Top Ways to Use Lego Blocks for Purposeful Play With Autism

Some folks consider they don’t seem to be ‘good’ at taking part in with Lego® blocks, others favor different toys or actions, however only a few folks actually dislike it.

Traditionally Lego has been seen as a toy, nonetheless, this isn’t essentially the case anymore. Lego is more and more getting used as a device to encourage and develop creativity, enhance language and communication, and train and improve team-building abilities. I’ve used them with many ages, in colleges, properties, and companies.

Working as an Autism Advisory Teacher for colleges beforehand, I used to be skilled to use Lego-Therapy; structured activity-based periods that may develop social and communication abilities in youngsters with autism. This type of play remedy was initially reported within the analysis literature by Dr. Daniel LeGoff (2004) and later additional researched by Gina Owens and Professor Simon Baron-Cohen (2008) on the Autism Research Centre, Cambridge, UK.

The structured periods seem to enchantment to youngsters and younger folks with autism and employees in colleges might entry lego simply. Over the years of planning and delivering periods, I began to develop additional concepts and dealing alongside some extraordinarily proficient professionals and sensible mother and father. I used to be ready to adapt and improve Lego actions to swimsuit the wants of the youngsters and the setting they discovered themselves in.

Building Blocks for Communication

Lego as a device is extraordinarily suited to those that are logical thinkers. Those who like construction, predictability, and guidelines discover it a protected medium by which to discover their creativity and assemble their ideas. Lego by some means gives a manner by which those that wrestle to talk, can. It is not only their concepts that they’re ready to talk, but in addition their ideas, their perceptions, and their processes.

So, Lego blocks can be utilized in so some ways to assist join with others, and as a way of communication. Think of it because the real-world Instagram™—a manner to create and current the images of your world.

The actions I developed use Lego blocks to assist promote several types of communication; technical language, social and emotional communication, and social interactive abilities. The actions vary from particular person, stand-alone video games to swimsuit people who have little time however loads of enthusiasm, and likewise a sequence of actions for use over longer intervals of time, with teams or people. Each exercise has an intention; a speech, language or communication ‘goal,’ however the course of and the ‘feel’ of the actions are strictly casual and enjoyable. Although construction appeals to many younger folks I see, stress and the sense of compelled collaboration don’t.

Lego play will be helpful each at college and at house. The actions permit for members of the family to come collectively to collaborate and create utilizing a device that’s acquainted and enjoyable.

Here are just a few actions to attempt with your loved ones. These are primary outlines; they’re designed to be tailored to swimsuit many individuals, so be happy to change a few of the particulars.

Lego to assist with dialog

Here is an instance of utilizing Lego blocks to enhance making these vital connections:

“Amy, what I want to talk to you about is going to be hard for me so I’d like to build as we chat. I know it is appropriate to try to give eye contact during discussions and I know this will be hard for me. I know it is more appropriate if I am looking at something I am building; you will be less likely to find me rude, so I thought that would be a good strategy.” (15 yr previous scholar)

Think of Lego on these events as a processing device. Some folks course of ideas higher if they’re ‘doing’ while speaking and Lego could be a profitable device if used on this manner.

What to do:

• Put a pile of Lego blocks on the desk/ground.
• Start to construct and encourage these with you to construct something they like.
• When prepared, begin a dialog. Keep centered on the Lego and don’t fear about lengthy pauses or needing to do that just a few instances earlier than the chat will get going.

Lego for taking part in collectively

Sort It

What to do:

• Put a pile of Lego blocks on the desk/ ground.
• Explain you’re going to kind them.
• Encourage dialogue round how to kind. Point out there may be not a ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ manner to kind Lego blocks, and there could also be completely different concepts. Examples could also be by coloration, form, variety of studs, and so forth.
• Start sorting collectively, discussing the items and which piles/ packing containers they need to go in.
• Use visible playing cards if wanted (g. coloration/quantity playing cards) to distinguish the completely different standards for sorting.

Buzz in Game

What to do:

• Put a pile of Lego blocks on the desk/ ground.
• Each individual decides on a private ‘buzz’ sound. This will be any noise or sound, or you might determine to have buzzers.
• Player 1 describes a chunk from the pile. If the opposite gamers suppose they know which piece is being described they need to ‘buzz’ in. The participant that guesses accurately will get the subsequent go, and the individual describing the piece will get to maintain the piece he/she efficiently described.
• Continue the sport, encouraging modern descriptive phrases and modeling the usage of new phrases if wanted.
• Build a mannequin with the items collected all through the sport.
• You can play this sport with none spoken phrases—use image playing cards or a visible mat displaying colours, numbers, and so forth. Communication will be by means of photos solely.

Listen and Build

What to do:

• Put a pile of Lego blocks on the desk/ground
• Write out a set of directions on a chunk of paper or card. Start easy. g., 1) Build a mannequin utilizing 3 blue bricks, 8 purple bricks and a pair of bricks with 4 studs on.
• Each individual will get to create and browse out the directions for the remainder of the group. You could determine to give ‘awards’ for probably the most inventive fashions.
• Start to make the directions extra summary, g., construct a mannequin utilizing all the colours you might be at present carrying.
• Put a time restrict on the constructing of the mannequin to maintain the tempo of the exercise or spend a variety of time on only one mannequin and repeat the exercise with another person being in control of the directions on one other event. 

Lego for sharing ideas and emotions

Persuade me with items

What to do:

• Put a pile of Lego blocks on the desk/ ground.
• Explain there will probably be a dilemma and they’re going to have to assemble an answer which they may share with the remainder of the group. This could also be associated to a historic or topical occasion, or it could possibly be one thing from a narrative. Some examples could also be:

1. A personality in a narrative is caught on an island surrounded by shark-infested waters and desires assist to assemble an acceptable piece of apparatus to assist them get off the island.
2. A automobile designer desires to produce a automobile that can transport eight folks comfortably and safely while offering leisure for the youngsters on lengthy journeys.

• Each individual reveals his/her mannequin and explains the principle options of the design. Think about how to make your voice and physique language persuasive and assured.

Colorful Feelings

What to do:

• Put a pile of Lego blocks on the desk/ground. Have one mini-figure every.
• Talk about emotions while taking part in with the Lego blocks. Talk about names of feelings, what they may really feel like in our physique and once we would possibly really feel them. Talk about what occurs once we really feel them and the way completely different folks react to completely different emotions.
• You might want to write the names of emotions on a big piece of paper, utilizing a special coloration for every feeling.
• Allow every individual to determine which coloration will go along with every feeling for them. It is okay if these colours are completely different for every individual.
• If wanted, the adults could have to mannequin examples. g., somebody could get dissatisfied in the event that they don’t get picked to reply a query at school.
• Each individual ought to acquire a pile of bricks of every coloration, placing them on their paper on high of the corresponding feeling.
• Each individual ought to construct an occasion or reminiscence utilizing the corresponding coloration bricks to present his/her fundamental emotions throughout this occasion. g., a birthday or first day at a brand new house. (You might want to begin with a ‘positive’ feeling.)
• Once accomplished, every individual ought to describe his/her mannequin, utilizing the determine to signify themself, ‘walking’ it by means of their is/her situation.
• Repeat the exercise with a special feeling.

 Top suggestions for your actions:

• Think of it as structured play—know what you need to train however maintain it enjoyable.
• Allow time to study—repeating actions will enhance confidence.
• Keep actions quick initially, growing the size of time as they change into acquainted.
• Adapt to your loved ones—there isn’t a ‘right’ manner.
• Include free play in addition to structured actions.
• Give the youngsters some management—play their video games their manner!
• Model it—do it first to present the youngsters what to count on

Conclusion

Lego could be a useful gizmo to join with others. We use it repeatedly in my group and plenty of households I do know use it as a part of their ‘toolkit of ideas.’

I might advocate having a go, conserving it easy and having enjoyable. The bricks convey the construction, however it’s your information of your youngster or member of the family that can make it profitable.

Acknowedgements:

Eleftheriades, A (2015) Building Blocks for Communication; Activities for Promoting Language and Communication Skills in Children with Special Educational Needs, Routledge, London

LeGoff, D. (2004), Use of LEGO© as a Therapeutic Medium for Improving Social Competence Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders October 2004, Volume 34, Issue 5, pp 557–571

Owens G¹, Granader Y, Humphrey A, Baron-Cohen S, LEGO remedy and the social use of language programme: an analysis of two social abilities interventions for youngsters with excessive functioning autism and Asperger Syndrome. J Autism Dev Disord. 2008 Nov;38(10):1944-57. doi: 10.1007/s10803-008-0590-6. Epub 2008 Jun 20.

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This article was featured in Issue 87 – Building ASD Awareness and Communication