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The LEGO Club is much more than a building workshop. It’s an educational and social space where children of all ages can play, learn, and grow together, using the world’s most famous bricks as a tool to develop social, cognitive, and emotional skills.
Initially created to support children with autism and ADHD, today the LEGO Club has proven to be an inclusive and beneficial space for everyone, even for children without specific difficulties, who want to improve their relationship and collaboration skills.
What is the LEGO Club?
The LEGO Club is a structured group activity where participants, guided by an educator or therapist, collaborate to build projects together with the bricks. It’s not just about following instructions, but about learning to be with others, sharing ideas, taking turns, solving problems, and achieving common goals.
Specifically, the LEGO Club is designed for:
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Children with autism or ADHD, who find structured play a concrete help to improve communication and socialization.
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Children without disorders, who can experience collaboration and mutual respect in a play context.
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Mixed groups, who, with the support of an educator, can learn to value diversity and collaborate without judgment.
The rules of the LEGO Club: fun, respect, and collaboration
Each LEGO Club operates under clear rules, designed to ensure everyone feels welcome and safe. In particular, the main rules concern:
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Taking turns,
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Collaboration among group members,
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Attention to instructions and common goals,
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Respect for others and play materials.
Alongside these explicit rules, the group often develops so-called “cool rules”, or those unwritten social dynamics that children create spontaneously.
For this reason, it’s important for the educator to recognize and manage them, helping participants to understand the value of diversity and not exclude anyone.
The path to the diploma: a social and emotional milestone
In the LEGO Club, you don’t “win” like in a competition, but you grow. Children who participate consistently and show improvements in relationships, collaboration, and task management can earn a diploma, a recognition that celebrates their journey.
In fact, after earning the diploma, children are often invited to return as “helpers” to support new participants, thus becoming positive role models for others and boosting their self-esteem.
What a typical LEGO Club session looks like
1. Welcome and preparation
The group is welcomed into the LEGO Club room, which must be well-organized and not chaotic. Additionally, materials should be visible, accessible, and orderly, with spaces dedicated to guided and free building.
2. Building activity
The group works together to build a project, following specific roles:
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Someone finds the pieces,
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Someone reads the instructions,
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Someone assembles the components.
To keep the group varied and dynamic, it’s recommended to switch from guided constructions to moments of freestyle creativity, where each child can express themselves freely.
3. Emotion management and safe space
If a child feels overwhelmed or frustrated, they can retreat to a safe corner of the room, like a chair or a quiet spot, to regain calm and focus without feeling excluded.
4. Cleanup and closure
Ten minutes before the end of the session, time is dedicated to tidying up materials and cleaning the space.
Indeed, this moment is crucial for:
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Training a sense of responsibility,
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Reinforcing respect for group rules,
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Ending the activity positively and collectively.
The benefits of the LEGO Club for all children
Participating in a LEGO Club offers tangible benefits for every child’s development:
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Improves attention and concentration skills,
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Develops communication and language,
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Trains emotion and conflict management,
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Teaches collaboration and rule-following,
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Boosts self-esteem and self-confidence.
In particular, for children with autism or ADHD, this type of activity can be a real turning point, helping them to turn the game into a personal and social growth experience.
LEGO Club: an inclusive experience for everyone
The great thing about the LEGO Club is that you don’t need a specific difficulty to participate. It’s an experience that benefits all children because it teaches the value of shared play, collaboration, and mutual respect.
Thus, in a world that often pushes for competition and speed, the LEGO Club represents a safe, slow, and inclusive space, where every child can find their place and discover the joy of building something together with others.
