Reading is a fundamental skill that all children must develop, but not all kids are equally enthusiastic about it.
If you're a parent or teacher struggling to inspire a love of reading in your child or students, there's a fun and innovative way to help them engage with stories: Use-Build-a-Book to re-create stories out of bricks.
Here's how this approach can help make reading fun and accessible for kids.
1. It Encourages Active Participation
When children listen to a story being read to them, they are typically passive listeners.
They may become absorbed in the story and enjoy it, but they aren't doing anything themselves to create or shape the narrative.
Re-creating a story with bricks, on the other hand, encourages active participation.
Children can use their imaginations to build the scenes and characters from the story, making it a more immersive and engaging experience.
2. It Helps Develop Fine Motor Skills
Playing with bricks is a great way to help children develop their fine motor skills, such as hand-eye coordination, dexterity, and finger strength.
As children build and manipulate the bricks to create their story, they are exercising these skills without even realizing it.
This can help them with other activities that require fine motor skills, such as writing and drawing.
3. It Engages Multiple Senses
When children re-create a story with bricks, they engage multiple senses.
They can see the colours and shapes of the bricks, hear the sound of them clicking together and touch and manipulate them to create different forms.
This multi-sensory experience can help children better understand and remember the story, as well as deepen their connection to it.
4. It Encourages Creative Thinking
Re-creating a story out of bricks also encourages children to think creatively.
They have to use their imaginations to figure out how to build the characters and scenes from the story, which can help them develop problem-solving skills and think outside the box.
They may also come up with their own interpretations of the story, leading to interesting discussions and new ideas.
5. It Provides an Opportunity for Collaboration
Building a story with bricks is a great group activity, providing an opportunity for children to collaborate and work together.
They can share ideas, problem-solve together, and build on each other's creations.
This can help children develop social skills, such as communication, teamwork, and empathy, as well as make reading a more social and enjoyable experience.
So, how can you implement this approach with your child or students? Here are some tips:
1. Choose one of the Build-a-Book stories- Select a story that your child or students are interested in and that is appropriate for their reading level.
- You can read the story aloud to them, or have them read it independently if they are able.
2. Gather the Bricks or use the ones in your Build-a-Book Box
- Provide a selection of LEGO bricks for your child or students to use.
- You don't need a lot of bricks to get started - just enough to build the characters and scenes from the story.
3. Build the Story
- Encourage your child or students to use their imaginations to build the characters and scenes from the story.
- You can guide them by asking questions or making suggestions, but try to let them take the lead in the creative process.
- It's a really powerful way of using play-based learning to support reading, literacy and language skills.
4. Re-Tell the Story
- Once the story has been re-created with bricks, encourage your child or students to re-tell the story in their own words.
- This can be a great opportunity for them to practice their communication skills and develop their language abilities.
5. Extend the Activity
- After re-creating the story with LEGO bricks, there are many ways to extend the activity.
- You could have your child or students write their own version of the story, create a stop-motion animation using the LEGO bricks, or even act out the story using the bricks as props.
6. Share the Fun
- One of the great things about re-creating stories with LEGO bricks is that it's a fun and engaging activity for both children and adults. So, don't be afraid to join in the fun!
- You can build alongside your child or students, share your own interpretations of the story, and help guide the discussion.
In conclusion, re-creating stories with bricks can is a fun and effective way to make reading more engaging and accessible for children. It's all part of play-based learning.
By encouraging active participation, developing fine motor skills, engaging multiple senses, fostering creative thinking and providing an opportunity for collaboration, this approach can help children connect with stories in a new and exciting way.
So, the next time you're looking for a way to make reading more fun for your child or students, open up your Build-a-Book box and let their imaginations run wild!
To buy your Build-a-Book Box, click here.
Read one of our other blogs for more information about the method that we use at Yay4Play: Six Bricks. Six Bricks is used globally as a way of engaging children in learning through play.