Perhaps there is no such person in our country who in childhood would not have dealt with plasticine. For many preschool children, it is one of their favorite toys, and even modern gadgets are not always able to distract the kid from this plastic mass. But not only the universal love of kids for plasticine makes parents buy it - it is also useful for development.
However, all these statements are relevant only if, among the huge variety of modern types of this product, we select the optimal one - we will talk about this.
Beneficial features
When a toy has not only an entertaining, but also a developmental function, adults pay double attention to it. Plasticine is a prime example of just such an invention, and there are several reasons for this.
First, this simple product is very promotes the development of fine motor skills of the child's hands... The baby's hands are very weak, and the awkwardness in any of his movements is noticeable to the naked eye. In order to normally use his hands to solve everyday tasks that seem completely simple to us, he will have to first pump up his muscles - special exercises could help him in this.
Of course, it is impossible to force a child to regularly perform exercises on a daily basis, and the required will be achieved by itself - in the process of playing without a specific purpose. However, plasticine, in itself also being a game, is at the same time a kind of exercise. That is why experts in child development recommend purchasing plasticine for babies even at an age when they are clearly not yet ready to create masterpieces, after all, you need to start with the simplest - with the preparation of the muscles of the hands.
Even if the usual kneading of plasticine in hands is beneficial to a small child, then in the future this material is able to take the control of your own fingers to a whole new level. Sooner or later the moment will come when the child will try not just to abstractly crush a piece of mass, but to give it a shape that resembles something from the surrounding world - even if he does not think of it himself, parents or kindergarten teachers will tell him.
This task is already an order of magnitude more difficult, but it develops precise finger movements, in addition, it is more interesting.
Secondly, serious successes achieved in complex exercises with plasticine can push a child at least temporarily to embark on the path of creativity. Creativity is not the kind of knowledge that needs to be crammed into a child by force, but the opportunity to try himself in it should be guaranteed to every kid, and absolutely should not be hindered if he is interested and succeeds.
Moreover, in this situation, parents are obliged to contribute to expanding opportunities for classes, since they can be an excellent method of self-realization.
Agree: it is always pleasant when everyone praises you for your ability to do something that most people around you cannot do, and for a child, praise is especially important. In addition, if the baby is not deprived of talent, and will work hard for years - not at the insistence of the parents, but of his own free will - it is possible that over time he will achieve wide recognition and success in society, not to mention the bonus in the form of a confident financial condition ...
Great sculptors, too, did not create their masterpieces the first time, and this activity develops creative thinking very well, so it can lead to not quite connected industries - for example, to design.
Thirdly, plasticine sculpting has many other small advantages. For example, a kid who is busy with modeling, at least is not doing something harmful at the moment, but could stick his fingers into the outlet, try to break something, and so on.
Against the backdrop of sharp criticism of the growing popularity of modern gadgets among children, up to the formation of addiction, plasticine in the early stages of life can show the baby that the world exists not only in the digital dimension. Child psychologists also tend to consider plasticine an excellent sedative.
History of creation
As often happens, plasticine was originally created not for the purpose that eventually came to be considered the main one. However, even now it successfully performs, among other things, those tasks for which it was once specially created, however, the children, for whom the absolutely predominant part of it is graduated in our time, at first had nothing to do with it.
It all started with an Englishman William Herbutt. Even in his youth, the young man decided to devote himself to art and received an appropriate education, but later he engaged not in actual practice, but in teaching students what he loved. Apparently, he really had talent and loved his job, since he quickly gained a reputation as an excellent teacher, and was even able to open his own school of the corresponding profile, which enjoyed a good reputation.
Herbutt, in the process of teaching, drew attention to one point that very much prevented his students from achieving new heights, namely, the too fast solidification of clay, which at that time was the main teaching material for future sculptors. While his students at the initial stages performed simple tasks, everything was fine, but when he taught a series of more complex sculptural forms, the students simply did not have time to finish the sculpture during one lesson.
The unfinished product had time to dry out before work on it was continued, and new soft parts did not stick well to the hardened surface, virtually preventing the craftsman from interrupting during the work.
If Harbutt didn’t like his job, he would have left the solution to the students, but he loved his job, so he decided to try to find a way to prevent the clay from solidifying quickly. History has not preserved the exact number of compounds he tried, but it is believed that there were hundreds of them. After years of testing and comparison, Herbutt came to the conclusion that a mixture of chalk, petroleum jelly and stearic acid met his requirements.
The resulting substance had a consistency suitable for sculpting educational sculptures, but not temporary, but permanent, at the same time it was non-toxic, and even allowed reuse, because under mechanical stress it easily took a different shape, and even melted with slight heating.
In 1897, Harbutt first distributed his invention to students, called Plasticine (the modern English name for plasticine), seeing in it at that time only a textbook. However, rumors about the new material quickly spread in the creative environment and reached the already formed sculptors who, before creating masterpieces, wanted to practice on more malleable materials, so they began to turn to Herbutt with requests to give them some of this mixture.
But if adults perceived it more as a means, albeit for a simplified, but still only one of many methods of sculpting, especially far from eternal sculptures, then the new invention led children into indescribable delight. By that time, Harbutt already had his own grandchildren, and in his house he could clearly see how the kids relate to such a toy.
Realizing that his invention claims to be a genius, he patented his recipe along with the name, and two years later began industrial production of the mass - now painted in different colors with a clear focus on children.
In the future, many developers made their own additions to the recipe of the mixture, achieving new properties, as a result of which today we have many types of plasticine for a variety of needs - from children's creativity to engineering design.
What should be children's plasticine?
Since plasticine, as we found out, can be used in various fields where different characteristics are important, it turns out that not every type of it is suitable for children. But even of those varieties that are aimed directly at babies, there are more and less quality ones. If the mixture is purchased specifically for children's creativity, it is better that the following properties are inherent in it:
- Softness and plasticity... Too hard plasticine is not suitable, if only because the baby with his small weak hands will not be able to sculpt it, or he will be forced to make great efforts for this, which is unlikely to help interest the child. At the same time, it must have a high enough density to keep its shape well.
- Stickiness to oneself. The child should be able to create his creations not only from a single piece of mass, but also from separate small pieces, and for this it is necessary that they stick well together.
- Lack of stickiness to other objects... Older people may be surprised, but plasticine does not have to stick to your hands, and also contaminate clothes and furniture. Many modern species are completely devoid of this negative quality. Of course, this advice is more important not for children, but for parents, but it is the latter who choose it.
- Mixing colors. The more plasticine in the set of colors, the better, since this is the only way to fully develop the baby's imagination. No set has an infinite number of colors, but the problem is solved by mixing different shades in different proportions. Unfortunately, with cheap varieties of the mixture, not everything is so simple - often mixing them does not give the result expected from drawing lessons, but a certain mass of obscure color.
- Safety... Of course, plasticine should be completely non-toxic - manufacturers write about this on the packaging. Experts also argue that, contrary to popular fashion, it is better not to buy plasticine with a "tasty" smell - the child may want to try the mixture, and although it is not poisonous, it can block the respiratory tract.
Features of the chemical composition
The original type of plasticine, created by William Herbutt, was completely non-toxic, however, over time, manufacturers began to significantly change the composition of the mixture - some to obtain new, more interesting qualities, and some in a banal attempt to reduce the price of the product.
Sometimes this even contradicts the use of mass for children's creativity, because when in contact with hands, the substance may be safe, but only children like to pull everything into their mouths, and they no longer even have to try to swallow the mass in order to make problems for themselves. In short, progress does not always move in the right direction, and parents should be careful.
Before buying, pay attention to the composition written on the package, and if it is not indicated, think about whether it is worth purchasing such a product at all. The normal ingredients for modern plasticine are clay, ceresin, wax, industrial oil and dyes. The latter, by the way, are a very vague concept, because they are both organic and harmless, and dangerous chemistry.
If the coloring matter is described as natural, plasticine with a similar composition can be safely bought.
However, the components may be different, and not even necessarily harmful. For example, the famous plasticine Play-Doh has an impressive ecological approach - it is formulated with water, salt, wheat flour and naturally occurring dyes and binders. Obviously, such a product, even when fully eaten, will not bring harm, however, the manufacturer did not release it for this purpose, so he made sure that the children did not like it to their taste - for this they simply oversalted it.
However, far more often manufacturers use far less innocuous alternatives to conventional ingredients, namely, synthetic solvent, silicone thickener, artificial flavor, and so on. We will not argue that the listed components are necessarily harmful, however, they clearly do not have a full-fledged analogue in nature, and parents, unless they have special education, will not be able to determine the degree of safety of such a substance for a child.
By the way, experts advise paying attention to the smell - almost all flavors are of synthetic origin, and if plasticine has an unpleasant, obviously not specially made aroma, then this is a hundred percent indicator of harmfulness.
Varieties of modeling tools: advantages and disadvantages
The modern variety of plasticine options allows you to make a choice taking into account the subtlest wishes of the client, because different types have completely different specifics. Some mixtures, by the way, are not plasticine in the literal sense, and are not even called by this word, however, due to a similar purpose and for classification purposes, they can be considered its varieties. Consider what manufacturers offer today.
Magic
Of course, we are not talking about any magical properties, but the trademark is called that way, and the peculiarity of such plasticine is that it does not dry out. This is an excellent acquisition not for those kids who already demonstrate real talent and want to create eternal masterpieces, but for beginner beginners who are just learning and so far have little strength to knead the mass on their own. The non-hardening plasticine in their hands will turn into something new every day!
Plasticine that freezes in air
This variety is the complete opposite of the previous one, since products from it freeze in the open air for just a day to such an extent that reuse is completely impossible. Because of this peculiarity, this mixture is in no way applicable for training, because it will no longer be possible to remake an unsuccessful figure or make another one out of it.
However, it was not designed for this either - it is made for those children who clearly know how to sculpt and want their creativity to be preserved for a long time. In our country, such or similar products have received other names - for example, sculptural plasticine or velvet plastic.
Smart
Also known as handgam or hand gum. This strange substance is not very suitable for creating figures, and to a greater extent is a kind of fine motor skills trainer. Its essence is that it is able to turn into a liquid by itself (without heating, under the influence of gravity), and then solidify again, this substance also adheres perfectly to itself, but in high-quality sets it does not leave the slightest marks on hands or clothes ...
It is actively used even by adults as an anti-stress and “time killer”, but children have already appreciated this method of application.
Ball, or grainy
In general, in properties it is similar to an ordinary one, but it is not a homogeneous mass, but separate small balls of a certain color. It looks very bright and attractive, it is often used not as an independent material for crafts, but as an aesthetic decoration for them - for example, they are often covered with figures from classical plasticine.
Leaping
It is rather not a kind of mass, but a property that can be inherent in any of the types already mentioned.A product made of it, falling from a height, does not deform, like classical plasticine, and does not even break up into pieces, but bounces like a ball, which is why the mixture received another name - rubber plasticine.
Floating
This look should appeal to those children who like to swim in the bathtub with their toys, since products from it do not sink. Consumers praise it for its special softness, which allows children to use it with any hand strength, but often negative opinions about this type can be found - they say that it molds relatively poorly.
Top manufacturers
Today, there are many plasticine manufacturers on the market, and their products, of course, are not the same in quality and properties. It should be immediately noted that the well-known domestic brands "Luch" and "Gamma" usually collect mostly negative reviews - this is a classic old-school plasticine, poorly mixed in color and very easily soiled. If we talk about more popular brands, then the following are usually distinguished:
- Play-Doh. If you have children and are actively interested in related subjects, you simply must know what Hasbro is, which produces billions of toys adored by children around the world. It is this company that owns the authorship of this brand and it is impossible to find fault with such plasticine, because it is not just natural, but even made from edible ingredients.
Minus - one, but bold: all the company's products are very expensive, and plasticine is no exception.
- Koh-I-Noor. The famous Czech brand made a name for itself mainly on pencils, but it positions itself as “goods for creativity”, so they also have plasticine. The most adequate comment is good ordinary plasticine, without any impressive properties, but without any reason for criticism. Soft, good for small children.
- "Tiny". As you can see, Russian brands are capable of surprising not only in the bad direction. Plasticine of this brand is especially soft, it is not something that will succumb to weak children's hands - you can even draw with it! Thanks to this, the child can discover a completely new way of drawing, creating three-dimensional paintings, the relief of which, if necessary, can be corrected directly by hand.
- Play Art. This company focused on the release of the so-called 3D plasticine, which is easy to mold and does not get dirty, and already 24 hours after modeling, it finally solidifies and takes on a permanent shape. The material is actually intended for the independent creation of toys, which, by the way, do not break upon impact, but spring, which allows you to make even a full-fledged ball. The set contains colored plasticine, which can be mixed to obtain new shades, but the creators indicate that after hardening, the product can also be painted in any way possible.
- Erich Krause... Another popular brand for modeling, which is chosen for the brightness of the colors and the relatively low price with acceptable quality. It is noted that for all the budget, the manufacturer did not forget to wrap each bar separately; in many sets there is also a stack for modeling. Of the shortcomings, they indicate hardness that is too high for a preschooler.
- Art berry... In principle, this product is also released by the company described in the previous paragraph, but it is a completely different type of product - this is a plant-based dough, which solidifies within 24 hours. Such a dough has a bright color and is excellent for horizontal sculpting, but a complex vertical shape, especially a composite one, does not hold well. Over time, a very dry dough begins to crumble, so even a figurine made from it will not last forever, and it will not work to restore elasticity with water.
This solution is not for sculpting, but for playing with special molds, which are also included in the kit. For this reason, his goal is not creativity, but rather the entertainment of the little ones.
Interesting sets and accessories for children
Given the variety of types and purposes of plasticine, modern manufacturers are already completing their sets not only with the actual mass for modeling, but also with various interesting additions.
For the smallest child
Here it is better to choose plasticine of natural origin, 10 colors for the first time will be quite enough. Such a mixture is often, in fact, dough, and it is officially called that, therefore, not having a solid stable shape, it is sold in separate jars, which, by the way, in sets, by the way, may even be even less - up to 3 colors, or even by the piece ...
In terms of the method of application, such a product is somewhat reminiscent of sand from a sandbox, but, unlike the latter, it often dries up over time and begins to crumble without the possibility of restoring plasticity, so it must be immediately removed into a container every time it is not played.
Creativity in the direction
Some kits offer creativity in the direction given by the creators. The set may include special molds that allow you to easily and very believably sculpt certain characters, in addition to which there are various plastic play accessories. Sometimes plasticine allows external coloring of the finished figure - then sometimes templates for drawing are also supplied in the kit.
This kind of complex creativity in the mass dimension is more interesting for girls, but sets with a boy's theme are also sold.
For children of primary school age
But for children of primary school age who demonstrate a certain giftedness, it is worth choosing material with a large space for creativity. 12 colors may already be not enough, but 24 will allow the child to choose the optimal shade or very accurately create his own, not to mention the fact that a wide palette automatically means a large amount of material.
However, there may be only one color - white or black, however, then such plasticine needs to be painted after hardening. Although the latter option seems less interesting than modeling from colored plasticine, it allows you to create much more complex and believable images.
Modern modeling options
It so happens that children simply do not know what to try to mold from plasticine. The dog remains an eternal theme, but you won't always sculpt the same thing, because many children quickly lose interest in the process. If the child has talent, but he is a little tired of him, and you do not want the kid to give up modeling or just want to increase the child's interest in this activity, tell him that not only a classic, but also any new character can be a source of inspiration.
If plasticine is one that freezes over time, the child could try to mold new toys for himself on his own. Inspiration can be both those toys that he already has, and those that he only dreams of. This is a good motivation for those children who have favorite cartoon characters, whose figures are not sold in our country.
Of course, the task is by no means an easy one, so the parents will probably have to help the baby in creating the figurine, but on the other hand, imagine the child's joy if the result really turns out to be great.
Girls are more prone to such complex creations, but there are fewer characters suitable for their interests - these are typical princesses (for example, Elsa from "Frozen" or characters from any other Disney cartoons), as well as ponies from the famous franchise My Little Pony. The boys' sphere of interests looks somewhat broader, although a significant part of their favorite characters can be appreciated by girls.
Since the boy needs something more courageous, you can blind, for example, Shrek, and if you choose an example to follow from among really new plots, try to recreate monsters in plasticine from FNaF - Five Nights at Freddy's, another very popular children's cartoon of recent years.
For information on how to choose safe plasticine, see the next video.
