Fantasy and sci-fi writer Ursula Le Guin says “The creative adult is the child who survived.” Children are born explorers and every child can explore creatively given the space, time and probably the right materials to explore with.
Parents and educators would love to foster creativity in their children. Often the answer to this lies in more open ended play. Another means to enable this is to give children loose parts to build and create as they like.
Tree slices, cut from the stem of one variety of Ivory wood, ( locally called halle in Kannada) are a perfect example of material that can be used very imaginatively. They are completely open ended, inviting endless ideas and the opportunity to create innovative and original designs.
Basically tree slices are loose parts that can be used in play along with other blocks. Pair them up with Fevicol or a hot glue gun (used under supervision) and they can be an introduction to an open ended DIY for your child. They can also be used by adults for crafting.
These slices come in two variations, one is the plain wooden slices and the other is wooden slices with holes.
The slices can be used to make any creations, from coasters to photo frames, from ornamental décor to a nameplate…you can design to your heart’s content.
The idea of creating slices with holes was to allow for the possibility of hanging them and they’ve been used as Christmas tree ornaments, wind chimes, pendants and even as a canvas to create miniature art.
The tree slices are harvested sustainably as only the small branches from the ivory wood tree are cut to make them and these re-grow easily, leaving the tree intact. So go ahead and use them free of any guilt of cutting down a tree.
Tree slices are now back in stock at the Toyroom. It’s time to unleash your creativity!