Earlier in the year, we received some lovely donations of Lego for our Lego Based Therapy and we have been putting them to good use.
LEGO®-Based Therapy was developed by Daniel LeGoff, He took inspiration from watching two of his patients with autism playing with Lego in his waiting room and how their social interactions were far more positive whilst playing with the popular toy.
Group activities are used to support the development of children on the autistic spectrum, but it has also been found to benefit children with a variety of developmental, social and communication difficulties by promoting social interactions. Children learn to develop turn-taking skills, sharing, rule following, improve explanation and description language, and problem solving skills, all in a collaborative setting.
Many children find social situations can be overwhelming and a real challenge. This provides an ideal structured environment where children can be supported to create positive and meaningful social connections, learning and devolving social skills in a calm and relaxed way.
Small groups of children work together to build models by taking on one of three or four different roles. Those roles consist of:
The Engineer – explains the instructions to The Supplier regarding which pieces are required and informs The Builder on how to build the model.
The Supplier – finds the correct pieces to create the model as directed by The Engineer, then passes them on to The Builder.
The Builder – physically builds the model using the pieces supplied by The Supplier and from directions given from The Engineer.
The Foreman – ensures that everyone is doing what the need to and supports the other roles where needed, especially if social challenges occur.
The children will alternate roles during the sessions so that all have a chance to experience the skills required and develop their learning.
