Mighty Mind Aquarium Adventure

Underwater themed shape puzzles.

In the box: 32 plastic design tiles, 24 pattern cards, 1 solution card

Mighty Mind is a name that has been around for about 40 years. They have a whole line of products based on using geometric shapes (design tiles) to create patterns and pictures, with or without pattern cards. I have several of their products and the pieces are brightly colored, smooth plastic, and the pattern cards are stiff and have held up well. The claim they make on every product is "Makes Kids Smarter". You can be the judge of that. They have won many different awards and I regularly use this type of activity in many different forms.

The design tiles come in four bright colors (red, green, yellow, blue) and come in six geometric shapes (circle, half circle, square, rectangle, triangle, diamond). The pattern cards measure approximately 6 1/4" x 9 3/4". Each card has one puzzle to solve on each side, and puzzles are printed on whimsical backgrounds.

 

Two pattern cards.  Large and small circle design pieces.

 

Choose a puzzle you want to solve and lay the design pieces on top of the white portion, fitting them inside the outline exactly. Circles are often just placed on top of the finished puzzle, as in the portholes and eyes in the two patterns above.

 

Solution page.

  For more activities of this type, check out my blog What's in Your Therapy Box? Pattern Blocks Edition.

Try this:

• Play with the pieces before you start a picture and talk about their shapes. Show how two half-circles make a whole circle, two rectangles makes a square, four small squares makes one big square, etc.
• Sort the pieces by shape, naming the shape of each.
• After learning the shapes, put them in a bag so you can't see the shape and ask the individual to put their hand in the bag, feel a piece, and tell what it is without looking. Then pull it out and check.
  
• Give the player one piece at a time to place as he learns. Next separate out and give the player only the pieces that are necessary for his picture. Then place all the pieces on the table with other unnecessary pieces and let the player find the pieces he needs as he works.
• Ask the individual to pick up each piece and then turn it in-hand, if needed, to the correct orientation for placement.
• Use the pieces and make your own picture.
• Make the first picture or two with the solution next to the puzzle page to give the individual an idea of what is expected.
• Make a picture as the individual watches, thinking out loud as you decide why certain shapes will go in certain places, such as this must be a triangle or diamond because the edge is sloped.
• Avoid frustration and keep the puzzle on track by gently nudging pieces back into place if the player is having trouble keeping them inside the outline.
• Correct errors as soon as they are made with beginners. Continuing to build on an incorrect piece will just throw off the rest of the puzzle.
• Teach the individual to recognize and correct errors on his own. If the individual places an incorrect piece, try asking "Are you sure?" or "Try something else" to prompt him to reconsider. If he cannot figure out the error, correct it while he is watching, then pick the piece up and hand it to him to place.
• Give fading prompts as the individual learns to identify and correct errors on his own.
• When placing the pieces on the table to start, pile them in ways so that parts of them are covered to work on visual closure. Can the individual still recognize and find the pieces they need?
• Work on manual dexterity, fine motor precision, in-hand manipulation, tactile discrimination, visual discrimination, visualization, visual closure, visual form constancy, spatial relations, figure ground, visual scanning, eye-hand coordination, problem solving, planning/organizing, logic, recognition of shapes and shape names, executive functioning skills, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation
   
  

If you are interested in purchasing this item or just want more information, click on the image below.

 

RapiDoodle

Practice drawing with precision. Make your own game without buying this one.

RapiDoodle is another doodle game to get those writing tools into the hands of kids. I need to say up front that this one does not involve copying, so it will take some imagination and skill on the part of the players. I find that kids with good visual perceptual skills often like games like this. There are instructions for two different versions, beginner and advanced, which I will explain below.

There are four exact sets of shape cards, each set has nine cards. Each set has a different color border around the outside edge so they are easy to separate. Each shape card is divided into four squares, and the same shape is printed in grey in each square. Look closely at the image on the box above and you will see a pyramid, a house, a teepee, and a sailboat. Each drawing started with the beginning shape of a triangle.

There are 18 different shapes total (9 cards, 2 sided, 18 shapes). Shapes include a diamond, square, arrow, long thin rectangle, zigzag, half circle, circle, heart, and hexagon.

A RapidDoodle drawing tablet consists of a 5-1/4 X 5-3/4 inch piece of cardboard with a transparent piece of plastic (like the kind they use for overhead projectors) glued to the cardboard across the top. This way you can lift the plastic and place a shape card under it. Draw on the plastic with the dry erase marker, then erase and start over with a new shape card. There are four tablets included.

The markers are short, about 3-5/8 inches tall, and narrow, about the width of a pencil. The sand timer is for 1 minute, so this will require players to be able to think and work fast to complete 4 different doodles/images before time runs out. Or skip the timer like I do most of the time in most games.

Object:

Be the person with the most points after four rounds.

Set up:

Give each player a set of shape cards, a drawing tablet, a marker, and set the timer nearby. 

Play:

• BEGINNER - The first player looks through the shape cards and chooses one he likes. All players place that shape card into their drawing tablet. The timer is turned over and all players quickly draw four different images based on that shape. When the time is up, all players stop drawing. The player who chose the card describes each of his drawings - such as a person, a cat, a car, etc. If any of the other players have drawn the same thing, no one gets a point for that drawing. If the drawing is unique, the player gets one point, a possible four point per game. Each of the remaining players goes over his unique drawings. Players total their points for unique drawings and write the number at the very top of the drawing tablet to keep score. The next player chooses a shape card and players repeat the process. Play four times and total all the scores at the top of the tablet. Highest scorer is the winner. 
• ADVANCED -Before starting, shuffle and place the deck of bonus rules cards next to the players. Instead of each person choosing a drawing card, each player, in turn, will choose a bonus card. Each card shows a shape and a category. This is the shape card you will use to draw your four doodles. In addition, for each doodle you draw in the category listed, you will earn 1 extra point. Categories include a household object, clothing, found in a store, furniture, bigger than a person, found in nature, and food. There is also a memory rewind card that instructs players to play the last round's shape again, rewarding points only to doodles that are drawn by more than one player. After four rounds, the player with the most points wins.

If you would like to read more about games that require writing or drawing in some form, check out my post Games That Require a Writing Tool.  

Try this:

• Give players a minute to think about what they will draw before setting the timer.
• Stress precision - sharp corners, closed shapes, starting and stopping on a line, rounding, proportion, etc.
• Skip the timer. Draw four doodles and let the player copy you.
• Skip the game. Put a card in the drawing tablet and let the individual trace each of the images. Then take the shape card out and ask the individual to draw several without tracing. Leave the shape card next to the drawing tablet for reference, then remove the shape card after practicing for a more difficult challenge of drawing from memory. 
• Don't buy the game. Draw shapes on regular paper and play. Keep drawings to track and document improvement.
• Work on visual memory, visual closure, visual motor integration, fine motor precision, precise use of a writing tool, executive functioning skills, socialization skills, play and leisure exploration and participation 
  

In the box: 4 drawing tablets, 4 dry erase markers, sand timer, 36 shape cards, 24 bonus rule cards

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.