Tag Archives: Toy

Hula Hoop

By | |
Leave a comment
Hula Hoop

Hula hoops are all worth the spin.

  • A hula hoop is a ring-shaped toy that is generally spun, thrown or rolled for entertainment or exercise.
  • Hula hoops are most commonly twirled, known as ‘hooping’, around the waist, but other parts of the body, including arms, legs and neck, are also used.
  • Most hula hoops are tubes produced from a lightweight plastic, however wooden and metal versions exist.
  • Hula hoops typically range from 75 to 107 centimetres (29 to 42 inches) in diameter, and the size varies according to the purpose or size of the person using it, or their personal preference.
  • Hula hoops date back to Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece, and were used for a similar purpose as they are today, and were a popular toy in England around the 1300s, while around the same time, Native Americans also used them for dancing purposes.
Hula Hoop, Trivia, Ten Random Facts, Toy, Invention, Spinning, Hooping, Twirling, Motion, Boy
A Hula Hoop
Image courtesy of Tony Fischer/Flickr
  • Originally hula hoops were made from vegetation such as willows, grasses or grapevines twisted into rings.
  • A modern hula hoop craze is said to have started in the 1950s in Australia, while the American company Wham-O produced plastic hula hoops in the late 1950s, which sparked the fad in the United States, where millions of hoops were sold over a period of two years.
  • The longest recorded duration for a single hula hoop to be hooped is 74 hours and 54 minutes, a record set in Ohio, United States by Aaron Hibbs in late 2009.
  • The term ‘hula’ in ‘hula hoops’ is derived from the Hawaiian hula dance that features similar movements to that in hooping.
  • While hula hoops have been used in fitness regimes, they are most commonly used for self-entertainment; and they have also been used skilfully to do tricks.
Bibliography:
History of Hula Hooping, 2013, Hula Hooping, http://www.hulahooping.com/history.html
Hula Hoop, 2016, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hula_hoop
Who Invented the Hula Hoop?, 2016, Wonderopolis, https://wonderopolis.org/wonder/who-invented-the-hula-hoop

Amazon:        

Slinky

By | |
1 Comment
Slinky

Generation upon generation can relate to the Slinky.

  • Slinkies are famous toys that are primarily a coil spring with multiple entertaining properties.
  • A Slinky has the ability of stepping down stairs automatically, with moments of apparent defiance of gravity, and its properties are mostly governed by the physics of waves, gravity and momentum.
  • In 1943, Richard James, an engineer for the American navy, designed the Slinky after attempting to create a spring for use in sensitive watercraft equipment, when he accidentally discovered the spring’s ‘walking’ properties.
  • The Slinky became available commercially in 1945, after some alterations to the spring, although it was relatively unsuccessful until a public demonstration in Philadelphia’s Gimbels department store, in the United States, where the toy became an instant hit and sold out within an hour or two.
  • The name ‘Slinky’, meaning ‘sleek and graceful’, was given by the inventor’s wife, Betty, who found the word, which she thought represented the invention, after paging through the dictionary.
Slinky, Toy, Invention, Metal, Steel, Original, Trivia, Ten Random Facts
Slinky
Image courtesy of Marcin Whichary/Flickr
  • Slinkies are traditionally made of flat steel wire, with a high carbon count and a diameter of 1.5 millimetres (0.0575 inches).
  • Plastic versions of the Slinky, that eliminate the safety hazard of electrocution, have been released, however cheap plastic imitations are also available, but they do not have the same abilities.
  • The colour of a Slinky is generally a silver metal colour, although plastic ones are commonly available in various colours including multicoloured, as in a rainbow.
  • Slinkies entered the Toy Hall of Fame in the year 2000, and a year prior to this they where depicted on a postage stamp.
  • Slinkies are not only a toy, but a tool used by physics teachers, as well as scientists in specific experiments, including multiple zero-gravity tests performed by NASA.
Bibliography:
The Invention of the Slinky, n.d, Priceonomics, http://priceonomics.com/the-invention-of-the-slinky/
Slinky, 2015, The Strong, http://www.toyhalloffame.org/toys/slinky
Slinky, 2015, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slinky

Amazon:        

Pool Noodle

By | |
Leave a comment
Pool Noodle

Pool noodles… a toy for the pool.

  • Pool noodles are lightweight inventions for use in water for both play and supportive purposes.
  • ‘Pool noodles’ are also known as ‘water logs’, ‘woggles’, ‘noodles’ and ‘water woggles’.
  • Pool noodles are made of foam, most often polyethylene based; and they are often flexible enough to be bent, and they float in water.
  • Pool noodles are often hollow, which can allow for several to be connected together, using specified objects.
  • The standard length of a pool noodle is approximately 160 centimetres (5.25 feet), and as it is cylindrical in shape, the diameter is 7 centimetres (2.7 inches).

Pool Noodle, Float, Water, Woggles, Colourful, Assortment, Invention, Hollow, Four, Foam, Ten Random Facts, Blue, Green, Purple, Yellow

  • Due to the invention’s buoyancy, pool noodles are commonly used as flotation support in water, often when the user cannot swim, however they are not to be used without supervision, as they are not a life saving device and are classified as a ‘toy’.
  • Pool noodles are believed to have been first made and invented by Steve Hartman from Industrial Thermal Polymers in Canada’s Ontario, in the early 1980s, however Rick Koster from the same province in Canada, also claims to have been the first to have invented the toy, around the same time, although neither patented the invention.
  • Pipes can be surrounded with a pool noodle as a cheap, but practical insulator; and they have also been used as part of yard games and other purposes.
  • Pool noodles have their origins as backer rods, that fill gaps in building constructions, but they were soon adapted for use as a toy in the pool, by adding colour, and they are now available in a wide variety of bright colours, that are easily spotted in water.
  • The terms ‘water woggle’ and ‘pool noodle’ are derived from some of the first brands, ‘Water Woggle’ and ‘FunNoodle’ respectively.

 

Bibliography:
Osborne R, Uncovering the History of the Pool Noodle : Meet the Inventor, 2012, Water Crunch, http://watercrunch.com/2012/08++++/pool_noodle/
Pool Noodle, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pool_noodle

Amazon:    

Toy Marble

By | |
Leave a comment
Toy Marble

Flick the marble down the hill.

  • Marbles are small ball-shaped toys that have a diameter averaging 1.3 to 2.5 centimetres (0.5 to 1 inch), but they can be as big as 7.6 centimetres (3 inches) and as small as 0.1 of a centimetre (0.03 of an inch).
  • Marbles are most commonly made of glass, although steel, ceramic, plastic or clay is sometimes used.
  • Marbles are often used to play games of the same name, with various rules that usually involve rolling or tossing one at a group of others, often to push them out of a boundary.
  • Marbles were invented thousands of years ago, and were a popular item in Ancient Egypt and Rome.
  • Marbles became commercially viable in the 1800s, particularly later in the century, after American Samuel Dyke and others started mass producing them, as the toy was previously individually handmade.

Marble, Group, Many, Assorted, Colourful, Ten Random Facts, Toy, Glass

  • The British and World Marbles Championships has occurred annually in England’s West Sussex, in Europe since 1932, and other competitions are held around the world, including the United States, and Australia.
  • Marbles typically contain brightly coloured patterns including swirls, although solid colours, clear ones, and others with imagery are also available.
  • Marbles are often collected, due to the variety and value of some, and very rare specimens can sell for up to $10,000, although the value of more common examples can be halved if any defects such as chips or cracks are present.
  • Marbles are often made by melting recycled glass, that is then cut into even portions and dropped onto moving rollers that allow the malleable glass to form balls as they cool.
  • Marbles, said to be named due to the stone that they were manufactured from in the past, have been historically made of clay, and they were also produced using glass or stone.
Bibliography:
A Brief History of the Birth of the Modern American Toy Industry in Akron, Ohio, 2008, American Toy Marble Museum, http://www.americantoymarbles.com/akronhist.htm
History of Marbles, 2012, Oh Marbles!, http://www.imarbles.com/historyofmarbles.php
Marble (Toy), 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marble_(toy)

Amazon:     

Playground Slide

By | |
Leave a comment
Playground Slide

Don’t you like sliding down playground slides?

  • Playground slides are entertainment constructions often placed in recreational areas or residential backyards, as well as amusement parks.
  • ‘Playground slides’ are also known as ‘slides’, ‘slippery dips’ and ‘slippery slides’.
  • Playground slides are often a slippery, flat or partially curved strip of material, with barriers on the left and right, either perpendicular or sloped.
  • Playground slides are used by people, typically children, by them climbing up a ladder or set of stairs to reach the top of the slide, sitting on their backside at the top; and pushing themselves forward so that they are propelled down the slide’s strip.
  • Playground slides are commonly curved in some form, often around a structure, while some are completely enclosed, and they come in a variety of colours.

Playground Slide, Yellow, Park, Recreational, Ten Random Facts, Australia

  • Although fun, playground slides can be quite dangerous; injuries such as bruises, scrapes, cuts and broken bones can occur, often due to an unsafe user or slide, such as a high drop.
  • Playground slides are typically made of plastic, wood and/or metal, although the latter often heats up in the sun and can cause burns.
  • Adults often slide down playground slides with their children, although it is a common cause of broken legs in young children, due to the possibility of the child’s foot catching onto the slide and the force of the parent’s movement pushing the child forward with their foot still caught.
  • The origin of playground slides is uncertain, although one of the first slides patented was possibly by James Kirker of Kentucky in the United States in 1893, which was intended as a fire escape, however earlier patents exist for water slide designs, and slides were being constructed by the beginning of the 1900s.
  • Many laws have been passed regarding the legality and guidelines of construction and placement of playground slides, particularly regarding protruding devices and the slide drop.
Bibliography:
Erickson A, The Politics of Playgrounds, a History, 2012, Citylab, http://www.citylab.com/design/2012/03/politics-playgrounds-history/1480/
Kirker, J 1893, ‘Fire-escape’, US506238, 10 October, p. 1, Google Patents, Google
Playground Slide, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playground_slide

Amazon:      

Kendama

By | |
Leave a comment
Kendama

Flick up the kendama ball and catch it on the stick.

  • A kendama is a traditional Japanese toy, typically made of wood.
  • Kendama are historically hammer-shaped with a spike, and have a ball attached with string.
  • Kendama have four main parts: ‘ken’ (stick or handle), ‘crosspiece’ (cup body), ‘string’, and ‘ball’ , and the toy usually has three different cup sizes to balance the ball on.
  • The aim of a kendama is to get the ball onto the spike or catch it on one of the sides of the hammer.
  • A ‘kendama’ is also known as ‘ring and pin’, and it is similar to the European cup-and-ball toy.

Kendama, Toy, Japanese, Traditional, Two, Mini, Wooden, Small, Anatomy, Ten Random Facts

  • Kendama are particularly common in Japan, where trick competitions are held.
  • While some people think that the kendama toy originated in Japan, it possibly came to the country by trade in the 1770s from the French, who had a similar toy named a ‘bilboquet’, to which the Japanese made some modifications.
  • The modern kendama was patented by Japanese Hamaji Egusa in 1920 and the official competition design came from the 1970s.
  • The string on a kendama is typically between 35 to 45 centimetres (1.1 to 1.5 feet) in length; a longer string makes it harder to complete the aim.
  • The grip and stance of kendama change the performance, with specific recognised standards of each.

 

Bibliography:
Kendama, 2013, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kendama
Kendama, n.d, Kids Web Japan, http://web-japan.org/kidsweb/virtual/kendama/kendama01.html

Amazon:     

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...