How to Play With Your Mini Whiteboard Makerspaces

We love these Mini Whiteboard Maker Spaces as they are so easy to make, and perfect for play based learning in the classroom or at home. We have put together some suggestions for simple activities, that make the most of this fun and exciting resource.

Materials:

• Mini Whiteboard Maker Spaces (click to see blog post about how to make them)
• Range of building bricks- can be LEGO, DUPLO or MEGA BLOKS
• We used some flashcards, letter magnets, and simple addition cards, all from the Target dollar bins
• Dice

Numeracy Ideas

1. Number formation- this is a basic way of practicing number formation. The child simply chooses a number, builds it, and then writes it. For an easier task you could always write the number and the child builds it, or vice versa.

2. Roll it, draw it, write it, build it- this is a great way to make learning numbers much more hands on. Simply roll the dice, draw the dots, write the number, and then build it on the baseplate.

3. Ten frame- a nice way to work on counting up to ten. You tell the child a number, they count out that many LEGO bricks into the ten frame, and then they write the numbers in their ten frame. For older children you could always do this in tens to work on counting up to 100.

4. Addition cards- using bricks to solve addition sums is so much more appealing than just writing the answers. Look at the addition card, plan out the sum, and then build the answer before writing it on the card. This could also be done for subtraction, multiplication and division.

Literacy Ideas

1. Sign in boards- some schools use a system of each child 'signing in' when they arrive in the morning as a means of practising writing their name. You could use your Mini Whiteboard Mini Maker Spaces to create a sign in board for each child in your class.

2. Sight words- why not build a series of sight words on the boards to prompt your class to get writing them. Then you can challenge them to build their own sight words for each other to write.

3. CVC words- use flashcards or fun picture magnets to encourage children to build and write common CVC words.

4. Flashcard copy- select a flashcard at random, build the word and then write it.

Collaborative Learning Ideas

1. Build a bridge- an exciting engineering challenge using our two baseplate layout. Children must work together to build a stable bridge. You can even make it into a competition by seeing which pair can build the bridge that withstands the largest weight before collapsing.

2. Flashcard build- select a flashcard at random and both children build the picture on their own baseplate. It is fun to see their different interpretations and imaginative styles.

3. Race to the top- the aim of the game is to take it in turns rolling the dice in order to build the tallest tower, before the time runs out. Great for counting, taking turns, and working under pressure!

4. Pattern pair- pair up the children. One child creates rows of patterns that the other one must copy. For older children you could turn this into a coding activity, with different colors / sizes of bricks meaning different words or letters.

We hope that the above ideas show you what a huge range of learning opportunities that are possible using Mini Whiteboard Makerspaces. For many children, making learning hands on and play-based is far more effective, and of course, much more enjoyable!

...

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.

"LEGO® is a trademark of the LEGO Group of companies which does not sponsor, authorize or endorse this site."