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| You've gotta hand it to 'em |
Growing
up in the 1970s the furthest we travelled was Cornwall, and when it wasn’t
Cornwall it was Devon. Sigh. Now there’s nothing wrong with these two fine
holiday destinations but to a seven year old with a vivid imagination it did
all begin to look the same.
The 270-mile car journey was part of the
‘fun’ apparently. Me and my two kid brothers on a mattress in the back of a
Ford Escort Estate. In the time before seatbelts, we were thrown around along
with the obligatory vomit. Vomit flying through the air – not actually knowing
whose was the worst part. With both parents smoking in the front we didn’t have
much choice.
Alarmingly I have memories of my brothers
writing ‘HELP’ in the condensation of the windows. On a summer’s day we dared
not have the windows open, as the speed of the car would mean that the youngest
brother would have been sucked out on to the M4. So what with the smoke and
vomit we also had the steam.
Things have changed since then. Seatbelt
laws for one. And fewer smokers, more considerate ones I hope, allowing their
young passengers some oxygen via an open window.
Going abroad wasn’t an option back "when I were a kid" unless your last name was double-barreled and you lived in the ‘country’. With
not much talk of aeroplanes and only seeing a crack-commando-unit-who-were-sent-to-prison-by-a-military
-court-for-a-crime-they-didn’t commit jump out of one on telly, it didn’t even
cross this writer’s mind. Talking of the great goggle-box, what was with the
Swedish chef on the Muppet Show? Hurdy-Gurdy indeed.
Birds Eye French Bread Pizza. Here’s the
thing. I, like many, would bite into one of these for tea after school and
Grange Hill thinking of far off places like Calais and oooh Brittany. But wait
a minute. Pizza? Isn’t that Italian? Birds Eye what were you thinking, how
could you fool this schoolchild into accepting this fusion of Mediterranean foodstuffs?
Sadly, it was never an issue. Back then food was food. Your mum put on the
table what the housekeeping covered. In our little backwater town there were
very few Indian and Chinese restaurants and always kept for the most special of
special occasions. Nowadays we have high streets full of all types of food from
all over the world and we don’t bat an eyelid. Takeaways are an accepted form
of catering for a lot of mums (and dads). American, Chinese, Indian, Italian,
Turkish and Scottish (what do you mean you can’t buy neeps and tatties at the
golden arches?). These food retailers are bringing us the
taste of other parts of the world and it’s all on our doorstep.
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| The jigsaw with the magnetic pull |
Living on an island it’s inevitable that we
become increasingly multicultural, and that’s especially due to our airports.
Since 2000 Heathrow has held the title of ‘world’s busiest airport by international
passenger traffic’. Put in real terms, that’s around 65million visitors a year
to our green and pleasant land. We ARE the great big melting pot as sung by
Blue Mink in 1970. With that comes a curiosity in children to learn more about
their neighbours either within their hometown or across the seas.
My four year old has ate the food, met the
children, perhaps watched a documentary but what she really wants to do is
experience first hand the different countries out there and this experience is
now within her reach. She can sit at a computer and surf the net for
information, hell she can even Skype her Nanny in France. Children’s enthusiasm
to learn doesn’t stop at learning to read and write in their own language. You
only have to watch an episode of Peppa Pig to hear Delphine Donkey ask Peppa
“Comment รงa va?”
With
international calls made daily, Skype and something called Facetime (no, me
neither), talking to our overseas friends has never been easier. And you could
even do it whilst sat at the table munching through a French Bread Pizza.
As an enthusiastic (not pushy!) mum I do
like to teach my daughter about the world around her. We’ve covered off a
little about languages, foods and climates. Time zones will be her dad’s job. I
barely know what time it is here. The TV continuity announcer only has to
mention ‘British Summer Time’ for me to run behind the sofa and panic about
time travel.
We’ve had the Janod Magnetic World Map for a week
now and even I’ve learnt something. Ok. I’ve learnt a lot. Geography was never
my strong point at school, I could colour a map in but couldn’t tell you what
an Isobar was.
Did you know that the main export of
Bolivia is soya beans or that there’s an African country called Chad? I thought
that was a drawing of a man looking over a wall. Anyway, I digress.
There are many ways to play with this toy.
It can be a simple jigsaw for one player or a game for many. Its pieces are
easy for little hands to hold and place in position. The magnets are strong
enough to stay in situ when hung on the wall, being durable but not ungainly.
Each piece of the puzzle has a relevant image to the country portrayed. The
illustrations and typography are wonderfully done, not overly childish but
sweet enough to catch the eye of a young child. The
colours are such that you can tell which is a cold climate and which is hot.
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| It's child's play, or mum's, or dad's... |
You do end up forgetting it’s a jigsaw,
more a trip around the world in 80 minutes, or however long you choose. Food and
animals native to that area represent each country.
Distance and position is now easier to
discuss and explain, for instance: we have relatives in France as mentioned
earlier, and further afield in the US and Australia. The jigsaw puts in
perspective any wild talk of country hopping… “So, Mummy when we’ve been to
France shall we go to America to see my aunty and then pop to Australia next
week. Please?” Ahem.
The Janod Magnetic World Map is a
hit in this house. Not only with the four year old but this 40 year old. A
great addition to a well-stocked playroom and a fabulous talking point. An
inspirational purchase and one that will come in handy next year when we
discuss our further adventures into the big wide, amazing world out there.
Buy it here: Janod Magnetic World Map
And if you want to be in with a chance of winning a wonderful wooden toy on Wooden Wednesday, (as well have fun on their page) join thousands of others by liking Wooden Toy Shop here.
