Design & Drill

Design & Drill by Educational Insights

For many years Design & Drill was an often used toy for me. However, I didn't use it as you might think. I'll talk about that later.

Design & Drill comes with three tools: a power drill, screwdriver and wrench. The power drill, which requires 3 AA batteries, is a favorite with most kids right from the start. There are three interchangeable drill bits which can go into either the power drill or a screwdriver handle for manual use: a slotted, a Phillips and a hex. The bits are easy to put in and take out, but are snug enough not to fall out. Drill bits will rotate clockwise to drive bolts into the base, then if you are using the power drill, flip the switch to reverse and they rotate counter-clockwise to remove the bolts from the base.

The base is solid and has a 10 X 10 pattern of holes for the  bolts. There are 120 bolts in red, green, blue, yellow and purple. All of the plastic pieces are solid and well constructed.

The 10 pattern cards are awesome. There is one pattern on each side of a card, so 20 patterns in all. They are large and made from a nice heavier cardstock with a plastic coating. They have held up well, especially considering I haven't carried them in the box for a long time. Some of the designs form a symmetrical pattern and fill the entire card (see image above), but the majority do not, giving the opportunity to count empty circles and get the positioning just right (see butterfly in image below). There is also a black & white pattern card so you can color in the circles and make your own pictures. I took it to Kinkos and made several copies and then used them to make seasonal and holiday pictures. 

To play, choose a pattern card to copy onto the base and place the pattern card near the base. Decide if you want to start with the drill or screwdriver. Most kids like to switch somewhere along the way, but eventually settle on the drill. Place the bolts, one at a time, into the holes on the base. The screwdriver and wrench are done by hand and are very time consuming, but good skills to work on even if you just do a few this way. Once the pattern is complete you can use any of the tools to take the pieces back out. I would usually have the kids take out a few, so they could work the hand tools in the opposite direction, but I typically finished taking it apart later. The one drawback for me is that a pattern, especially the ones that fill the whole card, can take quite a while to complete and then remove. I found that taking them out by hand was actually the fastest for me as the drill only works at one speed.

Shortly after I started using this game I realized that the circles on the pattern cards are the same size as a standard bingo chip. I went online to a bingo supply store and bought one container of chips to match each of the five colors on the cards. They cost $3 a container, but it was one of the best investments I have ever made. I put the empty card, the bingo chips, and a pattern card in front of the child and ask him to make the same pattern on his empty card. Good for in-hand manipulation and visual perceptual skills. 

UPDATE: Design & Drill has been repackaged since I blogged about it and comes in different sets now. You can still find it by searching for Educational Insights Design & Drill.

If you are interested in reading more about peg board activities, check out my post What's in Your Therapy Box? Peg Board Edition.

Try this:

Cover all lines on the pattern card except the one you are working on if the individual has trouble keeping track of where he is. Move to showing two lines at a time, then three, etc. Having to look back and find your place each time you look away can be quite challenging for some.

Start with the full pattern cards and move to the more difficult cards where you have to count empty spaces between colored circles.

Ask the individual to hold several bingo chips in the hand, moving them one at a time to the fingertips for placement (chips not included with the game).

Ask the individual to put down the chips or screw in the bolts one color at a time. For example, put in all green first, then all blue, etc. Harder still.

Work to correct mistakes as they are made since one wrong placement will throw off the rest of the pattern. Say something like "check again", to prompt the child to identify and fix his own mistake before jumping in to correct it for him. 

Ask the individual to remember three or four colors in a line at a time. Then cover the pattern card. Can he remember them as he is putting the pieces in place? Rehearsing them out loud may help.

Prop the pattern card upright in front of the individual and move it out a little bit so the he will have to look up, look down, and remember what the color(s) was.

Switch out the tools as you work. Work with the wrench, then the manual screwdriver, then the power screwdriver, etc. Each one will require different skills.

Skip the pattern cards, sort and place bolts on the grid by color, making up your own pattern.

Skip the pattern cards, start your own pattern with two or three pegs of different colors and ask the individual to finish your sequence to the end of that line (10 across or 10 down). Start a new pattern on the next line.

Use the full pattern card and complete the design working in different directions each time. Go left to right, line by line. Then right to left, line by line. Then top to bottom, then bottom to top. 

Work on tool use, manual dexterity, coordinated use of both hands, grasp, twisting on and off, visual discrimination, figure ground, visual closure, spatial relations, eye-hand coordination, sequencing, visual memory, executive functioning skills, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: Plastic base, power drill, 3 drill bits, wrench, 20 pattern activities (10 cards), 120 colorful chunky bolts
 
If you are interested in purchasing this item or just want more information, click on the image below.