So let’s be honest, I have always loved Legos! When I say that I am loving Legos again, it is because I have started writing some new Lego Challenges for the schools that I am working with. I am also curating some fun new ones from Pinterest. I will share some of my new ones when I finish creating this batch. No sense in not sharing and using social media for good contributions!
What made me love Legos again? A trip to Legoland-Florida with my nephew and husband. Who can’t be inspired by all the awesome Lego creations through out the park!
So, I came home from Legoland and decided that one of my client schools could benefit from Lego Challenges. What are the benefits to Lego Challenges? According to The Scots College in Australia, there are eight important benefits to using Legos in the classroom, https://www.tsc.nsw.edu.au/tscnews/eight-educational-benefits-of-playing-with-lego.For me the three that stand out are Lego develops problem solving and mathematical thinking, creativity, and communication skills. Using the directions supports attention to detail while giving no directions or minimum parameters allows for practice with problem solving. When students are teamed for a Lego challenge, the opportunity to communicate postively and collaborate on a solution is seamlessly integrated in the activity.
And the benefits are not just for elementary students, but for preschool through adulthood. The same advantages to building with Legos that pertain to kids, also applies to adults. What a great way to model positve collaboration than to get involved with solving the Lego challenge with your students. Or invite your parents in for an evening of Lego building.
How to start using Legos effectively as a teaching tool? For me, it begins with creating Lego boxes. On the left are the boxes I put together for a client school. On the right is the set that was put together for a different school. This second school also has a huge bin available for students to use for free builds and for exchanging bricks.
After the boxes are ready, let the fun begin! Check out Pinterest for some great challenge ideas. Here are some I have adapted from Pinterest and ones I have come up with on my own (determine which grade levels these most apply to in your class/school):
- Create a musical note.
- Create a catapult.
- Create a LEGO sculpture then write a LEGO instruction booklet for others to create your design.
- Create a helicopter.
- You were just made ruler over your own country. Design a flag for your new land.
- Build a bridge out of Legos! Challenge is to build a bridge that can support the weight of 100 pennies in a small cup.
- What can you build with ___________bricks? (change the amounts to add difficulty)
So start loving Legos again too! Reach out with your Lego Challenge ideas via Twitter (@edtechease) or Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/edtechease/) or email me, swladis@edtechease.com.
Originally posted on Friday, 30 November 2018.