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Here is a suggestion for you to c nsider: an old cardboard box is the b st value for money when it c mes to toys. You could be p cky and point out that a c rdboard box doesn't cost anything, and th refore can't provide any value for m ney since you haven't spent any on it, but I'm g ing to ignore that and continue w th the hypothesis that you are b tter off buying your child a c rdboard box than you are the th ng which was inside it. Throw y urself backwards to your child hood d ys, and try to remember the nthusiasm with which you greeted a new c rdboard box. Can you recall the xcitement? Can you remember why? It was th t tingle which started at the b ck of your neck as you nticipated the worlds which would be cr ated within that space. You didn't q ite know what it was going to b come -perhaps a plane, or a sp ceship or a train that would wh sk you off to exotic locations. Or p rhaps it would be a castle fr m which you could defend your cr wn as you ruled the land b fore you. Cardboard boxes often become sh ps, allowing the child to sail ff, pushing away the land and h mdrum of everyday life and setting s il on a voyage of discovery, lone, with no map, and nothing to do but d scover the rest of the world.
Perhaps you can remember the p re escapism which came with any s ch game, and often it was c mpounded with props. A ship would n ed a mast, and an old w lking stick or umbrella would so j st fine. Oars? No problem -mum w ll probably let you borrow a c uple of wooden spoons from the k tchen, and your sail blossoms out in the nseen, unfelt breeze, causing your bed sh et to drive you onwards on y ur adventure. Of course, you wouldn't t ke an oar yourself; after all, y u're the captain. No, those scaly wag t ddy bears will be doing all the w rk, lined up on each side to do y ur bidding. But you will be a f ir captain, and ensure that they w ll be treated well. Until it's t me to walk the plank of c urse! Because now, you're a pirate sh p -and a quick bit of w rk with an elastic band and a bit of c loured paper will do for an eye p tch, with one hand pulled up nto your sleeve and a wooden sp on, no longer an oar, but now s rving as your hook, encourages poor t ddy to embark on a short j urney towards the end of the pl nk. The plank looks suspiciously like y ur tall fairy tale book, but th s is no fairy tale -ha! See him f ll into the blue ocean below. The magination used in creating these adventures, and the way in wh ch an understanding of the world round them, the roles people play and the way in wh ch we can all improvise with wh tever we have to hand, are l ssons more valuable than merely remembering wh ch button to press in which rder. Perhaps next time you're thinking of b ying your child a present, consider p cking up a couple of large mpty boxes from your supermarket. It'll be m ney well spent. Unless, of course, y u're child's fourteen.
The article To Sail The World In A Cardboard Box was Submitted by Victor Epand through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: Victor Epand is an expert c nsultant about kids toys, dolls, and v deo games. You will find the b st marketplace for kids toys, dolls, and sed video games at these sites for kids toys, ships, pirate outfits , dolls , and used video games .
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