Building Blocks

I read reading the September issue of Young Parents magazine and there was an article talked about blocks and how it benefits our child in their development.

Immediately, I bought a 90 pieces of blocks for Ern, at a marked down price. Nope, I didn't invest into the famous Le*go brand as I wasn't sure if she will like it. Moreover, Le*go easily cost me 3X more than the set I got for Ern!

Yup, I 'hit the right button' as Ern LOVES it so much! So much so she can sit on the floor quietly and alone easily for 30mins . Of course at this age, she can't seem to form the object per the instruction book. However, she can building something and tell us the 'object' she is building!

For now, she is able to staged them up real high vertically and horizontally. Then, she would tell us the 'object' is:

- rocket ship (yes, she watched too much Little Eei*stein)
- Shampoo & Comb
- Ice cream & spoon
- Strawberry
- Hammer & Screwdriver
- Boat
- House

So far, these are the common terms we heard from her.

Oh ya, this is also a good family toy, especially for Daddy to play with. I have "outsourced" playing blocks to Daddy while I am still holding the 'mamasak' role with Ern!!

The second set of blocks that we got for Ern, came with wheels and rounds. Daddy is on his way of building every single objects from the instruction book to show to Ern.

Below are the benefits of blocks that I pulled out from the web (source here) for my own knowledge. Thought it may be useful to share:

1) Physical benefits: toy blocks build strength in a child’s fingers and hands, and improve eye-hand coordination. They also help educate children in different shapes.

2) Social benefits: block play encourages children to make friends and cooperate, and is often one of the first experiences a child has playing with others. Blocks are a benefit for the children because they encourage interaction and imagination. Creativity can be a combined action that is important for social play.

3) Intellectual benefits: children can potentially develop their vocabularies as they learn to describe sizes, shapes, and positions. Math skills are developed through the process of grouping, adding, and subtracting, particularly with standardized blocks, such as unit blocks. Experiences with gravity, balance, and geometry learned from toy blocks also provide intellectual stimulation.

4) Creative benefits: children receive creative stimulation by making their own designs with blocks.


Scrap credit:
Papers & aeroplane: Sarah Möllerhg
Sun: Sarah Design
Rickrack Stripes: Amy Bleser