Children need more cardboard boxes and fewer toys

Children need more cardboard boxes and fewer toys

There is no need to overwhelm children with loads of toys to keep them happy. Sometimes a cardboard box is enough to entertain them and set their imagination in motion.

Forget lights, sounds and amazing special effects. For children, all that matters to play is… versatility. If Maria Montessori's books weren't enough, this is confirmed by a study carried out a few years ago by the University of Alabama, which reveals how preschool children are much more attracted to generic and everyday objects than give toys. Such as, a box! The reason? Because they are more versatile.





"The inclusion of generic objects such as sticks or boxes can allow children to extend their play, because generic objects can be used in multiple ways," said lead author Dr. Sherwood Burns-Nader.

Researchers, but we already knew, say that a cardboard box can become almost anything in the mind of a child. On the contrary, a spaceship or a toy car - despite being much more visually appealing - is destined to remain a spaceship or a car, and that's it. And here lies the reason why children, especially the little ones, generally prefer to play with just a simple box.

"Children don't necessarily love the cardboard box more than the toy, but they can do more with the box because it's not limited."

The results of the experiment

The team worked with 66 children and four primary objects: a simple circle, a round object marked to look like a clock, a rectangular object that was not marked, and a rectangular object marked to look like a book.

The children were read a story about a boy named Tommy. Throughout the story, Tommy needed help finding some elements that would help him in the story scenarios. Then they were asked to choose which of the four best suited the object needed in each situation. For example, at one point Tommy wanted to go out and play with his friends, but it was cold and he needed a jacket. His jacket did not have a button, so the children were asked which of the four objects could be a button.

The 66 children - 22 three-year-olds, 22 four-year-olds and 22 five-year-olds - chose the correct form 92% of the time in all scenarios. They also showed a preference for unmarked items, choosing them 65% of the time.



Simple objects, in short, offer more flexibility to children, which can be useful information for parents and educators when choosing toys.

Have you ever thought about it? Sometimes a box and a marker are enough to create magic!


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Source: University of Alabama 

Read also:

  • DIY cardboard houses for children: ideas and tutorials
  • 15 things to do with cardboard boxes that will fill your children with joy
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