Wooden Toy Love

By Howa

February 19, 2021 3 min. reading time

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Parents are increasingly paying attention to sustainable and educationally valuable toys that are free of harmful substances. That is exactly why we love wooden toys. Our children discover their world through play. Wooden toys promote free play and develop motor skills as well as all the senses. They are durable, timeless, and a wonderful natural product.

Wood as a Raw Material

Wood is one of the most important raw materials on our planet because trees store carbon dioxide and produce oxygen. Forests provide habitats for animals and plants and offer us a place for relaxation. With sustainable management, more wood grows in the forests than is harvested. Alongside bones and stones, wood is one of the oldest materials. Thanks to modern technology, there are almost no limits to wood design and processing. However, the natural properties should be used and utilized as best as possible. Wood is a natural product and every piece is unique. At howa, we love wooden toys and stand by this conviction.

You can find lots of information about the raw material wood in the great Wood Explorer booklet:

https://issuu.com/proholz-stmk/docs/holzforscherheft_klein__1_

Why Wooden Toys

Children have always played with wood. Wooden toys are timeless and appeal to all age groups. They are nearly indestructible and durable, so they can often be passed down through generations. Often, wooden toys are simpler in design, leaving more room for ideas and offering fewer constraints. They support children in their development, encourage free play, stimulate imagination, and have a very different physicality compared to, for example, plastic. Solid wood toys are heavier, which intensively challenges motor skills. Wood is simply beautiful. Whether natural or colored, it radiates a certain warmth and charm. It makes living spaces cozier in any form. No piece of wood is like another. Many especially love the nostalgic character of wooden toys. Rocking horses, for example, have existed for centuries. The design changes over the years but conveys the same classic atmosphere.

Experience with All the Senses

Children explore the world with all their senses. Wooden products allow them to experience a unique tactile sensation; they feel different from glass, stone, fabric, and other materials because wood has a wonderful, warm character and a very individual texture in its natural state. Wood always feels warmer than stone and concrete. Small children like to put their toys in their mouths as they explore with all their senses. Here, too, wood is perceived very differently from metal or plastic and also has a distinct smell.

Building Blocks

Children learn playfully for their future lives and acquire various skills in the process. Playing is important and, with the right toys, can promote creativity, abstract thinking, and mathematical intelligence. Building blocks are classic wooden toys and should not be missing in any child's room. For the youngest, larger blocks in different shapes are suitable as they cannot be swallowed. Also, coordination and fine motor skills are not yet fully developed. Therefore, larger blocks provide easier success experiences. These, in turn, motivate further building and strengthen self-confidence. Due to the weight of solid wood, children also gain a different body awareness while playing; motor processes are experienced more consciously and movements are trained. Playing with building blocks gives children an early sense of physical laws, statics, simple geometric shapes, and spatial imagination. It takes a lot of skill and good hand-eye coordination to create imaginative buildings, towers, and worlds.

Wooden Vehicles

Wooden vehicles don’t roll away as easily as plastic cars; they require more effort. They have more mass, and the ratio of strength to weight is optimal. This creates a much more intense interaction with the toy. Additionally, the vehicles are stable and durable. Our construction vehicles combine natural wood with child-safe paint, giving the toys a special charm. Tipping, folding, turning, loading, unloading, and transporting—everything is possible. The construction vehicles can be beautifully combined with various other toys and natural materials. If your child also collects tons of stones, branches, and rubble, these are perfect for transport in the dump truck.