LEGO play is a child favourite – at any age! LEGO is a Bambini team favourite because you can strategically work on so many therapy goals, all while building a world of fun at the same time. We love LEGO play so much so, that we have built our very own LEGO Activity Resource Pack for YOU and your child to have fun with at home!
TIP: For very young children, you can play all in the same way using larger DUPLO LEGO blocks!
Here are our top play-based communication and social skills you can literally build upon at home creating your own LEGO world at home:
1. Descriptive language development
LEGO is a simple way to build your child’s vocabulary. During LEGO play, you can ask your child a range of questions to have them describe their creative creations such as:
What colour is your LEGO piece?
How does it look? (e.g. square-shaped, rectangle, long, flat etc.)
How many dots does your LEGO piece have?
What size is your LEGO piece? (e.g. big, small)
Advanced question: Which LEGO shape is your favourite, and why?
We highly recommend you support your child’s vocabulary development through a range of verbal, visual and sensory-play-based approaches as advised by your child’s therapist to enhance their learning.
2. LEGO can easily build upon your child’s turn-taking and listening skills
LEGO is a great activity to model turn-taking and sharing among each other. By working as a team towards a common goal, children will learn to better-consider different perspectives, roles, and ideas. A great way to encourage everyone work together, is to check in that everyone knows and is following “the group plan”.
Some key words you could use during LEGO play include:
My turn
Your turn
Pack away
Finished
More
Wait
Stop
Go
Let’s share with….
Have siblings or friends aren’t willing to share with one another? Our Bambini LEGO Activity Resource Pack contains some simple visual-based sentence strips to help!
3. LEGO is a great way for children to learn to follow instructions
Following instructions is a common speech and occupational therapy goal. Functionally, following instructions is important for navigating personal and transport safety (e.g. crossing the road), completing home and school-based activities and tasks (e.g. packing away toys, completing a worksheet), engaging socially and actively with friends, family and peers (e.g. following instructions during sport) and so much more!
Through LEGO play, you might start with giving children simple 1-step instructions such as “give me the red piece” or “I want a big square piece” to much more complex and lengthier instructions containing more specific and descriptive vocabulary. This is something you can slowly build up and increase with guidance from your child’s therapist.
4. LEGO opens up a world of creative problem-solving, emotional learning and imaginative play
LEGO play is incredibly versatile and gives your child permission to play their way! LEGO play can be as structured or unstructured as your child needs. LEGO is highly engaging and can help hold a child’s attention for longer with the right input and guidance.
LEGO play can help foster your child’s development of problem-solving skills, resilience, and empathy in so many ways! You might discover that there is a missing LEGO piece that they want or need. What could we use instead? Their friend or sibling might intentionally or unintentionally push over their magical castle. How could we use this as an important learning opportunity to forgive, and build something bigger and better?
We hope today’s post has inspired you to explore the wonderful world of LEGO! What is your child’s favourite way to play with LEGO?
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Want to learn more about how to better support your child’s social, language and play skills? Give us a call on 0450 501 023, or email hello@bambinihealth.com.au to book in with one of our knowledgeable and passionate speech pathologists or occupational therapists today.