Making memories and developing skills with LEGO Duplo

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Whenever I come across the instruction booklets for our LEGO DUPLO sets the thought crosses my mind to throw them out. Why? They’re taking up valuable real estate in our crammed and much loved LEGO DUPLO tub and, apart from the first outing of the set, it rarely gets made according to the instructions again. Instead, the bricks are used to follow the whim of my preschooler’s imagination, the farmer’s market stall mixing in with the airport and the number train to produce an endless number of possibilities.

Bricks from Elsa and Ariel’s castles become a multi-coloured tower, with little fingers securing brick-upon-brick, working on those fine motor skills and honing her ability to concentrate. But also providing an alternative setting for imagination play.

We’re not picky about our LEGO DUPLO – a recent favourite is the Wild Animals of South America set, full of incredible colours that continue to inspire the kids. But a favourite is the Spiderman headquarters range – our set comes with a motorbike, which my little one races with a ‘vintage’ bike from her 19-year-old cousin’s old set. It may have dated a little in design, but not in function.

The DUPLO days are (nearly) a thing of the past for my eldest, but I have so many fond memories of pulling out our green LEGO baseplate and working together to construct a wind-turbine-powered farm café from a mish mash of sets – the method of power coming from a helicopter propellor originally from a vehicle set. She tells me there is a stack of LEGO DUPLO bricks in her classroom for free play, and as she progresses from kindy into year one, maybe these holidays will be our last chance to refine our farm café – the animals, the construction of the farm buildings, the position of the animal pasture versus the cafe, while also passing the baton onto my youngest.

The lure of LEGO is strong and there’s a Harry Potter set destined for her Christmas stocking.

But if the rainy weather hits again these summer holidays, as is predicted, an all-in family DUPLO session may be on the cards. Having fun, making memories and working on some important skills at the same time.

LEGO DUPLO has provided our family with lots of meaningful play and endless hours of fun. With developmental benefits including resilience, self-expression and confidence, paired with the inherent nature of LEGO sets to bring families together, it’s always a winner.

And as for those instructions, in our last LEGO DUPLO session, my youngest asked her big sister for help building Ariel’s tower…properly! Out came those instructions and the collaboration began. So I think I’ll be hanging onto them for a little while yet after all.