They might not be as flashy as a robot or instantaneous gratification like a video game but building blocks have a wide range of benefits for the BRAIN!

 

 

 

Check out these activities that you can share with your children using building blocks.  In this article you will find some great reasons why building blocks are a great tool for learning as well as six fun ways to engage your child in the fun learning environment of building blocks.  Also, for more information check out SmartGamesAndToys for our selection of building blocks in the discover section.

When the structures your child has built with building blocks fall they experience some lessons.  Children learn about gravity as they watch the previously stacked blocks tumble to the ground.  They also learn the lesson of impermanence.  The structure was once there and now it’s gone!   Spatial reasoning skills are developed as they discover if a piece will fit, or if it will make the shape they want.  They improve their math skills by counting the pieces or comparing the size and width of pieces.  Even language skills can be improved as the child discusses what they are doing.    

So now you know some of the reasons why building blocks are a great toy for engaging your child’s mind and here are six fun ways to put these building blocks to use… 

1. Give your child some other toys such as some people, animals and cars and have them build structures with their building blocks to compliment the other toys.  For example, they could build a barn for the animals, a house for the people and a parking garage for the cars.  This stimulates creativity and imagination.
2. Tell them a story with a structure in it and then have them build the structure.  Have them create a new story about their structure to tell to you.  This encourages a story narrative to be developed and created.  Try to determine which project they enjoy more…if they enjoy building the structure or telling the story.  *NOTE:  If they enjoy building the structure you may have a future engineer on your hands…if however, they enjoy creating and telling a story you may have a future novelist!
3. Encourage your child to play with others in a cooperative manner to build an entire city structure with building blocks.  This encourages team work and strengthens social skills.
4. Draw a picture of a structure and have your child build that structure.  This helps them see a model or blue print and then create it in a three dimensional form.
5. Sit with your child and as they pick up the block pieces ask them to say the name of each shape.  This helps them with name recall and geometric shapes.
6. With SmartGamesAndToys Chubby Edublocks take three or four pieces and make a structure.  Ask your child to recreate that structure.  It sounds easy but your child will have to count each knob on the block to match the structure you have created and make it align properly.  This forces your child to keep track of several different things at the same time.