Don't you just love it when your kids use their imaginations and create amazing things? Over the years, I have been shocked by some of the creations Michael and Therese have created. When we were asked to review Brain Blox Wooden Building Planks from Brain Blox, I was excited to see what they could do now that they are older. You're never too old to build and create.
Brain Blox is a family-owned company that encourages creative kids to use their imaginations. Through the various educational toys, games, and resources, Brain Blox allows kids to create things they have dreamed about and test the limits of their imaginations. Brain Blox wants kids to turn off the television, put down the electronics, turn off the video games, and start using their creative genius. Don't we all want our kids to use their minds and imaginations to have fun and to learn?
For this review, we received the Natural Wooden Building Plank Set (200 blocks). Families can choose from three different sets.
Natural Wooden Building Planks (100 blocks)...$29.99
Natural Wooden Building Planks (200 blocks)...$44.95
Natural Wooden Building Planks (300 blocks)...$59.99
Our set included.... 200 solid wood blocks, full-color booklet containing ideas for building, a red canvas drawstring backpack for storage or for traveling, and the free Brain Blox World eBook with access to build ideas videos.
The wooden planks are 100% natural New Zealand Pine wood. The planks are precision cut and chemical free. They are earth friendly, non-toxic, and safe for kids of all ages!
The Brain Blox Building Ideas booklet contains pictures of simple projects like alphabet letters & numbers, bridges, flowers, chairs, and tables. For more advanced projects, they've included towers, puzzles, trains, the pantheon, and ships to create. The book gives kids ideas for all skill levels. Online, families can find links to videos, brain puzzles, and links to curriculum and projects to use during your school. Michael enjoyed watching the video featuring a chain reaction machine built by a teenager. They definitely had a lot of patience to build that creation. We'd have a difficult time building that with all the animals we have roaming around our house. I enjoyed giving the kids the brain puzzles to solve. These are great for thinking skills and math skills.
When we received the blocks, I had fun setting of a few of the brain puzzles each morning. The kids had a few laughs trying to figure them out. Some of the puzzles were solved in mere seconds, while others were only solved after a few hints. We even had to look at the answers on a few.
Even the animals got in on the fun!
I was excited to review these wooden planks because I wanted to add some fun into our classes. Too often we the kids get older, school can become too strict. Reading books and writing papers tend to dominate the curriculum in high school. I wanted the kids to have some fun like they did when they were little. Since we are studying Ancient Rome and the Middle Ages for history this year, I figured the kids could create some fun things with these wooden blocks....the Roman Aqueducts, the Colosseum, the Pantheon, a Viking ship, the Great Wall of China, a Medieval Castle, etc.
What Did We Think of Brain Blox Wooden Building Planks?
We're not that far into our Roman studies, so we haven't quite gotten to the Colosseum yet. However the kids did practice building a few bridges. We'd talked about Hadrian's Wall, but that seemed a little to easy to with the wooden planks. Building it with actual rocks would be a more challenging. Instead, I had the kids try to build the bridge that was presented in the idea booklet.
The planks are thinner and narrower than standard wooden blocks. No where near as heavy either. This allows the building to be a little (or a lot) more challenging. Table shacking and pets can easily knock down a few blocks. This may frustrate smaller kids, but maybe not. It probably depends o the kiddo.
Next week, we should be talking about the Colosseum, so the kids will get a challenge then. Having arched or curved pieces would be helpful, but they'll have to work with what they got. Maybe Brain Blox can think about adding arches and curved pieces to the sets.
Michael though that the smaller, thinner size of the planks was nice. He said he preferred the locking bricks he usually builds with especially with all the animals that run around our place. He'd have less chance of his creations being destroyed. He did say the blocks were great for quick builds that you may not want to keep around. Perfect for quick school lessons.
Therese was neither impressed or unimpressed. She was never a big fan of blocks, planks, or building bricks. She was my baby doll girl. She said the planks were easy to work with, but didn't like how easily they fell over. It frustrated her. I have to admit it frustrated me too.
Overall, I think the planks are extremely universal and can be so many things. I love how the website offers suggestions to families on what they can be used for and how to implement them into the curriculum. An added bonus, is that that they are very affordable. Traditional blocks are expensive, hard to find, and huge. Brain Blox Wooden Building Planks give parents another options for their kids!
Discover more about Brain Blox. Find them on social media.
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Till Next Time,
Monique
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