BOOK DESIGN
STORYBOOK SERIES DESIGN
Storybooks for Toddlers' Developmental Milestones
THE PLAYFUL APPROACH
MY RESPONSIBILITIES AS A DESIGN HEAD
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Led the design strategy and implementation for a series of toddler storybooks.
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Identified appropriate play value based on developmental milestones.
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Collaborated closely with child development experts, story writers, and visual designers to evaluate concepts.
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Stepped into the roles of visual designer and product designer as needed, also illustrating several books to meet tight deadlines in a growing startup environment.
DESIGN IMPACT
Launch of a range of interactive and playful books for toddlers complimenting the range of annual play subscription models for Flinto Box that was launched for the first time in India for Flinto Learning Solutions
DESIGN, ILLUSTRATION, AND DIRECTION : SERIES OF BOOKS FOR TODDLERS ACTIVITY BOXES
This project involved designing, illustrating, and overseeing the entire design process, from concept to development, for a series of storybooks targeting children aged 12 months to 24 months. These storybooks were tailored to correspond with the children's monthly developmental milestones and play requirements. The project aimed to create a new line of Flintobox products, which would complement the existing portfolio by placing a strong emphasis on play as the central theme.
REASON FOR THE APPROACH
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Flintobox is the sole Indian early learning company targeting children aged 12 to 24 months with activity boxes.
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Identified potential in introducing playful books, a unique concept in the Indian book market.
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Leveraged Flinto's strengths and capabilities in toy and paper material production.
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This advantage enabled the creation of a series of books for toddler activity boxes.
USERS
CUSTOMERS
Parents or guardians or grandparents of children aged 12 to 24 months.
NEW USERS
Curious early readers
who are toddlers.
BOOK DESIGN
CONSIDERING 12 TO 24 MONTHS TODDLER’S PLAY & DEVELOPMENTAL NEEDS
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Identifying developmental milestones in collaboration with child psychologists.
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Recognizing key developmental needs for toddlers.
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Identifying specific areas for incorporating stories with a primary focus on play value.
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Encouraging active involvement by both children and parents to support holistic child development.
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Using storybooks to address developmental needs that were challenging to achieve through activities alone.
MILESTONE 1: Identifying Self
At around 12 to 13 months of age, children engage in mirror play, demonstrating their emerging ability to recognize and identify themselves
SOLUTION
Sleepy Teddy' book is designed to engage children to identify themselves with Teddy through interactive actions and introducing a mirror as part of the book to look at themselves.
MILESTONE 2: Understanding Self
Around 13 to 14 months of age, children begin to develop an understanding of self, demonstrating self-recognition and awareness
SOLUTION
"Head To Toe" book helps kids recognize their body parts by showing a toddler in action on each page, with explanations of each body part's function.
MILESTONE 3: Concept of Yes & No
Between 14 to 15 months, children start grasping the concepts of "yes" and "no," exhibiting an emerging understanding of basic communication and decision-making
SOLUTION
No! Yes!’ is a playful exploration of dressing up while also explaining the concept of 'yes' and 'no' in everyday activities involving children
MILESTONE 4: Curious about textures
Around 15 to 16 months, children become increasingly curious about textures, exploring and interacting with different tactile sensations to further their sensory development.
SOLUTION
‘Textures Of The Garden’ provides touch sensory stimuli to encourage children's curiosity.
MILESTONE 5: Imitating others
Between 16 to 17 months, children show a growing inclination for imitation, mimicking actions and behaviors of others as a way to learn and understand their social environment.
SOLUTION
Lion Waves Hi!’ is a parent and child bonding book that encourages the parent to take on the role of the lion puppet and mimic actions to encourage the child to follow along.
MILESTONE 6: Recognising Objects And Actions
Around 17 to 18 months, children demonstrate an emerging ability to recognise objects and their functions, showcasing their cognitive development and understanding of the world around them.
SOLUTION
‘My Day At Home’ encourages children to identify everyday familiar objects while acknowledging their ability to recognize them.
MILESTONE 7: EXPERIMENTING WITH SOUNDS
Between 18 to 19 months, children show an increasing interest in sounds and music, actively exploring rhythms, melodies, and experimenting with their own vocalisations.
SOLUTION
‘Ribbit Ribbit" book includes a manual frog croaker that parents can use with varied intensity while narrating the frog's story to their child.
MILESTONE 8: ENGAGE IN HIDING GAMES
At around 19 to 20 months, children begin to engage in hiding games, demonstrating their growing understanding of object permanence and the concept of hiding and seeking.
SOLUTION
‘Squirrel’s Day Out’ encourages children to observe keenly. This book is illustrated using an experimental approach, featuring colorful clay characters that were photographed and digitally animated.
MILESTONE 9: RECOGNISE COLOURS AND SIMPLE SHAPES
Between 20 to 21 months, children show an emerging ability to recognise primary and secondary colours and basic shapes, displaying their growing understanding of visual concepts and cognitive development.
SOLUTION
‘Primary Colours’ and ‘Secondary Colours’ are playful color card swatch books that parents can progressively assemble and give to their child, creating an element of surprise each time the parent encourages the child to identify colors using these books.
MILESTONE 10: VEHICLES AND MOVEMENT
Around 21 to 22 months, children develop a fascination with vehicles and movement, displaying enthusiasm for observing, imitating, and playing with various modes of transportation.
SOLUTION
‘Vroom, Zoom, Go!’ encourages children to explore simple actions like sliding to see the vehicles actually move. It is a book full of surprise elements for curious learners and also encourages a sense of direction.
MILESTONE 11: COMPARE OBJECTS BASED ON SIZE
Between 22 to 23 months, children begin to grasp the concept of big and small, demonstrating an understanding of relative size and showing interest in comparing and categorising objects based on their size.
SOLUTION
‘Big & Little Underwater’ introduces children to both big and little creatures in the sea while also explaining the concept of opposites. The visuals are created using a mixed experimental medium, photographed, and edited digitally.
MILESTONE 12: LOST AND FOUND
Around 23 to 24 months, children start to understand the concept of "lost and found," showing the ability to search for and identify misplaced objects, as well as expressing satisfaction in reuniting them.
SOLUTION
‘Peek-A-Who In The Farm' encourages basic counting and keen observation in a playful way to stimulate curious minds. The book also features surprise flaps that the child has to open to find the missing chicks and help the mama hen.
