Abstract:
An educational toy for use in developing manual dexterity and color recognition and distinction and in teaching children to recognize and distinguish larger from smaller numbers and to understand their relationships to physical size and to one another.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates generally to educational toys, and more specifically to toys used in teaching young children to recognize and distinguish larger from smaller numbers and to understand their relationships to physical size and to each other, as well as developing manual dexterity and the ability to distinguish color. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     In the past, inventors have directed their creative efforts toward combination mailboxes designed in such a way that multiple postal customers could insert mail, but including individual boxes in the same structure designed for delivery of mail to the postal customers. Other inventors have designed toy post office boxes having multiple drawers and equipment which tended to teach a child to a certain degree how a postal system might operate. Other inventors have directed their attention to educational devices with variously shaped blocks to improve the child&#39;s manual dexterity and to teach the child to distinguish between shapes. Applicant is unaware of any prior art which combines the unique features taught in the present invention for the development of the child&#39;s manual dexterity in combination with the development of an intimate understanding of numbers and their relationships to each other and to physical size. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention comprises an educational toy mailbox. The body of the present invention is constructed in the shape of a mailbox and includes several numbered postal box doors with drawers behind them. The postal box doors may be keyed or not keyed. On the back of the present invention is a large door. The aforementioned drawers are sealed at the back with peculiarly designed slots cut therein, the shapes of which are such that blocks cut to fit snugly into any one of the slots will not fit into any of the other slots. 
     One of the objects of the present invention is to provide an educational toy which helps to familiarize a child with the number system and to give the child an understanding of the relationships of numbers to each other. 
     Another object of the present invention is to reinforce the child&#39;s understanding of number relationships through the use of blocks which are numbered and the relative size of each of which corresponds to the number imprinted on it. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide an educational toy which improves a child&#39;s manual dexterity while at the same time giving the child an understanding of the number system and the relationships of numbers to each other and to physical size. 
     A further object of the present invention is to develop a child&#39;s color recognition in combination with the foregoing objects. 
     The foregoing objects, as well as other and further objects, are made more apparent in the description and claims which follow. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view taken along the front and side of the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the invention taken along lines 2--2 of FIG. 3. 
     FIG. 3 is a top view of the invention taken along lines 3--3 of FIG. 2. 
     FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 4--4 of FIG. 2. 
     FIGS. 5 and 6 show blocks of different sizes designed to be inserted into the slots shown in FIG. 4. 
     FIGS. 7 and 8 show keys to be utilized in opening the drawers shown in FIG. 1. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the mailbox 10. Mailbox 10 provides a mail slot door 12 which may be pulled open to permit the deposit of simulated &#34;mail&#34; in the form of blocks similar to those shown as 38 and 39 in FIGS. 5 and 6 of the drawings. Doors 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22 are provided and have numbers 1 through 9 imprinted thereon as shown. These doors are hinged at hinges 23, and have means for locking and unlocking them in the form of keyholes 42 and locks. Behind the aforementioned doors are compartments in which blocks 38 and 39 may be placed. The position and layout of compartments 24, 26 and 27, which sit behind doors 15, 21 and 18, is shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings. Although not specifically shown, substantially identical compartments are positioned behind the remaining doors. 
     FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of mailbox 10 taken along lines 2--2 of FIG. 3 of the drawings. A large door 28 is located at the rear of mailbox 10 and gives access to the rear side of compartments 24, 26 and 27 and the other compartments. Wall 11 is provided to simulate the appearance of a postal mailbox. Mail slot door 12 is hinged to wall 11 by hinge 43, and swings to an open or closed position as shown by the arrow in FIG. 2. A stop 44 is positioned at the top of mailbox 10 to prevent mail slot door 12 from swinging over into the rear part of mailbox 10. 
     FIG. 3 of the drawings is a top view of mailbox 10 showing door 28 and individual doors 14, 15 and 16 in an open condition. 
     FIG. 4 is a rear view of the inside of mailbox 10 taken along lines 4--4 of FIG. 2. The back surfaces of compartments 24, 26 and 27, as well as those of the other compartments, are numbered consecutively 1 through 9, these numbers corresponding with the numbering on the doors at the front of mailbox 10. Slots 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36 and 37 are all of different sizes, so that a block designed to fit one of the slots will fit only that slot and no other. This is accomplished with successive lengthening and narrowing of the slots. 
     FIGS. 5 and 6 of the drawings show blocks 38 and 39, numbered 1 and 5, which are specifically designed to fit into slots 1 and 5 on the back of mailbox 10. 
     FIGS. 7 and 8 show key handles 40 and 41 with keys 45 and 46 attached. Keys having different shapes are provided to fit each of the locks, designated generally 42 in FIG. 1, and are such that each key will unlock one door only and no other. 
     While the description set forth above shows the physical construction of mailbox 10, further specifications include the use of different colors to represent mailbox doors 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. The areas designated by numbers 1 through 9 on the back of mailbox 10 are colored correspondingly with the doors on the front of mailbox 10. Blocks 38 and 39, as well as the other blocks used with slots 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36 and 37, are colored to correspond to the color of the door on the front of the box which they fit. The keys shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 are also colorcoordinated so that a key which fits door 14 is colored to match door 14, and so on. 
     Because of the coordination of color-coded slots on the back of mailbox 10 with blocks representing &#34;mail&#34; which are size- and color-coordinated to match the areas surrounding the slots on the back of mailbox 10, as well as the color-coordination of the doors in the front of mailbox 10 with the keys used to open them, an unconscious learning process takes place in a child&#39;s mind, not only teaching the child to recognize and match colors, but also developing the child&#39;s manual dexterity through the use of keys, in addition to the child&#39;s understanding of the relationships of numbers to each other and to physical size. 
     The foregoing has illustrated and described the preferred embodiment of the present invention at this time. However, because improvements and changes will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art of making learning devices, it is to be understood that it is applicant&#39;s intent not to be limited by any of the foregoing descriptions, but only by the claims which follow.