Amy Graveline - Concept 1

Concept:  My first toy is a little action figure with interchangeable parachutes.  He will come with multiple (say, 10) different parachutes, of different sizes, shapes, and materials.  Some parachutes will work well for him, others will do virtually nothing.  This will teach children the principle of air resistance and how different materials and shapes of parachutes behave in the air.

Sketch:

Interaction:  The child will interact with the toy by playing with it the way he or she would normally play with an actions figure.  The child will have the additional interaction of being able to throw the toy from some height, and seeing how the different parachutes affect the flight of the toy.  The toy will engage several of the child's senses; sight, touch, hearing (when the toy hits the ground and when the parachute takes shape for some materials).  It may not lead to cooperative play between children if there is only one toy available, but if multiple children have the toys, then I think they would be able to play together.

Construction:  The construction of the toy should not be much more than the construction cost of normal action figured.  So assuming normal action figures run about $14.99 in the stores, and production costs are probably around 25% of that cost, I would estimate the construction costs at $3.75 per toy.  It should be durable, most action figures are.  There may be some durability issues with the parachute; if some are made out of thin materials they might easily rip.  There aren't any small parts involved, so there should not be a choking hazard safety issue.  I think that action figures are relatively safe as far as toys go, and being that they are for slightly older kids (5-12) one would hope that kids don't beat each other over the head with them.  The only real safety concern I have is just if the kids try to climb up to high heights to throw the action figure from, they themselves might fall or try out homemade parachutes.  This safety concern is not a direct safety hazard of the toy, but it could be a result of playing with the toy.