Battlebricks: Battleships for LEGO-lovers!

Here at Creative QT we strongly believe in prioritising family by Making Time Together. Games are a great way to spend quality family time together. Even better, why not build your own version of a game using LEGO to extend the play based learning opportunities.

Materials:

• Creative QT Peel 'n Stick Baseplates (we used one blue and one green 10" x 10" from the variety pack, which costs $29.95) 
• building bricks (we used LEGO, but DUPLO would also work for younger children)
• MEGABLOKS (used to create a divider between players)
• paper and pen (for recording co-ordinate guesses)
• whiteboard marker (for writing number and letter co-ordinates onto LEGO bricks)

The Set Up:

We used our FLISAT IKEA Children's Table that we converted into a LEGO Compatible Table using two of our baseplates. The game can be played on any flat surface though. We added MEGABLOKS in the middle to create a divider to avoid any wondering / cheating eyes! On the baseplates we set up a grid of 5 x 5 squares (you can make them any size that suits your children). If working with younger children, don't make too many squares as it may overwhelm them. We then used a whiteboard marker to label the vertical and horizontal axes of our grid with letters A-E and numbers 1-5.

Each player was provided with a pot of LEGO bricks, all of which were the same colour. For our game, one player was orange and the other was green. Players have to create 8 Battlebrick ships from the bricks provided. They can be big or small, but must fit in only one of the grid squares. Players have to use all of the LEGO bricks provided. You can vary the amount of bricks and ships depending on the age of the players. This is a great way to get players excited about the game, whilst also developing some fine motor skills in a creative way.

Once all 8 Battlebrick ships are built, players place them anywhere on their grid. Remember, only one per grid square and the ship cannot go across multiple grid squares.

The final part of the set up is to include a piece of paper and marker next to each grid. This is simply for writing down co-ordinate guesses on.

How to Play Battlebricks:

This game involves two players. We loved playing it Son and Dad, with Mom helping out Son! This is a game based on co-ordinates. Players take turns to choose co-ordinates on their opponent's grid. If the co-ordinate that the opponent chooses contains one of the other player's ships, then the ship is destroyed and removed from the grid. The aim is to remove all of your opponent's ships from their grid before they remove all of your ships from your grid.

Having the players write down the co-ordinates they guess each time, is a fantastic way to work on letters and numbers without children even realising! If younger children are struggling with the letter or number formation, you can remove the brick and place it near their paper. This way they have an example to refer to and copy. You could alternatively use stamps or stickers.

There are many benefits to playing Battlebricks. Involving children in building their own ships requires creativity, counting, engineering and fine motor skills. Playing the game itself requires children to be patient and to understand the concept of taking turns. The main focus of this game is on developing an understanding of co-ordinates through he use of letters and numbers. Making learning fun and play-based will motivate the most reluctant of learners, especially if they have the chance to beat Mom or Dad at a game!

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Creative QT designs quality + innovative toys that declutter homes and inspire creative play. Founded by parents of five, Adam and Dana Sue Hinkle, Creative QT’s vision is to empower parents and encourage a culture of families that Make Time Together. All products are designed to enrich families’ lives through active, creative play and play based learning. Creative QT products are laboratory tested for compliance with CPSC requirements and are free of lead, cadmium and phthalates so you can play with confidence. So, go ahead … today is the day: be your kid’s hero.

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