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"Blocks (Toys)"
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Putting on her construction hat, a young girl uses her imagination as she builds a doghouse, a bridge, and a skyscraper.
Book
Effect of collaborative LEGOR block construction on Japanese young women's sense of acceptance
In this study we examined the effect of constructing a collaborative LEGO[R] block creation on the sense of being accepted by others (Ibasho) in Japanese young women at the stage of late adolescence. The participants were 20 Japanese female university students whose Ibasho scores were based on comparisons before and after the construction task was completed. The findings indicated that the scores after the construction task were higher than the scores before completing the task (t(19) = -1.81, p < .10). In addition, the scores regarding the sense of role significantly increased after the students completed their construction (t(19) = -3.18, p < .01). These results indicate that a collaborative task facilitated the division of roles in groups and positively affected the participants' Ibasho. These findings present a new possibility for the application of LEGO[R] block construction in group therapy.
Journal Article
Increasing the Engagement and Complexity of Block Play in Young Children
Blocks and block play are ubiquitous to early childhood settings and as such provide a normative context for social interactions between children with and without disabilities. However, children with disabilities tend to engage in more repetitive and less complex play than their peers, which might limit social interactions and opportunities to practice skills across domains. The current study examined the use of imitation plus play expansions delivered in a small group instructional context on the engagement and complexity of block play in young children with or at-risk for disabilities and their peers. Results indicated that the target children increased levels of engagement with the intervention package. However, their levels of block play complexity increased only when visual and verbal prompts were added to the intervention package.
Journal Article
Effect of collaborative LEGO® block construction on Japanese young women's sense of acceptance
In this study we examined the effect of constructing a collaborative LEGO® block creation on the sense of being accepted by others (Ibasho) in Japanese young women at the stage of late adolescence. The participants were 20 Japanese female university students whose Ibasho scores
were based on comparisons before and after the construction task was completed. The findings indicated that the scores after the construction task were higher than the scores before completing the task (t(19) = −1.81, p < .10). In addition, the scores regarding the sense
of role significantly increased after the students completed their construction (t(19) = −3.18, p < .01). These results indicate that a collaborative task facilitated the division of roles in groups and positively affected the participants' Ibasho. These findings present
a new possibility for the application of LEGO® block construction in group therapy.
Journal Article
SnapBlocks: a snapping interface for assembling toy blocks with XBOX Kinect
Toy blocks can help the children develop various skills, such as spatial, mathematical, creative problem solving etc. In this paper, we developed a computer aided system for child to play blocks with a computer in a natural and intuitive way using the Kinect. We design a set of intuitive body gestures that allow the user to naturally control and navigate 3D toy blocks in a virtual environment. To conquer the imprecise interaction with Kinect, we propose a snapping interface, which automatically computes the optimal location and orientation of the to-be-assembled block. This interface can significantly reduce the user’s burden for fine tuning the blocks at the desired locations, which is often tedious and time consuming. As a result, the user can fully immerse him/herself in the game and construct a complicated structure easily. The experimental results and positive feedback from users demonstrate the efficacy of our approach to virtual assembly of building blocks.
Journal Article
Young Children's Discourse Strategies During Block Play: A Bakhtinian Approach
This study describes the application of Bakhtin's theories of dialogism to nineteen 5-year-old preschool children's communication strategies and the ways children appropriate meaning in block play. The observed frequency of communication strategies used in three different naturally emerging social relationships-1) individuals, 2) dyads, and 3) groups of three or more children-in a culturally diverse preschool program was investigated. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analyzed. Using Corsaro's (1986) coding system for types of utterances, results indicated significant differences in the communication strategies of 5-year-old children engaged in block play. Significant differences were also found in the communication strategies with regard to social groupings. This study suggests that 5-year-old preschool children use communication strategies and appropriate shared meaning in block play, and is important in that it has implications for encouraging language development.
Journal Article
The Development of Logico-Mathematical Knowledge in a Block-Building Activity at Ages 1-4
To study the developmental interrelationships among various aspects of logico-mathematical knowledge, 80 one- to 4-year-olds were individually asked to build \"something tall\" with 20 blocks. Percentages of new and significant behaviors increased with age and were analyzed in terms of the development of logico-mathematical relationships. It was found, for example, that the new spatial relationships children made as they grew older also changed the classificatory, seriational, numerical, and temporal relationships they made. The educational implication drawn is that it is better to define objectives for preschool mathematics education in terms of the development of logico-mathematical knowledge rather than the learning of specific aspects of elementary school mathematics. More broadly, an argument is made in favor of encouraging preschool children to think and make many mental relationships rather than to teach them specific subject matter.
Journal Article