: Christmas balls of different colors, garlands, angels. But it was entertainment for rich people. Fashion for balls came in the 19th century. The first specimens were made of glass and covered with a lead solution, which made them strong but heavy. Later, the craftsmen learned to blow thin glass balls. Then they began to be painted and covered with patterns.
In war times, toys were made with their own hands, the types of which were extremely diverse. So, from flasks and beakers, a star was easily constructed. And from the paper parachutists were created. On postcards they painted Santa Claus, which kills enemies.
Types of educational toys for preschool children
In recent decades, it has become popular to engage in early child development. Methods and manuals are being developed, shops offer a wide range of products on the topic. For example, for the development of motor skills it is useful to sculpt and draw. This requires only paper, paints, pencils, plasticine. On the Internet you can find a wide variety of classroom materials. Do not try to teach a child an academic drawing from a young age, so you only turn away from classes. Psychologists urge to use as a tool for applying paint not only brushes, but also your own fingers, foam sponges, etc.
Not so long ago in Russia there was a novelty - "kinetic sand". Having the physical properties of sand, it can be molded into different figures, as it does not crumble. This material is toxic and not harmful to children.
It is also important to use ordinary cubes for the development of spatial imagination. They come in different sizes, colors, with or without drawings, they can build houses and turrets. Since the types of wooden toys are diverse, the cubes are one of them. It is an environmentally friendly and safe material, and also pleasant to the touch. Another alternative for one-year-olds is soft cubes. They are easy to shift, compress, they will not cripple the child. But at the same time, their danger is that the child does not form a logical connection between shape and weight. There is a kind of cubes that need to be folded in a certain sequence and get a picture. They can be marked with letters, which allows them to be used in teaching reading.
The main types of toys for physical education
It is difficult to argue that in addition to spiritual education it is necessary to give physical. After all, health has been established since childhood, and in the nature of the child it is natural to desire to move. For this, sports toys are used. For example, hoops and balls are needed for the development of general motility, and a rope - for endurance. They also include scooters, bicycles, etc. We should also mention games such as table football and the like.
It is equally popular to arrange various kinds of sports complexes in the child’s room. So he can give out his activity and exercise physically. As a rule, complexes consist of rings, the Swedish wall, ropes. It all depends on the size of the room. Any toys of this group are aimed at the development of physical data. So, the game "towns", whose task is to bring down a bat structure from dice, is aimed at the development of the eye.
Theatrical and musical toys
Already in ancient times, people clearly realized that different types of children's toys solved different problems. For example, musical toys were created to develop special hearing. They are used during children's parties and in an independent game. They can be miniatures of real objects: xylophones, metallophones, drums, etc. For the development of speech, it is considered useful to play a certain rhythm on them and ask the child to repeat it.
There are also plot musical toys. For example, if you perform certain actions with the subject, a melody will play. Some types of soft toys are equipped with a miniature player. Pressing the button will play the song. In recent years, due to the large abundance of counterfeit products, these types of toys are more likely to be harmful, since they do not meet the quality criteria: aesthetics, production from good materials and harmony.
Separately, it is worth mentioning theatrical types of toys. They can be puppets, bibabo, story figures, etc. The peculiarity is that using them, you can create a small representation. At the same time, experts do not recommend using them in everyday life, since they should be associated with the holiday.
Constructors and stuff
There are different types of toys, photos of which can be seen in the article. For the development of spatial imagination, it is useful to use designers and building materials. Technical vehicles include various vehicles, household items such as cameras or telescopes. They can be equipped with small motors and engines, which makes the subject fascinating for children.
Hand made
Despite the wide range of products in stores, it is still popular to make toys with your own hands. Their views are diverse. They can be created for theatrical performances, role-playing games and other needs. They can be skillfully executed, and can be made with a quick hand. Also, the creation of toys is used in the activities of students to educate the skill of creation.
When choosing toys, remember that they must be made of quality material. Do not save on children, as in the best case a cheap toy will break, and in the worst it will harm the child (low-quality materials can be toxic). Choose trusted stores.
From an early age, the child should be surrounded by toys, since his main activity in preschool age is play. Different types of toys allow him to develop comprehensively. It is useful to periodically hide some objects and get others, then they don’t get bored with the child. Also remember that for a certain age their toys are selected.