Rimba

rimba a modular furniture set that encourages creative learning for children in a daycare or school environment

This project started out with exploration of the world of children, the realization that in whatever they do, witness and feel is a learning experience. there are a great many ‘firsts’ in their daily lives. hence, one of the main aim of this project is to further enhance this discovery and making it more fun and memorable. children’s furniture| prj:rimba

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problem brief |

More than 60% of children under the age of six are not receiving full parental care, While more than 9 million families spend an average of US$92.00 on child care arrangements, such as daycare centres.

However, our current day-care centre environments are too adult-like and thus, limiting for the creative development of our children. project brief |

design a product or a product set to help better facilitate learning in a typical daycare centre in a metropolitan city. factors to consider |

Limited amount of space Different age groups in one big space at the same time Different ages implies different activities Learning activities are done in groups of 5 up to 10 children for efficiency due to limited number of teachers.

Safety issues have to be addressed.

Flexibility of products to adapt to age growth and different types of learning.

graph | percentage of children age 0 - 6 years (who are not in kindergarten) in various child care arrangements

centre-based care at home by relatives at home by non-relatives non parents only parents only

14

36 22

source | Child Trends Databank 2005

61 39

% of children

comparisons and observation | day-care centre set ups with a typical office set ups

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experiment |

Learning from a child’s perspective: most things are ‘firsts’ experiences in their lives Children learning new things is like adults learning a new language, e.g. an English speaker learning the number sequence in Bahasa Indonesia:

one

two

satu

dua

three

tiga

four

empat

five

lima

Now, can you name number 2 in Bahasa Indonesia right away, without counting back from number 1?

2=?

two

conclusion |

Being told what and how to learn can limit children’s imagination and their freedom to discover new knowledge for themselves.

Hence, balance between instructions and freedom is important.

dance

sing

learning in groups

safety

colorful

no boundaries

keep clean

hygiene

organized

animals & plants

space

freedom of

explore

nature

clean & clear

free / spacious

environment

discipline

positive

+

play

story, characters outdoor vs indoor forest ocean

interactions

eat together

friends

learning

storylines

themes

memory

play instruments

listen & follow

musical

question & answer

curious

sense of wonder

tell story

feelings

active vs verbal

discovery

lead & follow

respect & understanding

product requirements |

relate knowledge

how to learn

play

active & continuous

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writing/drawing/coloring field trips theme-related play:

singing and dancing

playground session

snack time

etc.

numbers alphabets animals fruits habitats colors shapes

understand simple concepts e.g. numbers, colors shapes

fears of unknown creatures able to cooperate and negotiate greater independence

field trips

pretend plays compare & contrasts

understanding concepts

cognitive development/

more expressive of their emotions and worries e.g.

social development

emotional &

3 years old

milestones

activities at day care centeres

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singing and dancing writing/drawing/coloring

singing and dancing writing/drawing/coloring snack time

playground session

group reading aloud

reading with actions

playground session

understand simple grammar able to tell stories

object identification e.g. name follow simple commands

development

out and collecting objects recognizable simple doodles better sense of balance, climb stairs independently

opening and closing jars, bottles, catching and pouring

motor coordination

hand-eye,

language, speech

4 years old

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Explored concepts for possible group activities, then narrowed them down to 3 for further analysis:

learning floor mat adjustable to different themes, e.g. music/sound vs ripple visual movements

learning possibilities action/reaction & discovery story lines & characters free, open space

too musical oriented

less physical, more of sit down and observe kind of play

3d web indoor playground,

magic/mystery fruit tree

adjustable size, self assembly for different daycare sizes.

where the fruits are the different themes; learning from nature (more literally)

could be used to learn different themes, but need too much structure and web idea is too direct

each session could be a new theme with new set of characters depends on overall size could be played using the whole room

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concept |

Bringing the outdoor classrooms into the indoor environment.

Rebuilding a tree-like structure using modular pieces, like a giant lego brick.

When all the pieces are put together, the tree could be a giant-sized character; Rimba the Magic Tree.

A tree suggests a free open space, with unknowns to be discovered.

Rimba: a noun in Bahasa Indonesia that means wilderness, forest or jungle.

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Mini game pieces fall from the leaves like fruits falling off a tree Using the leaves to direct the falling movement of the mini games pieces.

And used as floor seating when disassembled.

butterfly pillows as seats: each pillow is smaller and lighter.one child per unit. more opportunity for mix and match colors and fabric covers, and more pieces to play with.

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A-A

top view 120.0 cm

22.0 cm

98.0 cm

front_36 0 angled view scale 1:31

C-C

cross-section C-C

30.0 cm

C-C

top view of one set of leaves

butterfly leaves + stalks polyurethane foam with underwired structure, covered in removable fabric

storage cover zipper or hook and loop attachment

modular base seats + storage covered in removable fabric for easy cleaning

non-slip rubber base front view of all pieces assembled

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1

adults or instructors secretly placed unknown mini games on the leaves before playtime; levels of difficulty can be adjusted to fit the age groups.

3

4

Detachable parts so children get to choreograph their own play space

Witness the “unknown fruits� roll down the leaves, on the count of 3, hurry to pick up the fallen fruits.

When finished, gather together to share and reveal knowledge on the hidden identity of the fruits - theme of the day, i.e. sea creatures: fish, octopus, starfish, turtles, seahorse Example of games: matching soft, colored fruits from the tree The level of difficulty and activities is adjustable to children’s learning progress

2

shake leaves and mini games will roll off like fruits; ready for play time. reuse and double-use existing materials find a soft rope or scrap cloth, around the day care centre, loop it around one of the branch and shake

?

? ?

?

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rimba | logo a graphic design exercise - creating a logo for the product using the product name, not necessarily as a brand. Here, Rimba is used as a name of product, regardless of brand.

presentation slides | powerpoint Instead of starting the presentation with a problem statement or product descriptions, the concept is presented first by using a storyboard. The narration is done by the main user of the product, a child who goes to a daycare centre in the city (San Francisco).

Hence, the storyboard slides consist of scenes and thoughts from the child’s point of view.

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Hi this is Reese !!

o1

o2

o3

o4

o5

01. Introducing: Reese, the main character.

02. Reese lives with her parents in San Francisco.

03. During the day, Reese’s parents go to work, while Reese spends the day at daycare centre.

04. Reese’s school is represented metaphorically with a tree—a rainforest tree.

05. In school, Reese has many friends.

o8

o9

10

11

12

13

o6 - o7: introducing Rimba’s presence in the school as Rimba the Magic Tree o8. There are secret games hidden among Rimba’s leaves o9. The trick to find out is the strings falling from the branches 10. If we pull these strings, the leaves will shake and shake and the secret games will fall off.

11. “Tadaaa!!” today, there are many colored eggs. Reese wonder what they are!

12. Reese and friends together pick up these eggs from the ground to see hat they are.

13. Reese found a blue egg. Reese notices that Kiki is also holding a blue colored egg.

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The slides shown in the facing page: illustrate the other functions of Rimba such as, detachable seats and how they can be used further during the day at the day care centre.

Also shown is an example of group activities—group singalong.

The slides in this page shows the end of the day for Reese, how she is looking forward to “tomorrow”; what secret games will Rimba reveal the next day?

The slides below are one example of a theme that can be used to play and how to vary the games around it: sea creatures; count the number of legs, tentacles or body parts.

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