ZOOB 125 Piece Set

ZOOB - Includes 5 instructions guides, make 20 creations

I love ZOOB! A great construction activity if you are working on hand strength, as the pieces do need a good push to snap together and a good tug to pull apart. There are five different ZOOB pieces in all (see image below) that can be assembled in 20 different ways. Each piece will have a ball or a socket at each end which will create movable joints when snapped together. Some pieces also have a "dip" in the middle. You can snap two pieces that have a dip across each other at that location. For an example of why you might want to do that, see the feet in the chicken image below. Because of the ball and socket joints, you will be able to bend and play with your creations in ways that you can't with Lego creations. 

I also like this activity for working on visual perceptual skills since you will working from instruction guides. However, the instruction guides may be hard to interpret for some as most of the models don't show step-by-step pictures, they just show a finished product. Plus, some of the pieces might be obscured or at least hard to see.  This can make it difficult to know where to start and how to proceed.

To be honest, I have several ZOOB sets and I move the books around, so I cannot tell you exactly which books came with this set, but the books do increase in difficulty. One book might be models that take 20 pieces, the next book 35, then 50, and so on. There are so many skills that can be practiced with ZOOB that it is one of my favorite construction toys (second only to LEGO).

Try this:

• Make a model ahead of time and let the individual work from a 3D model if they cannot interpret the 2D picture.
• Find all the pieces needed for the model ahead of time if you want to focus on a single goal. This will help you save time and decrease frustration that might be added by requiring additional tasks.
• Point to each section or individual piece in the picture as the individual should add it if they cannot look at the model and figure out how to build it. Or cue them by saying something like let's start with the head, or now make the tail, etc.
• Ask the person to find each needed piece in the box of crowded pieces.
• Work side-by-side, building the model piece by piece while the individual watches and builds his own.
• Ask the individual to turn the piece in-hand if he picks it up in the wrong orientation for placement.
• Work on visual discrimination, visual closure, visual form constancy, spatial relations, visual memory, figure ground, eye-hand coordination, in-hand manipulation, manual dexterity, separation of sides of hand, using two hands together, finger strength, process skills, executive functioning skills, following directions, play and leisure exploration and participation
• Take time for creative play after the model is complete.
• Build a small model beforehand and ask the individual to take it apart and put the pieces away to work on a simple task involving strength.
• Push pieces into a straight line for a simple task to work on hand strength. Add a pattern if the individual is able to follow, such as red, silver, blue, red, silver, blue, etc.
• Use positional terms consistently, such as above, right and left, under, etc.

In the box: 125 Plastic ZOOB pieces, 5 instruction guides with 20 creations

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