Basic Treasure basket collection

Carla's Treasure - Lovely collections of 20 or 24 wooden and natural items to create or Top Up your Treasure Basket.
You get 1 cotton bag for Free (to make storage easier).
Basket not included.

These make perfect gifts for children and they are great for parents and childcare practitioners who are looking for a “ready-made” collection to create or top up a treasure basket.

Also great for travelling with children. These lightweight collections will keep them entertained and will provide them with open-ended play opportunities. While the youngest will love exploring and discovering each object and their particularities, the older children will love to use their imagination to find a functional use for the objects.

Recommended age: 3+

Safety Information: Children/Babies must be supervised at all times when playing with these items. Adults must regularly check the contents of the basket for damage and assess which items are suitable for their child depending on their age and ability.
It is the responsibility of the parent/caregiver to make a collection of suitable objects and to make sure they are cleaned and replaced when necessary.
This product may present a choking hazard to younger children.

Treasure baskets are very popular among Montessori homes or nurseries and are being used for educational purposes. It supports children's learning within the "Early Years Foundation Stage" (EYSF). 
By using a treasure basket with children you are providing them with rich mental stimulation, which activates the growth of the brain and also provides richly satisfying experiences for the baby.

The Treasure Basket's Benefits - How the Treasure Basket promotes learning?
* Enriches a baby’s experience - offers a young baby the first taste of freedom, independence and courage by handling and exploring the sensory rich objects
* Stimulates a baby’s curiosity and interest - provide the child with the opportunity to explore and discover new things on their own.
* Offers a baby the experience of making choices
* Promotes concentration skills * Facilitates conceptual learning (babies and toddlers learn a range of concepts to do with the physical qualities of objects, such as coldness, smoothness, heaviness and prickliness)
* Facilitates social interaction if two or three babies/children share the same basket * Provides the foundations of language development and supports creative play.

Different ages:
OPEN ENDED PLAY:
5-10 months (mouthing stage): babies around a treasure basket can be totally absorbed as they examine, handle, mouth and shake different objects: "What is this object like?"
- gaining pleasure and satisfaction from exploring the objects for their own sake.

10-20 months old babies want to find out what they can do with the objects by placing, filling, emptying, piling, pairing – (functional learning/Learning Tools): "What can I do with it?" What else can I do with it?"

20 months-3 years old children begin to understand and use language, they want to use their imagination to find a functional use for the objects : "What can this object become?"
-excellent stimulant for language,
-interactive and social way of using the basket.

3 years and upwards – extend children’s vocabulary by not only naming the objects themselves, but also their characteristics, categories, functions. Children can be encouraged to find similarities and differences between objects (function, material, shape).
-Other games: Kim’s game, drawstring bag game, themed Treasure Baskets, props for imaginary games.

Heuristic play and Treasure Basket materials can be used with children with special needs.
-It requires adult support, encouragement or direction (appropriate model play) to help stimulate their play, -feeling of safety and togetherness in the experience.

Instructions for use: The adults role in the use of the treasure basket is to sit near by and be attentive, responsive and unobtrusive.
The treasure basket should not be left out 24/7 for your baby to play with. Ideally it is good to offer a session lasting between 15 minutes and an hour with the minimum of disruption on a daily basis. It is important to make sure that the babies/children are physically comfortable, when they are alert and refreshed, calm and content.

Care instructions: You can gently clean the objects in warm soapy water.

Wooden utensils/objects should be hand washed with a mild dish detergent and then hand-dried. Do not use a dishwasher.

Tips for wooden utensils: To extend their durability we would recommend oiling them. Mineral oil is highly preferable because it doesn’t turn rancid and it’s not a common allergen, but also coconut oil can be used.
Directions: Clean wooden object and dry. Follow by rubbing some oil onto a clean cloth and apply to wood into a circular motion. Then let it dry. You only need to rub in a small amount of oil. 
Oiling extends their practical lives.

Happy open-ended play!

If there is any missing item on the stock we will make sure that it will be replaced with an item which will provide similar rich sensorial experience.
Items such as basket, pine cones or other natural items may have imperfections due to these being natural or handmade products.

📢🎁 If you wish a custom made treasure basket/ suitcase/ gift box please message us and we are more than happy to help you.
Check out our other Etsy items and happy buying!