7. Building and Constructing with Building Blocks

Age: Works at all ages. Older children and adults can build with more and more advanced bricks. Building and construction play are above all fundamental for mathematical understanding. The children practice spatial awareness, geometry, patterns and symmetry. But technology and physics are also practiced when stability, durability and different construction techniques are tested.

Examples of abilities that are trained

• MOTOR SKILLS
• STAMINA
• PROBLEM SOLVING
• COOPERATION
• CREATIVITY

Pedagogical thoughts and challenges in the child's learning

As the child builds and constructs with the blocks, the child's understanding of mathematics, technology and physics develops.

• The child can experience and explore stability and balance by building towers, bridges, houses, etc.
• The child understands and practices mathematical concepts such as height, height, size, weight.
• Area and volume can also be experienced and explored by constructing different models.
• By guiding and showing the child, the adult can help the child understand how to solve a construction problem.

As the child builds and constructs with the blocks, the child develops their creative ability.

• Free building where the child can explore their creative ability
• Let the child imitate and follow a role model.
• Build according to a picture/drawing, the child's own or made by the adult.
• Stimulate your child's imagination by building fantasy worlds together. Use a picture, story or something experienced as inspiration for the building. 

Building and constructing encourages creative thinking, flexibility and creativity.

• The ability to fail, repeat, and try again is trained. The child learns that you can overcome challenges by being patient.
• Dare to experiment!
• By choosing the right level of difficulty (the number of blocks), we give the child the opportunity to strengthen their self-esteem and feel satisfied with having completed a challenge.
• When several children play together, you get to practice turn-taking, sharing and cooperating.
• Building and constructing with blocks requires focus and attention to detail, which increases the child's ability to concentrate.
• The child's ability to plan their work develops and the child gets to challenge themselves and test their own limits.
• The child's ability to understand and see cause and effect increases and gives the child better opportunities to correct themselves in their construction play.

 As the child builds and constructs with the blocks, the child's motor skills and body image develop.

• The child trains to regulate force in its muscles, judge distances with the help of its vision and experience balance with the help of its body.
• The child develops their spatial concepts such as distance, direction, height, depth and placement. This is an important prerequisite for understanding and interpreting maps and finding the way. Spatial perception is also a prerequisite for understanding geography, the world and also being able to interpret one's surroundings.

Some constructions made by visitors

Building "corners"