Natasha

Natasha
Ibu Lisa
Product Design
November 20, 2014

Criterion A
A. Define the problem
a. What do the expert say about preserving a culture and the importance of toys?
According to a research group, culture is defined as the shared patterns of behaviors and
interactions, cognitive construct, and affective understanding that are learned through a process of
socialization (What Is Culture?). To put it simply, it means that culture is the way people interact
with their surroundings. In order for us to maintain and preserve our culture for future generations,
we need to plant our culture into them. Our culture will be our legacy for the future generations. The
most effective way to preserve our legacy is to start planting our culture starting in their early life.
As kids are known to be interested in toys, it would be a good idea to put a small aspect of
our culture into the toys. Children would be able to able to learning a little bit about their own culture
and make progress in understanding while growing up. The final goal of learning their own culture is
so that they would be able to be more sensitive of other culture and tries to respect it (Maschinot).
b. What is your customer profile?
Our customers are children in preschool level. We went into their classroon to gather
information to create their profile. After getting the information from our survey of teachers and
students, as a group, we conclude that children likes the modern toy we brought, which is monopoly,
rather than the traditional toy, which is congklak. We assume that the reason to this is that they find
congklak quite boring to play and that they are also not familiar with the toy. The color of the toy
might also be the reason why the kids are more interested in monopoly than congklak. According to
the teacher, the preschoolers main language is english, proving that they have less knowledge of
their own culture as language is the basic form of culture.
c. Conclusion: Why do we need to preserve the cultures through toys?
As experts says that culture is an important aspect in our life and needs to be preserve for the
next generation, we found that incorporating a culture into toys would help improve the preservation
of a culture as toys are a good tool for kids to learn different skills through it. From the information
that has been gathered, it is concluded that the preschoolers in SPH Sentul City are not aware of the
Indonesian culture as they are mostly exposed to the modern and westernize generation. The
preschoolers also need to develop their understanding towards the aspect of patience and taking turns
when playing a game. The preschoolers are also not exposed to toys that teach social emotional skills
in their classrooms such as board games.

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B. Research Plan
Questions

Customer (Appearance)
How can we make a wooden toy look

Ways to Find the

Why will I

When will I do

Information

research this

this?

Internet

information?
I want to find out

November 11,

the ways to make

2014

interesting?
What size is appropriate for the

my product looks
attractive in the

customer?

childrens eye. I
also want to make
sure that the size
of my toy will not
be too big or too
small for my
Improvement for Board Games
Find effective board games to teach

Journal

socio-emotional skills and culture for

customer.
I want to find out

November 12,

what is the most

2014

effective board

preschoolers

game that would

teach the
customer so that I
could solve the
problem

3.
3.1.

Cost
What are some options of

3.2.

woods available in the market?

How much would the material

Interview with

effectively.
I want to find out

November 10,

Shopkeeper

the prices of the

2014

materials to set a
price for my

(wood) cost?
4.
4.1.

Culture
What is the culture from your

product.
Journal & Internet I want to find out
more about the

province?

November 12,
2014

certain culture in
Sulawesi that I
could promote

5.
5.1.

Possible Toys
What are the toys that

Internet & Books

through my toy.
I want to find out

November 11,

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5.2.

originated from that province?

Are any of them teaching

5.3.

social and emotional skills?

What modern toys teach social

5.4.

and emotional skills?

What are the characteristics?

5.5.

(ACCESSFM)
What could be transferred to
the project from the toys?

more on the

3
2014

traditional toys
available from
that province and
through the
analysis of
ACCESSFM I
would be able to
know which part
of the toy should I
modify.

C. Product Analysis
I am supposed to focus on toys that originated from the Sulawesi province and also in toys
that specializes in teaching social emotional skills. After a couple of research, the toys that originated
from Sulawesi are very few, but most of them are games, such as MaGoli also known as kelereng ,
Mangasing also known as galasin, Mallogo, Magetta also known as lompat tali and many more
(Rahmanto). These games need to be played by more than one person, so it could enhance social
skills of the preschoolers. A couple of modern toys that also helps children to enhance their social
emotional skills are board games, which helps children to learn being patient and social skills,
emotion cards, which helps children to express their emotions towards others, and also dolls which
helps children to enhance their imagination and sometimes it also helps them to be more open about
their emotions.
These are the 5 toys that I am going to be analyzing. The toys will be a mix of modern and traditional
toys that focuses in teaching children social-emotional skills.
1. Monopoly
a. Aesthetics:
i. have a colourful board
ii. have popular characters
b. Cost: on the internet it cost for $19.67 (basic size and not a special edition)
c. Customer: preschoolers
d. Ergonomics: it is portable and comes with a box to put all the pieces inside.
e. Size: the dimension of the board is 15.8 x 10.6 x 2.1 inches.
f. Safety: it is said that some pieces of the toys are not suitable for children under 3
years old.
g. Function:
i. to improve decision-making skills
ii. to enhance social-emotional skills
iii. to improve counting skills

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h. Material: Cardboard, Plastic & Paper

From the monopoly, we could transfer the concept of playing in turn and also the interesting
characters used in the game. I think by using a modern toy, it would be more attractive and
interesting for children. In the toy I am going to design, I will incorporate the Sulawesi culture into
the toy so that the preschoolers are going to be more exposed of social-emotional toys and at the
same time they will also learn more about the Indonesian culture.
2. Snake & Ladder
a. Aesthetics:
i. Colorful board
ii. Familiar animal and object for children (snake & ladder)
iii. Interesting characters
b. Cost: on the internet the price is $15.69
c. Customer: preschoolers
d. Ergonomics:
i. Easy for preschoolers to play with
ii. Portable so it could be carried around
e. Size: The dimension of the product is 39.8 x 20.6 x 4.4 cm
f. Safety: It is recommended for children above 3 years old
g. Function:
i. Teaching social emotional skills
h. Material: Cardboard & Plastics
What could be transferred from this toy to my product is the simplicity of the toy and how it
is played. It is also good to use simple and recognizable character in my product so that it will attract
the kids more.
3. Eggspression
a. Aesthetics:
i. Familiar objects (egg)
ii. Interesting expressions
b. Cost: on the internet the price is $19.59
c. Customer: Preschoolers
d. Ergonomics: comes with an idea book so children wouldnt get bored easily
e. Size: 12.2 x 12 x 2.6 inches
f. Safety:
i. It is not recommended for children below the age of 3.
ii. Uses non-toxic paint
g. Function:
i. Offers role-playing activity
ii. Trains a childs emotion
h. Material : Plastic & Wood
What could be transferred from this toy to my product is the safety condition that this toy offers,
which is the non-toxic paint. I could also use how it trains children to sharpen their emotions. I think
I would also like to find a strategy to avoid the customer from being bored of the toy I will be
making.
4. Ma Goli (Kelereng)
a. Aesthetics: Available in a lot of different colors.

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b. Cost: One kelereng would probably only cost Rp. 1,000. (you will need around 8
kereng to play the game)
c. Customer: preschoolers
d. Ergonomics:
i. The kelereng are in a small size so you could put it in your pocket and bring it
around.
ii. Some kelereng may get lost easily as they are small in size and could roll
e.
f.
g.

h.

around.
Size: One ball of kelereng is about 1 cm in diameter.
Safety:
i. It is suggested that it is played by kids below the age of 3 due to its small size.
ii. Could harm children when it brokes
Function:
i. Sharpen your competitive skill
ii. Enhance your social-emotional skill
iii. Enhance your fine motor skill
Material: Glass

What I could transfer from this toy is to avoid creating small pieces in my toy so that it would
be safe for the children to play with and to make sure that there is a place to keep all the parts so that
it wouldnt get lost.
5. Magetta (Lompat Tali)
a. Aesthetics: Not interesting for people to look at (dull color and no special shapes)
b. Cost: The price for the rope is around Rp.15,000
c. Customer: Preschoolers
d. Ergonomics:
i. Could be played anywhere
ii. Using a simple object and make it interesting
e. Size: Usually the length of the rope is about 3 meters long.
f. Safety: Children who are not active enough could trip when playing this game.
g. Function:
i. Enhance social skills as the game cant be played alone
ii. Enhance gross motor skill
h. Materials: Rope (Made out of rubber or fibres)
From this toy, I could transfer the concept of the toy being able to played anywhere so that
the children would have more time to play with the toy so that they could enhance their skills faster.
D. Design Brief
From all the information I have gathered to define a problem and trying to find a solution for
it, I have decided that I would be designing a board game since according to an expert, it could teach
social-emotional skills effectively (Hromek). Board games are good for the preschoolers since it is a
simple game and it would attract them because we could put their favorite character into it as from
the interview we conducted, the preschoolers state that they find toys with their favorite character
interesting (Sophie). We would also like to promote the Indonesian culture, particularly the culture
from Sulawesi, since from the interview as well, we found out that the preschoolers are not aware of

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the Indonesian culture and from a research, the expert says that we should expose children with our
culture since they are the future leader of this country and that culture should be taught from an early
age (Mashcinot).
For the board game, I would make the size of the board and the characters big so that it would
be appropriate for the preschoolers and it would also be safe for them as according to the U.S.
government that specializes in product safety, it is said that a toy should not be less than 3 cm in
diameter ("Choosing Safe Toys."). My product will also be painted in non-toxic paint so that it would
be safe for the kids. I would also make interesting and recognizable characters to that the
preschoolers would find the toy interesting. The product will also be make out of plywood as it is
cheaper than usual wood and it is already a good material to make a toy.
Works Cited
Internet
"The Benefits of Board Games." Parents: Raising Readers & Learners. Scholastic, n.d. Web.
21 Nov. 2014.
With this resource, I have discovered the benefits of board games so that I could know why it
is important for children to play this particular toy. The information is also verified by
http://www.parentingscience.com/board-games-for-kids.html. I think that the information above is
up-to-date as the supporting resources is published in 2012.
"Choosing Safe Toys." Kids Health. Nemours, n.d. Web. 12 Nov. 2014.
With this resource, I have covered the subtopic on appropriate size of the toy so that I could make
sure that my toy will be safe for my customer. The information I gathered is valid as it is related to
the question I have. The source is reliable as it is a trusted website and another website,
http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Business--Manufacturing/Business-Education/Toy-Safety/, has also verified
the information given by the resouces above. I think that the information is up-to-date because it
consist of the newest law created by the U.S. about Toy Safety.
"Culture&ArtsinNorthSulawesi,Indonesia."MSTPB.MSTPB,n.d.Web.25Nov.2014.
Withthisresource,IhavefoundtheculturefromSulawesithatIcouldincorporateintomy
productlateron.Thisinformationisvalidasitispostedinanofficialgovernmentwebsitethat
promotesthatSulawesiculture.Itisunknowniftheinformationisuptodateornot,butsincea
culturedoesntchangeovertime,itmeansthisinformationisuptodate.
Obscura, Audrey. "Wooden Toys." Instructables. Autodesk, 29 Jan. 2014. Web. 23 Nov. 2014.
With this resource, I have covered the subtopic how to make wooden toys look interesting so
that my customer would be attracted to it. The information I gathered is valid as it is related to the
question I have. The reliability of this resource could be questionable as there are no website to
support the result, but I think that it is still reliable as there are a lot of positive comment from other

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people. This information is also up-to-date because it was put up early this year.
Rahmanto, Imam. "Merindukan Bermain Yang Sederhana." Cappuccino Time. N.p., 31 Oct.
2013. Web. 11 Nov. 2014.
From the information gathered from this this website, I found out what are the toys that
originated from Sulawesi. This website is reliable as it is also supported by another website,
http://makassar.tribunnews.com/2013/10/27/14-permainan-tradisional-di-sulsel-meriahkan-mtgf.
This information is also up-to-date as it is posted on 2013.
Journal
Hromek, Robyn. Promoting Social and Emotional Learning With Games: "It's Fun and We
Learn Things" (2009): 1-56. Sage Journals. Web. 23 Nov. 2014.
With this resource, I have found why board games are important in enhancing a childs
social-emotional skills and at the same time promote culture to people. This source is reliable
because it has been verified by another website,
http://www.lib.latrobe.edu.au/ojs/index.php/tlg/article/view/78/91. This information is up-to-date
because the journal is published in 2009.
Maschinot,Beth..TheChangingFaceoftheUnitedStates:TheInfluenceofCultureonEarlyChild
Development(2008):145.Web.12Nov.2014.
From this resource, I have found how culture is important to be learned by the children so
that now I know why Im putting an aspect of culture into me toy. This source is reliable because a
doctor does it but its not really up-to-date as it is written 6 years ago.
Interview
IbuFani."PreschoolersBehavior."Personalinterview.29Oct.2014.
Fromthisinterview,Ifoundoutthepreschoolersbehaviorinclassandweareabletoknow
moreabouttheirprofile.Thissourceisreliablebecausetheintervieweeistheteacherofthe
preschoolerssoshespendmostofhertimewiththem.Thisinformationisalsouptosatebecauseit
isdonenotlongago
Sophie,andOmar."Preschooler'sInterest."Personalinterview.29Oct.2014.
Fromthisinterview,Ifoundoutthatthepreschoolersareinterestedwithitemsthattheyare
familiarwith.Thisinformationisreliableastheywillbeourcustomertoitisimportanttoknow
whattheylikeanddislike.Thisinformationisalsouptodateastheinterviewisdonenotlongago.
Supardi."Wood."Personalinterview.25Nov.2014.
Fromthisinterview,Ifoundouttheappropriatematerialtousetomakemyproductandat
thesametimeIalsofindoutthepriceofthematerialImgoingtobeusing.Thisinformationis
reliableastheshopkeeper,Supardi,hasworkintheshopforalmost4years.Thisinterviewisalso
uptodateasitisdonerecently.

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APPENDIX A. INTERVIEW THE CLIENT

First group of preschooler:
Total time: 10 min 42 seconds
The things that the children did during:
Minute 1: start making up the monopoly board, and said that it was big.
Minute 2: looking at the money and the cards that are in the monopoly box.
Minute 3: they start picking up characters for them to play.
Minute 4: they start putting their characters on the starting point.
Minute 5: they start playing the monopoly and luckily the children know how to play the game even
though without using the money and cards.
Minute 6: as they keep playing I found out that they only know how to count from the dice, and
move the character based on the number that they got from the dice.
Minute 7 minute 10: The children are still showing that they are into the game, some of them hold
the money, and until the end they did not show any sign that they did not like the game or feel bored.
Conclusion: they like monopoly very much even though it is not played properly.
Second group of preschooler:
Minute 1: the children had not shown any sign of interest on the congklak, which worries us.
Minute 2: we have not tidied up all of the money from monolpoly, and instead of playing with the
congklak, but after a while we gave them seashells and they started having an interest on congklak.
Minute 3: the children started spreading out the seashells into the congklak holes, but there was one
kid who was still playing with the money from monopoly.
Minute 4: they tried to fill up all of the small holes, but it was not spread evenly.
Minute 5: one of the children closed the congklak which caused them have to fix the numbers of
seashells on every holes, but this is a good sign that they started having an interest on the game.
Minute 6: the same children ruined the congklak, and he just tried to fix it up again.
Minute 7: the children tidied up the congklaks seashells into the can.
Minute 8: the children played the cards and the money from monopoly box.
Conclusion: They like playing monopoly more than congklak, because most of them do not
understand how to play congklak and because congklak is less attractive for them.
Overall: From the childrens behaviors of both group, we could see that the children prefer the games
that are more familiar to them and the games should be the ones that they can play without having
any difficulty to play with.
Teacher :
From the teacher, it can be summarized that the students have an active nature, but also intelligent.
They have a lot of energy and no problems expressing themselves. They are generally obedient and

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polite, with only a few exceptions. They are also polite, they can listen to other people and do what
they say. The students already have basic language skills (words), with some of them able to create
sentences. English is the students main language, and they can speak it quite fluently. In the time of
the interview, the students have learned about basic math, matching shapes and others. With this in
mind, the best sort of toy for the students that challenge them to use their intelligence (relatively
complex social games) to play it, for example simple math games or board games, not just simple
toys like puppets or dolls.
APPENDIX B. COLLECTION OF RESEARCH
1. How can we make a wooden toy look interesting?
When creating a wooden toy, it is important to focus on the shape and color of the toy.
As wood is an easy medium to work with, it would be easier for us to create different and
interesting shapes with it. Choose the shapes that attract kids, especially using the popular
character at that time. When choosing color, it would be useful to use bright colors, like red,
light blue, green and etc. (Obscura).
Evaluation: The information is tells me that I should make the wood into interesting shape and also
color it with bright color to attract the kid. This helps me to develop a design specification so that I
would remember to use interesting shapes and also bright colors for my product. It helps me to
develop ideas for my design specification.
2. What size is appropriate for the customer?
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the appropriate size of
toys for preschoolers is that it should at least be 3 cm in diameter and 6 cm in length.
Preschoolers should also avoid playing with marbles, coins, and balls that are 4.4 cm or less
in diameter (Choosing Safe Toys.).
Evaluation: The information tells me the proper size that a toys should be for kids so that it would be
safe for them. This helps me to develop my design specification of my product so that I would make
a product that is appropriate and safe for the preschoolers. This information helps me to develop
ideas for my design specification.
3. Find effective board games to teach socio-emotional skills and culture for preschoolers!
It is found that any board games that teaches a child to regulate negative emotions, taking
turns and sharing, and shows fairness, justice and respect towards the other party. In board
games, culture could be inserted as the supporting skill for the child. By learning the socialemotional skills, it is hoped that the child would be able to also learn more about their own
culture (Hromek).
Evaluation: This information helps me to know what board games are the most effective to teach
children with social emotional skills. This helps me to develop my concept for the product that I am
going to be making. This information helps me to create a solution and at the same time develop the
ideas for my product.
4. What are some options of woods available in the market?

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10

According to a shopkeeper that sells wood, there are different types of wood in the market,
which are teak wood, meranti wood and many others. But the shopkeeper said that it would
be better to use plywood for my product since it is cheaper and could also be made into toys.
Evaluation: This information helps me to know what woods are available in the market so that we
know what material we are going to use. This helps me to develop my idea and to estimate the price
of the product I will be making.
5. How much would the wood cost?
According to the shop keeper, the price of plywood varies with its size and thickness, but it
ranges from Rp. 50,000 to Rp. 200,000.
Evaluation: This information helps me to know what woods are available in the market so that we
know what material we are going to use. This helps me to develop my idea and to estimate the price
of the product I will be making.
6. What is the culture from your province?
Sulawesi has a very diverse culture. There are around 10 indigenous languages that originated
from this province. Some of the examples of the languages are Tonsea, Tondano, Tombulu
and many others. There are also some musical instruments such as the Kolintang, the
Bamboo trumpet and Bia. This province is also full of different dance moves, which serves
for different purposes. Like to example the Kabala dance is a dance routine that is used to
welcome guest when they come. The Kabasaran in a war dance that shows patriotism, heroic
and courage. There are also a lot of foods from Sulawesi that are not very popular even in
Indonesia like for example Binte Biluhuta and Sop Konro ("Culture&ArtsinNorth
Sulawesi,Indonesia.").
Evaluation: This information helps me to see which culture that I could incorporate into my product
later on. This helps me to develop ideas for my product and at the same time it helps me to solve the
problem I am facing to now I know what part of the Sulawesi culture I should teach the preschoolers.