Business board for a boy: what is it and how to make it yourself?
Kids are interested not only in toys, but also in objects around them, including those that pose a danger: sharp objects, sockets, and so on. A teacher from Italy, Maria Montessori, suggested creating business boards for kids - developing structures in the form of boards with various elements and details, just like in real life, but absolutely not posing a danger to crumbs. We will tell you how to make a business board yourself for boys of different ages.
Features and varieties
A business board is a "smart" board for a child to learn about the world. On this board, you can fix everything that interests the baby at a certain age, and with his growth, the business board can be supplemented with new elements and mechanisms.
This is a mobile structure on which objects move, rotate, open and close, make noise, make sounds, glow, blink, they can click, and so on. But the most important thing is a safe device that gives the child a real idea of the surrounding objects.
A business board not only satisfies the curiosity of the child, allows him to personally experience the world (without adult intermediaries), but also provides development in a playful way - something that, according to psychologists, is a very important moment in the formation of children's perception.
A feature of this design is that the child learns the surrounding space and develops through his own trial and error., and parents should only create safe conditions for him for this, provide him with freedom and provide him with the necessary objects for learning the world.
Business boards for boys can be of different themes:
- domestic;
- on plumbing;
- automotive business;
- marine themes and other areas.
Depending on the topic, the “smart” stand is filled with appropriate accessories. Boys like to deal with nuts, tighten screws, click locks, twist various mechanisms - depending on age, the content changes and can become thematic.
But from a very young age, be sure to find a place on the business board for a switch and an outlet. - this is what attracts babies first of all.
They love to touch the handsets, spin the dial from the old phone model - find these items and bring such joy to the baby.
An unforgettable delight is the game with the bicycle bell, opening and closing doors - attach such a small door with a latch. Buttons, cords, pieces of rope, mechanisms of lamps and lanterns - everything will appeal to curious researchers.
What are the benefits of such exciting activities for children? Let's outline the main points.
- They develop fine motor skills of the hands due to new tactile sensations.
- They develop logic and thinking: the child, through his own inferences, concludes how a particular mechanism works. For example, to open a door, you need to remove the latch.
- They develop perseverance and patience: the child wants to complete the process of opening the lock or tying the ribbon in order to see the result. So the kid will learn to bring the job started to the end.
- Concentration of attention, development of memory and acquisition of experience - all together help the child to memorize actions and further bring them to automatism.
According to the idea of the author of the methodology, the Italian teacher Montessori, parents should not interfere with the child's play with the construction of a business board. The child must find the right way out on his own, draw conclusions, gain new experience and consolidate his success.
Depending on age, business boards are made from a fabric base with a soft filler, or "props" are installed on plywood, a piece of board, or attached to plastic. Also, such designs come in different shapes, they can be two-sided.
When the child has already learned all the details and is bored with the same thing (this is easy to notice), replace with other elements, let him “touch” completely new and unknown objects. The child will immediately show interest again, and for some time he will study them, comprehend and gain new experience.
What to choose for children of different ages?
For the first time, children can be given a business board when they are already sitting steadily (about 8-9 months). It can be a soft pillow or rug with permanently sewn on colorful details and pictures. With age, the product is modernized. Consider options for different age categories.
1 year
At 1 year old, offer the baby a game with buttons (choose large copies and sew them well to the base of the business board - this is important!). For a one-year-old toddler, use a soft base to make a smart board. Diversify the developmental design with various ribbons, volumetric figures of the "edible-not edible" type, thematic pictures about clothes, animals, the natural world.
2 years
By the age of two, give the opportunity to play with an already solid board, but round the corners at the board - nothing should disturb the child. You can also take it with lace-up sneakers, draw attention to books, pencils. Decorate the structure in the form of a house, castle or car with windows and doors. To enhance hearing acuity at this age, elements that emit noise are required.
3-4 years
Preschoolers can cope with more difficult tasks. Install them a business board on the entire wall of the children's room. In addition to small details, diversify the development board with large elements, and also add pictures with numbers, letters, syllables. You can make a thematic design, so, at this age, boys are interested in the topic of travel and pirates. They will be fascinated by the game with a compass, steering wheel and marine life.
5-6 years old
A five-year-old boy is no longer so interested in developing boards, for him thematic business boards are more useful. They should be large and represent the structure of, for example, a ship, car, or steam locomotive. The design is based on the theme, parents can take into account the interests of the child and fulfill his desire to become, for example, a firefighter or a captain. Young men at this age are attracted by various tools. Well, the closer you get to school, do not forget to draw attention to your studies.
Making simple options
It will not be difficult to make a development board for a child with your own hands, and this does not require much effort. It is enough to understand what size the business board will be and what to install on it. There are a lot of master classes and step-by-step instructions on how to make the design yourself, on the Internet, but you take into account the interests and preferences of your child, proceed from your own capabilities. We offer some simple ideas for making business boards.
Development board
You can assemble a developing board for a boy in a few hours, and for this you do not need to buy anything on purpose. An old remote control, a calculator, an old-style mobile phone (clamshell), harnesses, cords, various mechanisms and curly details - all this will certainly delight the young researcher.
And even for a sheet of plywood, you don't have to go to the store, use a ready-made board - part of the old furniture. It is already sanded, painted and does not pose a danger to the baby. You only need self-tapping screws to secure the parts.
For older children, the business board can be diversified with various puzzles by creating labyrinths on the structure.
Bilateral
The simplest version of a double-sided bodyboard is a design that folds like a book. Take 2 machined boards of equal size, fasten them together with furniture hinges, connect them together with a free chain so that it allows the "book" to unfold and at the same time stand steadily.
Seal one side with household items (sockets, switches, elements of lighting devices, a key holder, and so on), and give the other under clothes. Collect everything that the little man has to deal with in an independent life: let him learn to unfasten and fasten zippers, buttons, tie laces and use pockets (attach a piece from an old jacket).
Suitcase shape
The main rule when playing with business boards is safety. An ordinary board must be attached to a stable support (wall, tree, if it is a construction for outdoor entertainment, and so on). But if you want variety for the child, make a business board in the shape of a suitcase with a handle (you can also on wheels).
Assemble the product using self-tapping screws from plywood rectangular pieces.
Place the necessary elements and leave a few loops free so that the child himself can complement the development board. Make a handle to make it easy to move.
Such a suitcase can be stuffed with interactive elements, you can easily hide a power supply unit for lighting in it.
Small house
The business board house will surely delight the child. Prepare plywood sheets and cut 4 squares for the walls and 4 rectangles for the roof. To make the house stable, choose plywood at least 10 millimeters thick.
It is imperative to sandpaper all the edges and surfaces of the parts in order to avoid troubles (in the form of a driven splinter or scratches) during the child's play.
Using the ring screws, connect the frame and start decorating the developing house.
It would be nice to make an opening window and a door with locks in it. You can cut out all the holes with a jigsaw, even if it turns out unevenly, it's not scary, the main thing is to putty the rough places. When assembling the house, make one wall removable - this will make it easier to attach objects, and, if necessary, repair them.