Human ecologists look at things from multiple perspectives. Sixty students practiced this approach by examining…toys! They visited the Child Development Lab and noticed what they could learn about toddlers’ developmental milestones and needs by observing how they play with toys. Considerations such as design, trends or popularity of specific toys from across several centuries creates a new lens to think about how young children learn and grow.
Objects like toys are reflective of the culture and time period they were created in. Bringing together two seemingly different subject areas — material culture and early childhood — is an example of instructional innovation. Through this unique collaboration and hands-on learning experience, students gained a stronger ability to think about problems and solutions in new ways.
Amy Lee Wagner (executive director of the Child Development Lab) and Sarah Anne Carter (executive director of the Center for Design and Material Culture and associate professor of Design Studies) discuss the collaboration of their courses in Elizabeth Holloway Schar Hall as students partner up to analyze different types of toys.
Students play with a modern purple hula hoop and a rolling hoop to see what has changed over time in both the construction of the hoops and the developmental milestones needed to engage with the toys.
Students analyze toys from the Transformers franchise and consider how pop culture influences what children interact with.
A student presents the similarities and differences between a modern virtual reality (VR) headset and an early version, called a stereoscope. Stereoscopes allowed the viewer to see two images at the same time, creating a three-dimensional effect. This is the basis for how 3D movies are made today.
Wagner works with two students as they consider the developmental needs and material significance of Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robots, released in 1966.
Elizabeth Holloway Schar (BS Family & Consumer Journalism) is the namesake for this learning space. Her personal commitment to making life better for others was guided by a simple question: “If not now, then when? If not me, then who?’