The basket of treasures is a play proposal created by Elinor Goldschmied (1910-2009), an English psychopedagogist and educator.
It is suitable for children from the age of 6 months, when they can sit comfortably and begin to interact with the world, observing it and wanting to grasp what is around them... but at the same time it happens that the child complains, as if bored. Of course, mothers can't spend all their time entertaining children... so the treasure basket becomes an interesting opportunity as it collects and provides a rich variety of common objects chosen to stimulate all the senses, which are rapidly evolving in this period of growth.
None of the objects placed in the basket can be defined as 'toys' and can be easily found in the home environment.
Being very different and diverse materials, they allow children
- to make discoveries about weight, size, materials, noises, smells...
- to look, grasp, suck (as the material is prepared by you, it can be washed), touch, shake, tap...
- to concentrate, even for a long time, on objects, even discarding what does not interest him;
- to exercise his growing manual skills.
The adult's role
The adult prepares the basket, sets it up in an accessible corner of the house, proposes it to the child... and then stays near or around - almost passively - to provide the right security, his support (more moral than material) during this new experience of discovery.
In addition, a fundamental active role played by the adult is to frequently renew the contents of the basket (whenever the child begins to show less interest in part of the content and periodically, adapting and expanding the child's possibilities of discovery!), so as to always offer new discoveries and new stimuli... we are talking about a 'treasure' that must be discovered each time!
How the basket is made up
We offer an excerpt from the book People from zero to three years, in which Goldschmied lists the materials that make up the basket of treasures
None of the objects we list are plastic and none are bought: they are mostly used every day by adults in every home. The aim of this collection is to offer maximum interest through:
- touch: texture, shape, weight
- smell: variety of odours
- taste: more limited scope, but possible
- hearing: ringing, rattling, crackling
- sight: colour, shape, length, shine
- the sensation of the body in motion
Natural objects: pine cones of different sizes; large pebbles; shells; small dried gourds; large chestnuts; large feathers; pumice stone; large corks; avocado stones: large nuts; pieces of luffa (natural fibra used for bathing); a small natural sponge; a lemon; an apple
Objects made of natural materials: woollen ball; small baskets; ring made of bone (like "ossi buco"); shoehorn made of bone; a straw coaster; wooden nailbrush; toothbrush; shaving brush; shoe brush; painter's brush; bamboo bag handles; make-up brush.
Wooden objects: small boxes lined with velvet; small drum with a wooden frame; different kinds of rattles; bamboo fish; unpainted castanets; clothes pegs of two kinds; large infilled coloured beads; cubes or pieces of smoothed wood; cylinders (spool, cotton reel); large unpainted curtain ring; napkin ring; spoon or spatula; egg cup; small bowl.
Metal objects: spoons of various sizes; a kitchen whisk; bunch of keys; metal boxes with rounded edges; small ashtray; trumpet; cake moulds; juicer; typewriter spool; small funnel; large brass curtain rings; small harmonica; bottle brush (curved and without scratching points); small mirror with metal frame; paper clip; key rings tied together; bunch of bells; musical triangle; egg cup; sealed tin boxes containing rice, beans, gravel, etc. ; tea strainer; metal lids (all types); metal tumbler; pieces of chain of different types; bicycle bell; large perfume bottle stopper; tea infuser; costume jewellery chain.
Leather, fabric, range, fur objects: pet collar; leather purse; small zippered leather handbag; marble eggs; solid rubber "magic ball"; velvet powder puff; fur ball; pieces of rubber tubing; cloth doll; tennis ball; golf ball; leather jewellery box; beaded purse; bathtub stopper with chain; small teddy bear made of fabric or plush; small fabric bags with lavender, rosemary, thyme, cloves, well sewn
Paper, cardboard: small notepad with spiral; greaseproof paper; small cardboard boxes; cardboard cylinders of kitchen paper or the inside of sturdy toilet paper rolls.
(Elinor Goldschmied - Sonia Jackson, Persone da zero a tre anni: crescere e lavorare nell’ambiente del nido, Azzano San Paolo, Junior, 2003)
Here, dear parents, we wanted to re-propose to you the indications provided by the British psycho-pedagogist to serve as inspiration ... be inspired by what you have at home!