STEAM Activity: Building On a Lego Theme

 Activities that integrate Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math are a hot topic in the field of early childhood and beyond right now. Educators are recognizing the importance of building a strong foundation particularly in the fields of math and science for both young boys and girls and how vital it is to foster confidence in these subjects. Confidence comes from feelings of competence and enjoyment, and there are many ways through play and exposure that young children can grow to enjoy and feel competent in these areas. Even changing the language around how we speak to our kids in regard to math and science can affect their own perception of these academic subjects and later on, careers in the growing fields of technology and engineering. A recent Forbes article presents some fresh ideas on how to "Help Your Kids Love Math and Science, Even If You Don't."

And what kid doesn't love to build with Legos, Duplos or Mega Blocks? Ok, I'm not a kid and even I still like building with Legos! When I asked S what kind of birthday party he wanted to have this year, he asked for a  Lego party. I admit, I may or may not have fed him the suggestion (along with a few others I thought he'd like) and we had recently had a great time playing in a Lego exhibit at a local amusement park.

Yup, that's a huge sandbox full of Duplos--don't you kind of want to just dive in?

Legos, Duplos and Mega Blocks are all great materials for play that children of all ages and stages can grow and learn with. From the early days of Mega Blocks and Duplos to finally being able to manipulate and maneuver Lego bricks, children are developing fine motor skills, spacial concept, architectural planning, abstract play and a variety of skills in math and engineering. S in particular likes to tell stories and engage in dramatic play while he is building. Social skills around handling frustration, problem solving and navigating the inevitable fall of a tall tower (or kicking down of a tall tower by another eager engineer) are also inherent parts of playing with these toys.
At this point, S enjoys playing with all three sizes. I got a bit tired of stepping on Legos and finding them on the floor, so one day I just dumped them inside his sensory table in the kitchen and he spent hours of days building and playing in there! That kind of sparked my idea to pack up the sensory table, a few yoga mats for designating play spaces and our collection of Legos, Duplos and Mega Blocks and bring them all along to our annual celebration of S's birthday at a favorite park. This park truly has it all on its own between its fabulous playground and equally fabulous sprayground. I am not a super ambitious party planner and prefer to keep it a bit more low key for open play and visiting rather than structured games and activities. We also have mixed age groups who attend, so having a Mega Block station set up for very little hands, a Duplo station for the next step up and a Lego station higher off the ground in the sensory table (so the little pieces didn't end up in little mouths) was a great way to accommodate this.

Even Y got in on a bit of the fun!

To incorporate the "A" in STEAM and appeal to arts and crafts lovers, I set out a simple invitation to create a Lego Mini Figure Puppet using this free printable, a wide craft stick, and a selection of crayons, stickers, google eyes, buttons and glue/tape. S was still in the mood to build and play at home well into the beginning of this week! He even made a set of Lego Mini Figure Puppets for our whole family.

When I searched the world of Pinterest and beyond for Lego themed ideas for parties, there was a plethora of games, activities, accessories and more! I honestly find the whole world of themed birthday parties a little intimidating (maybe Pinterest is the reason) so I kept it simple and everyone seemed to have a great time nonetheless. But you definitely don't need a birthday to celebrate a child's love of Legos. Feel free to incorporate open building stations into your own home if that works or to lure a busy engineer over to the art table for this fun little craft. And if you're looking for even more great Lego-themed fun for the budding architect in your house, check out these over at Life with Fingerprints.

We're still building here but will be back with some story stretchers this week that will really get you going...until then, happy playing!