Lego therapy is a play-based piece of intervention which focuses on developing collaborative play skills. It was introduced by Dr Daniel LeGoff in 2004. It is predominately used with children who have autism or social interaction difficulties. However, it can be used with all children.
Lego therapy works on key areas of social interaction, such as; turn taking, listening, initiation, eye contact, problem solving and sharing. In addition to this it works on language concepts such as; size, prepositions and colours.
This team-based approach requires development of various different social communication skills such as turn-taking, language, team work, and negotiation. Research shows that “significant gains can be made in social development through LEGO play.”
One child becomes the ‘engineer’ who oversees instructions and design, another becomes the ‘supplier’ responsible for understanding the engineer’s requests and finding the bricks, and the third child is the ‘builder’ who is responsible for actually putting the bricks together.
Each pupil will get a turn in each role and these are swapped throughout the session. Pupils are reminded of the characteristics of the role they are playing using role cards. Pupils should be reminded they need to stick to their designated role and use language when describing the design of the build (no pointing if possible).
Before starting this, always agree on the rules!
Lego therapy works on key areas of social interaction, such as; turn taking, listening, initiation, eye contact, problem solving and sharing. In addition to this it works on language concepts such as; size, prepositions and colours.
This team-based approach requires development of various different social communication skills such as turn-taking, language, team work, and negotiation. Research shows that “significant gains can be made in social development through LEGO play.”
One child becomes the ‘engineer’ who oversees instructions and design, another becomes the ‘supplier’ responsible for understanding the engineer’s requests and finding the bricks, and the third child is the ‘builder’ who is responsible for actually putting the bricks together.
Each pupil will get a turn in each role and these are swapped throughout the session. Pupils are reminded of the characteristics of the role they are playing using role cards. Pupils should be reminded they need to stick to their designated role and use language when describing the design of the build (no pointing if possible).
Before starting this, always agree on the rules!
You could:
- Design a poster with the rules
- Have certificates for completion/a little presentation/awards ceremony.
The three roles are:
Builder – Their job is to put the bricks together and be responsible for the construction of the Lego.
Supplier – Their job is to sort and keep track of the types and colours of bricks needed and to give bricks to the builder.
Engineer – Their job is to oversee the design and make sure it is followed correctly.
All you need to complete this at home is a Lego set. We would recommend the Lego Creator Multiple sets so you can create more than one construction from each pack.