9 Important Benefits of Lego in Early Childhood
There are so many amazing benefits of Lego in early childhood. As kids build, problem-solve, and play with their creations they develop important skills like spatial awareness, fine motor movements, and even self-confidence!
Lego sets are quite literally the building blocks of early learning and education! There is a reason why so many parents, teachers, and caregivers encourage their children to play with this type of toy.
Let’s take a closer look at the 9 amazing benefits of Lego play for kids!
9 Benefits of Lego in Early Childhood
1. Early Math Skills
According to research, the biggest predictor of later academic success is proficiency in early math skills.
How can you help your children develop these early math skills? Through Lego play!
Many research articles have linked Lego play to enhanced mathematical abilities. One study found that children who played with complex Lego sets in preschool had higher mathematical success in their high school years.
Here are two research articles that show the benefits of Lego play on mathematics in early childhood:
- Construction play and cognitive skills associated with the development of mathematical abilities in 7-year-old children
- Advanced Constructional Play with LEGOs among Preschoolers as a Predictor of Later School Achievement in Mathematics
2. Cognitive Development
A common question that frequently gets asked is, “Why is Lego good for the brain?”.
Lego play is actually an amazing cognitive activity for kids. According to the research listed above, the ability to construct a Lego set is directly correlated to visuospatial memory. This important cognitive ability helps children learn their shapes and colors, while simultaneously helping them learn about spatial positioning and location.
Here are some other amazing cognitive benefits of Lego:
- Enhanced problem-solving abilities: must recognize problems and find solutions
- Practice of critical thinking skills: will analyze and make decisions based on the materials they have
- Planning and hypothesizing: kids must make a plan when building with Lego
3. Hand-Eye Coordination
Hand-eye coordination is a very complex skill for young children. It is essentially the ability to connect your motor and visual systems together.
When children play with Lego, they are learning how to use their eyes and hands together to create coordinated movements to place the Lego pieces into their correct positions.
Other construction toys like building blocks, Magna-tiles, and Mega Bloks are also a great way to practice hand-eye coordination.
4. Fine Motor Skills
Fine motor skills are very important for child development as they lay the foundation for bigger skills like handwriting, typing, and drawing.
These movements are basically the coordination and dexterity of the little tiny muscles in our hands and fingers. When we are proficient with these movements, daily tasks like eating and tying shoelaces are easily performed.
Lego building and constructing is an amazing fine motor activity for kids as they have to carefully and precisely manipulate the little tiny pieces.
5. Communication + Collaboration
Playtime is one of the best opportunities for adults to encourage language, communication, and social development in their children.
If your child is playing with Lego by themselves, start talking to them about what they are making. This is also a great time to ask open-ended questions. One of my favorite questions is “What could you make with 100 Lego blocks?”.
Children tend to have a deep level of engagement when you talk to them during play.
If your kids are playing with others, encourage them to work together and collaborate to build the final creation. This is a great opportunity to help them build social skills in a safe environment.
6. Attention Span + Concentration
Lego building is a great activity to enhance your child’s concentration and attention span.
Most Lego sets come with a step-by-step instruction guide. This manual helps children to see the bigger picture while gently guiding them through the building process.
It is amazing to see how focused and engaged they children are as they slowly construct the Lego set.
7. Following Directions
As mentioned above, most Lego sets come with building instructions.
Learning how to follow directions is an incredibly important life skill for children. Not only is it important for social development, but children who can successfully follow directions tend to perform better academically.
Following directions also helps keep children safe. Whether they are at home, in school, or at the playground, following an adult’s instructions is very important for safety reasons.
8. Emotional Development
Learning how to regulate and control one’s emotions is a major school-readiness skill for children.
And let’s face it, building anything can cause a good amount of frustration as you run into various problems. When children build a Lego set, many emotions can arise and children have to learn how to manage these feelings appropriately.
This is also great therapeutic tool for children who may be overstimulated. Even though running into problems can momentarily cause frustration, in general, playing with Lego is a very calming and relaxing activity.
Here are some other emotional regulation activities for children.
9. Self-Esteem
Building self-confidence in your children is incredibly important.
There is a sense of accomplishment when children finish building a Lego set. Some projects take hours or even days to complete so it is good for our kids to feel proud of their final project.
When children begin to believe in their abilities they will seek out more complex projects which only furthers their development.
I hope you have enjoyed learning about the many benefits of Lego for kids!
One of the best ways children learn is through play so it is important we provide them with as many opportunities to play as possible!
Happy playing!
