Spelementen
Spelementen
Toys that help children with their mental health.
Modular toys that facilitate open ended play for children aged 6-12 years old. The same pieces will be used to set up 3 different therapy zones fore 3 different types of therapy through talking. For the children, they will view these items as toys, but the adults view the same pieces as tools for psychotherapy. This allows parents and caregivers to set up a safe spaces together with the children to have discussions about whatever is bothering them.
This is the
multi- layered,
multi- faceted,
complex,
problem
That we want to solve :)
There are children who are left on the outer parts of society being overlooked due to circumstances outside of their control. Children who are in asylum centers in The Netherlands are often not given normalcy in their childhood and they retain this trauma as they grow into adults affecting their lives.
As the refugee numbers continue to rise, there is little support to address and assist the children who are living in a state of helplessness as they await their asylum status to be approved. And with the situation worsening around the world, like in Ukraine early this year and Afghanistan last year, the number of asylum seekers has reached its peak since the Syrian crisis in 2015.
Their lives can be on halt for years awaiting their legal standing. We believe that it is up to us as designers to be the change and do our best to help these children.
The current existing solutions out there for children’s therapy rely on two things. Access and affordability. These children do not have access to therapy and they definitely do not have the finances for it. Above all, the existing therapy for children requires a lot of space and specific furnishings, to make an inviting and tactile environment. How do we make space when there is barely any to start with? Not all wounds are physical and not all scars are visible.
If we help the children on the fringes of society, we can help children from all walks of life with their mental health.
About Us
Our Vision
Our Vision is for every refugee child to have access to tool to support with their mental health. Spelementen is used for play and doubles as psychotherapy tool that adults can use to help relief mental pressure from kids in refugee camps. We do this because every child deserves to have a normal childhood where play is involved and being a refugee prevents that and adds the trauma to their mental health.
Our Mission
"We're committed to making a positive impact on the lives of vulnerable children, by designing toys that promote emotional intelligence, empathy and self-care.
Our Value
How it helps the children
Play as a foundation
Kids of all background deserve to play and this goes beyond kids in the AZCs.
Therapy for kids
Creates a conducive environment for children in the AZC to talk about their problems
Communal responsibility
Gives people and organizations to contribute a positive impact in the lives of the children
The focus of our effort
Provide a general description of the items below and introduce the services you offer. Click on the text box to edit the content.
Play elements focus :
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Helps with motor skills
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Concentration
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Building techniques
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Understanding forces
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Encourages teamwork
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Ignites imagination
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Worldbuilding
Psychotherapy elements focus :
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Building the zones creates ownership of the space for the children
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3 different therapy zones
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Guide on how to build the zones with their value attached to them
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Isolation zone to process feelings
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Sharing zone to have 1 to 1 chats with a friend
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Communal zone to host story time
For Parents,
For parents, caregivers and volunteers in the refugee camps, this is what we can do for you.
Open Ended Play
Spelementen encourages imagination, teamwork, and learning through play, which provides an open-ended play environment for children. This can provide value to parents as their children can learn and express themselves creatively through play.
Encourages Communication
The use of the tools in Spelementen helps children verbalize their feelings and thoughts through the medium of movement and construction, which can help volunteers get a better grasp of their mental situation. This can provide value to parents as their children can communicate their feelings better, leading to better communication between the parents and the child. As a result, parents may find that their children are more open and communicative with them as well, which can strengthen their relationship and help them better support their children.
Avenue to understand children
Spelementen offers a psychotherapy tool that provides access to therapy for children aged 6-12, who might not have access to traditional therapy due to lack of finances or space. This provides value to parents who might not have the means to afford traditional therapy for their children.
For Galleries,
If you are an art or design gallery, this is what we can do for you.
Custom pieces
We can produce a one of selection of pieces with custom materials that can be used and sold at a premium price
Display
We can loan you existing pieces that are meant for the children to be displayed in our venue of choice
Exhibitions
For an event during a certain period of time, for example; Dutch Design Week. We can exhibit the full range of the therapy zones and toys
For Companies & Collaborators,
If you are company or an organization, that wants to contribute to our mission, this is what we need
Production
Manufacture our wooden pieces: planks, poles, nuts, organic shapes and textile.
Printing
Print and fold our manuals.
Assembly
Put together the wooden nuts and bolts. Adding the metal nuts to the wooden nuts. Adding nuts to poles Adding the manual to the packaging.
Delivery
Bring the order to the customer.
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