There are many benefits of playing with building blocks during early childhood. Building blocks are great at developing the imagination, creativity, problem-solving ability, and social skills for toddlers. Since blocks are versatile and open-ended, kids can let their imagination run wild and turn them into whatever they like, reinventing designs. As parents, we can help them get more creative and experimental, but how do we get them to play with it in the first place? Keep reading to learn how to have toddler play with building blocks.
What Are Building Blocks?
Building blocks are toys made from durable, kid-safe materials like plastic and wood. They are available in vibrant colors and different sizes. They are also called toy blocks and feature solid shapes used for construction play. Some are simple planks made of wood. Others are fancy, like the interlocking bricks of plastic made by Lego and MegaBlox.
It is an excellent activity for a group, as it will provide many teaching opportunities for toddlers to develop and practice a variety of social skills. The children can learn to share blocks, negotiate, and cooperate to build something great together. This activity is excellent also to teach children to wait for their turn patiently.
Playing blocks should be set up in an area that is free from other distractions. It should also be big enough to allow children to build sizeable structures they will boast about later.
Benefits of Playing Building Blocks
Building blocks enhance your toddler’s ability on problem-solving, creativity, boosts self-esteem, and the uphold skills to develop new things. These easy-to-use toys help children cooperate and share their toys with others, thus making new friends in the process. Blocks offer many ways for toddlers to express themselves and increase their attention span. Mathematical concepts like symmetry and balance are also strengthened through block play. It develops hand and eye coordination, spatial awareness, and improves fine motor skills.
It also teaches kids early math and engineering skills through hands-on learning. Kids learn better when they can feel objects, and the best way to learn geometric shapes is to explore every corner. They learn how massive the blocks are, and then they learn exactly how to place the block for it not to fall. Additionally, it enhances logical thinking capability and provides mental stimulation through learning about cause and effect. With all the benefits of this play, you must be good at guiding your how to have a toddler play with building blocks.
How to Have Toddler Play with Building Blocks
You need to invest in blocks that are age-appropriate for your toddler. When little ones are first introduced to blocks, they feel them, hold on to them, and carry them around. If you got the right parental encouragement, it would be easy for you to guide how to have a toddler play with building blocks. Here are useful tips on how to get your toddler to start off playing with building blocks.
- Engage young toddlers by participating yourself.
- Demonstrate how to build with them and talk to your kid about spatial ideas.
- Encourage cooperative building projects and play the part of a party host to get joint building projects started.
- Stimulate interest in toy blocks by providing children with character toys and other accessories.
- Challenge your toddler with specific building tasks. Kids reap extraordinary benefits from trying to match a structure to a template. Use pictures and diagrams to guide a construction project.
- Combine block play with story-time. Used toy blocks and block accessories to illustrate parts of the stories. This strategy will increase pretend play and will give kids ideas for things to build.
- Fantasy and make-believe are valuable aspects of play. Give full support in this aspect. And encouraging preschoolers to engage in imaginative, fantastical, pretend play may help them develop better executive function skills, like impulse control. If your child’s block-play seems focused more on fantasy than engineering, don’t worry, he or she is still reaping important cognitive benefits.
It’s not an easy task to perfectly know how to have a toddler play with building blocks. But always remember that our kids need full support in all their activities. Playing with them is the start of conquering the challenge. Get more tips on baby toys.
Conclusion
Parents genuinely believe in the value of learning through play. If you’re thinking of buying a toy for your child, good quality and age-appropriate building blocks are worth your investment. Your next challenge is to figure out how to get your kid to play with it. Consider the guidelines on how to have a toddler play with building blocks.
Building blocks and child development go hand in hand. Merely learning how to stack blocks can develop self-confidence, making toddlers proud of their simple success. Plus, block play stimulates intellectual and physical growth, making it an essential inclusion for most development milestones.