It’s no news that I love a local, sustainable company – especially one that creates better products for parents and children. Inspired by Waldorf and Montessori methods – as well as old fashioned, naturally-enhanced play – Mama May i’s handmade learning toys blend the best of developmental psychology and design to offer a unique learning-through-play experience.
Based in Philadelphia, founder and principal designer, Jessica Perkins, has been creating for as long as she can remember, originally helping her mama with her handmade toy store over 20 years ago. With the birth of her children, and all the new little people in her life, Jessica found herself searching for toys that met her educational and design standards. Inspired by these little explorers, and her understanding of Montessori and Waldorf methodologies, Jessica Perkins began making all of her creations with the belief that children make sense of their world through sensing their world.
Just watching my children with these toys proves that simple and well-made beats out the plastic and batteries any day. My daughter played happily for hours with these non-toxic, hand-painted sorting eggs.
(That scratching noise is the dog).
It’s no surprise that simplicity is key at this age – at 16 months all I wanted to do was put a Sea Breeze bottle in and out of a trash can. But can simplicity stack up for a hyper 5-year-old?
Well, when I brought the Nature Scavenger Hunt to the park one day, my son and his friends went crazy for it. They immediately assigned tasks to each other and had a great time looking for worms, leaves, and oddly-shaped sticks! Who says kids don’t play with sticks anymore?
See everything Mama May i has to offer online. And save $5 off your purchase of $30 or more with code SPITTHATOUT!