People to People: Your kid’s Toys Inventors (Chalk and Chuckles)

Most toy inventors and developers are parents themselves or work with kids and learned from their own experience what they wish they had, as kids or what made them who they are today.

I believe in people, in the people behind the toys, behind the innovation, behind the hard work.
I also believe in conscious parenting.

So here is a “Behind the scenes” of Toy development, to get to know the people behind your kid’s toys.

This is also an insight with lots of great advises for new and future toy inventors.

Meet Pallavi and Prachi Agarwal, co-Founders of Chalk and Chuckles…

Tell us about your products:

At Chalk and Chuckles we make FUN educational and developmental games for kids ages 2 to 12 years.

We make games that teach what textbooks can’t!

C.L.A.P (Connect, Laugh, Ask and Play) TO LEARN as you develop memory, problem-solving, empathy and kindness.

Social-Emotional Learning is a very strong theme in our portfolio. When children are feeling safe, connected and are able to express themselves, learning will happen.

We prioritize connection between families to provide hours of screen-free play to develop key values, character and developmental skills.

We also ensure that all games are suited to varied levels of ability and provide multiple ways to play.

As a kid, what was your favorite toys and games?

Scrabble (you can find this HERE), Hopscotch (if you are not sure what is this, something like this:

Hop & Count Hopscotch Rug)

What drives you while developing new toys?

When creating new games and toys, our focus is always on giving parents simple and fun tools that not only develop cognitive skills but help promote key life skills like sportsmanship- learning to win with pride and lose with grace, resilience, empathy and curiousity.

We strive to develop not only games but fun activities that promote conversation and connection between families.

We are a passionate team of ’Play Advocates’ who simply believe in the power of play in shaping children’s learning, skills, experiences & future, from the games they play today.

A future, where they will be active, confident, curious, flexible, creative, connected, kind, and happy adults. A future where every child will grow up to be self-reliant, feels worthy, shows empathy, engages the global community and never stops being a learner!

The fun part in developing games/toys…

The fun part is really letting your imagination take a flight. When you experiment with an idea you get to be completely ridiculous and whacky. Choosing characters and materials is exciting. Trying out game plays and play testing initial ideas with kids is really entertaining.

The difficult part / time while developing toys…

Each of the stages that are fun are also very challenging. But i think the most challenging part of developing toys is to have a balance between good design and production.

In your opinion, what are the main values kids need today?

In this ever-changing world, i think the most important thing for children is RESILIENCE- being able to bounce back and flexibility in thinking.

Being able to see themselves as part of an interconnected world, where their choices and actions affect others is also crucial and is the foundation for a more compassionate and kind world.

Any important lesson you learned through the process of developing toys for kids about your own parenting?

Every family is unique. Each game experience is different. We bring our own playfulness to a game and life!

What are the 3 advises you wish to give today to new & future toy inventors?

1. We need fun games for sure but as future toy inventors we hold a very privileged space where we can design experiences that shape our future generation! so let’s design with responsibility.

2. Having a good game is never enough if one doesn’t know how to market it. Marketing is just as essential if not more than the actual game or product.

3. Know your target audience. Some people will never like “Purple” and that’s ok!

The 3 main goals of toys for kids in your opinion are:

learn things

challenge kids
share and connect with others

Why should parents or grandparents purchase your products?

In a fun and entertaining, non-stressful way- our games provide unique opportunities to play with children and really ‘See’ them and have conversations that matter to you as a family all while you are learning.

Chalk and Chuckles website: https://www.chalkandchuckles.com/

FOLLOW Chalk and Chuckles on facebook HERE.

You can buy this brand products from various articles below:

How to teach kindness and empathy to children through games…
Laughing Kookaburra for Age 6+ in the article about “Top 10 Funny Family Board Games to add Humor & Laugh at Home”
Clever Counting in the article “Kids & money“
Rolling Tales for Age 5+in the article “Why should we use Cooperative play and what toys encourage collaboration?”
My Little Cabbage: Memory and Tactile Game with Finger Puppets as well as Sandwich Mix Up- Speedy Tactile Shape Recognition Game for Ages 4 -10 Years , both can be found in the article about “15 Best Sensory Toys for Toddlers to Help healthy Development”

You may be interested in additional interviews HERE or read about “7 Best Family Card Games”