Wooden children’s play blocks are the ultimate open ended toy

Wooden blocks are one of the most enduring toys available. They never break, they never go out of fashion, and they are one of the most used toys in any toy box. Even better, we see that children often integrate their blocks when they are playing with other toys.

The wooden block’s role in childhood growth

Everyone agrees that the early years of growth are critical to every child’s growth as kids learn about how to positively connect to their environment. So, where do blocks fit in?

Blocks cultivate positive interaction with a child’s environment

The very first thing that a child can learn from blocks is that they have the ability to change their own environment. This may seem like a little thing to an adult, but to a child this is a VERY important lesson! In a world where everything is adult sized and only adult accessible, here are a batch of objects that are ok for a child to stack up, just the way they want them, knock them over if the choose, or do just about anything, without interference from anyone. This can help a child to begin building a strong sense of self-esteem.

Blocks help develop strong motor skills

Wooden blocks are excellent for building hand-eye coordination, gross motor skills and fine motor skills. Usually the first skill that children practice with wooden blocks is to tumble them over. While our first reaction is to think, “Destructive little bugger!”, in truth, the child is practicing and building their hand eye coordination, and gross motor skills. As a child grows, they will begin stacking and balancing, refining their fine motor skills. The more a child practices at this stage, the more developed their nerve system becomes. They will carry this level of skill throughout their entire lives.

Block play enhances many mental functions as well

When a child plays with blocks, they are building their spatial abilities. They figure out just how each block fits into the puzzle of what they want to create. So often, we see our children ask themselves, “Now what happens if I put this block …. right here?!” They then get to test it out and get an instant feedback as to whether it worked as they anticipated. Speaking of creating, their creative self can get a huge boost from block play. A child is able to see in their mind’s eye what they want to make, and then they are able to bring it into reality. This can bring another huge boost to self esteem. While all of that is going on, you would be amazed with the imagination that is being used at the same time. So often my kids will bring me to look at one of their block structures. These viewings are alway accompanied with a 15-30 minute supporting story about what exactly is going on with and around the structure, so often combining a whole batch of different toys as well. I am always astonished with the mental flexibility and sheer imagination that is demonstrated during these almost daily sessions.

A final word

All in all, when we really see what is going on, it is amazing what these simple toys can do to improve the growth and development of our future generations! Blocks are not just a toy, they are one of the greatest teaching tools you can give to a child!