Lego Robo Champ

Work on executive functioning skills, visual discrimination, visual closure, visual form constancy, spatial relations, visual memory, figure ground, eye-hand coordination, in-hand manipulation, manual dexterity, precise fine motor control, hand arch strength and support, separation of sides of hand, using two hands together, finger strength, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: 1 buildable LEGO die, 118 LEGO pieces, 1 building guide, 1 rule booklet

If you are not a regular reader of my blog, and you don't already know what a big fan I am of LEGOs, you can read my post Building Skills With Construction Toys. For my regular readers, I will spare you this time. :) 

This LEGO set is unusual in that it is a game. It consists of three robots (red, green, blue) and a buildable die. The robots are small, between 30 -36 pieces each and there are enough pieces so that they can all be assembled at the same time. The building guide shows step-by-step instructions.

Object:
Be the first to build a robot with the same colored parts to win the trophy.

Set Up:
Build the die per the instructions. Assemble the body into their body parts. These body parts with each have several pieces and each robot will end up with a total of six body parts. Put these body parts in a pile in the middle of the players. This is called the scrapheap. 

Play:
Each player begins his turn by throwing the die and following these instructions, depending on the color that comes up:

• Blue or red or green - Colored parts. Take a matching colored part from the scrapheap. If one isn't available, take one from another player. Add it to your robot.
• White - Player's choice. Take one colored part of your choice from the scrapheap. If there are none available, you must return one of your parts to the scrapheap.
• Side with 4 colors - Exchange parts. Swap one colored part with one from the scrapheap or one from another player.
• Black  - Grab. Take a colored part from the scrapheap or from another player.

The game ends when one player has built a robot of the same color parts.

Try this with any LEGO set:

• Give a few minutes to examine the pieces at the beginning so that the person can examine the different shapes and how they snap together.
• Turn pieces on the table so that they can't be picked up by the child in the correct orientation. Ask him to turn each piece in-hand after picking it up.
• Place a piece in the individual's palm, or at the base of the fingers, in the incorrect orientation and ask him to bring it to the fingertips and turn it in-hand for placement.
• Ask the child to pick up the model and hold it in one hand while adding pieces with the other hand so that both hands works together while adding pieces (instead of adding pieces while the model is on the table).
• Show the child how to hold the model with the non-dominant hand while "pinching" the new part on with the dominant hand.
• Keep the unused pieces in a pile so that the child will have to search for each needed piece. Turn some of the pieces upside down or half cover them so they will look different from the picture.
• Advise the child to hold the model in the same orientation as the one in the picture to aid in orienting pieces.

More S'mores

More S'mores is a fun game for a summer's eve.

More S'mores is a fast-paced card game based on constructing s'mores while hoping to avoid burnt marshmallows and chocolate-eating ant cards. The game comes in a small box and could easily be played around the campfire, at a camp site, or on the picnic table in your own backyard.

Object:
Score the most points.

Set up:
Set 10 graham cracker cards on a pile off to the side. This is the "cracker pile". Shuffle and deal evenly the rest of the cards, face-down, between players. Players stack their cards, face-down, in front of them. Take one card from the cracker pile and place it in the middle of the table. This is the bottom of a s'mores.

Play:
The first player will turn over his top card and place it on the graham cracker card in the middle of the table. You are now building a s'mores. Players take turns placing one card at a time on the stack. When another graham cracker card is turned up and is placed on the stack, one s'mores is complete and the player takes the s'mores. He then takes a graham cracker from the cracker pile, places it in the middle of the players, and this starts the second s'mores. Players continue in this manner, placing one card at a time, until all 10 s'morses have been made and claimed. At this time players will add up all the points they have made from the s'mores they have collected and the player with the most points is the winner.
 
Point values are as follows:
Graham cracker cards - 1 point each
Toasted marshmallow cards - 3 points each
Chocolate bar cards - 3 points each
Burnt marshmallow cards - subtract 5 points (-5)
Chocolate-eating any cards - subtract 5 points (-5)

Try this:

• Hold the cards in the non-dominant hand to deal. Push each card off the top with the thumb and take with the dominant hand to deal.
• Separate and lift each card off the top of the stack without disturbing the rest of the stack. 
• Sort the cards into piles of like cards. Either hold them in the non-dominant hand, pushing them off one at a time with the thumb, or place the deck on the tabletop and lift each card off the top of the deck, disturbing the others as little as possible.
• Skip the game and make 10 complete s'mores by placing the cards in piles according to how traditional s'mores are assembled: graham cracker, chocolate bar, toasted marshmallow, graham cracker.
• Work on visual discrimination, manual dexterity, bilateral integration, eye-hand coordination, in-hand manipulation, shuffling/dealing cards, executive functioning skills, process skills, socialization skills, play and leisure exploration and participation
   
• In the box: 20 graham cracker cards, 10 toasted marshmallow cards, 10 chocolate bar cards, 5 burnt marshmallow cards, 5 chocolate-eating ant cards