Waldorf-inspired toys are designed with the philosophy that children learn and develop best through active and creative open-ended play. Natural wooden toys with a minimum of finishing and detail allow the child to experience the wonderful feel and smell of the wood, and encourage the child to use their imagination and creative thinking during play. The toys become whatever the child can imagine. This also means that the toys are extremely versatile and grow with the child - for example, where a toddler enjoys simply feeling and banging the pieces of a Large Rainbow, a preschooler loves to stack the pieces and put the rainbow together, and a kindergartener may use the pieces in more imaginative ways as tunnels, fences, houses or doll cradles. In this way, open-ended natural toys encourage active play and enliven the imaginative life of the child.