Welcome to a World of Creative Play With LEGO® DUPLO®
Playgroup Victoria and LEGO DUPLO are both committed to supporting learning through play. We believe that imagination and creative play is one of life’s most important skills. We’ve teamed up to help affiliated playgroups discover a world of endless play, learning and creativity, where together, we let imagination grow. We’ll share plenty of fun DUPLO activities, play tips and loads of competitions and giveaways so your playgroup can continue to grow your creative toolbox so make sure you check back here frequently for inspiration.
We look forward to sharing many enjoyable LEGO DUPLO experiences with you!
Connecting through Play
Play is crucial in every child’s development, and for toddlers the benefits of play especially come to life when they can connect with their parents during playtime. It is not only the most natural way for children to learn, it is fundamental for their future development in life. This is why every child not only has the right to play*, but also a foundational need to play. Play stimulates the human brain, helping to develop physical, emotional as well as critical 21st century skills such as problem solving, collaboration, creativity, and communications.
“Humans need humans. The very foundation for learning comes from the back and forth of social interactions between adults and children. Anything that disrupts the natural flow of this conversation disrupts how well our children will learn. While we tend to focus on how children’s screen time deprives our kids of important conversations, we should also focus on the adult. Every time we pick up our cell phone in the middle of a conversation with our child – every time we check for the latest message and every time we have to follow that ding to grab the latest e-mail, we break the flow of normal treasured moments with our children. And in that broken moment, our research suggests, the conversation is lost and our children learn less” – Kathy Hirsh-Pasek Main, PhD: Professor, Department of Psychology, Temple University and Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution.
For the youngest children, playtime with adults is key to unleashing these potentials. A young child’s brain can activate between 700-1000 neurons every second, which then again connect to thousands of other neurons. Play helps activate these neurons, and the connections serve as the building blocks of their future, impacting their health, emotional wellbeing and ability to learn**.
What is Duplo?
LEGO DUPLO toys are the preschool offering from the LEGO brand and are specially designed for children aged 1½ to 5 years.
Double the size of LEGO bricks. DUPLO bricks are perfect for small hands and growing imaginations. The chunky, brightly coloured bricks are perfect for developing early construction skills and special decorated bricks provide great talking point and teachable movements between adult and child as they play.
The LEGO® DUPLO® brick is built on the same system as the LEGO brick, enabling endless creativity and imagination.
Did you know?
- First LEGO® DUPLO® set was launched in 1949
- Building with LEGO DUPLO bricks helps your child develop his or her concentration skills
- When children play with LEGO DUPLO they begin to build their numeracy skills and vocabulary – like longer than, taller than and smaller than.
- You can wash LEGO DUPLO bricks in 40 degree warm water with a mild detergent to clean them.
- DUPLO products are designed specially to be safe and fun for little hands, and DUPLO figures and vehicles inspire hours of role-play fun!
Interesting reads
6 LITTLE WAYS TO SPARK CREATIVITY IN YOUR CHILD’S EVERYDAY LIFE
It might seem chaotic – and almost always messy – but being creative isn’t just about finger painting, or hiding under a table pretending to be in a spaceship on the way to Mars. It’s about your little one growing the ability to think in unusual ways, solve problems and ultimately pave their way to becoming an adult.
WHY DO WE NEED THE POWER OF IMAGINATION?
The world is not yet a fixed place in time or space, and there are no set expectations for what the world can be like now or in the future. Imaginary things, friends and worlds feel just as real as the real-life ones. Don’t have a race car? Use chairs to make one! Don’t have a castle? Build one out of a box or even better LEGO® DUPLO! Need an extra character for your role play story? The teddy bear suddenly gets a voice of his own!
5 SURPRISING REASONS WHY MAKE-BELIEVE REALLY IS MAGICAL
Every day, it seems, an entire make-believe universe is bubbling inside your toddler’s head. What might not be apparent, however, is the extraordinary learning and development that is taking place. Whether by pretending to run a store, or teaching stuffed animals their ABC, your little one is learning to deal with the big wide world outside. And for several reasons, this is absolutely crucial…