Being a teacher, I am always on the lookout for the next great educational toy. When I wanted to add more STEM toys to my classroom, I went on the internet to find one or two really cool toys to buy. (It was during the summer and I had plenty of time to research.) That is when I stumbled upon Bionic Blox.
Bionic Blox are connector pieces to wooden blocks (like Keva Blocks). Children quickly and easily connect BionicStars with wooden blocks to build structures as big as they are! Masterpieces can be moved, saved, admired and added anytime, without risk of a collapse. The innocent pet cat or the curious younger sibling will not cause them to fall. In a classroom with moving children, these seemed like the answer to many squabbles.
I ordered some and I admit I spent a few hours myself, with my 4 year old daughter, constructing and enjoying the possibilities. Since I liked them so much, I wanted to make sure my STEM girls club had the chance to play with them. (After all, they did get awarded the #1 STEM toy of the year.)
We started our club by reading the book Click, Clack, Moo by Doreen Cronin. The girls giggled as they listened to the story of Farmer Brown and how his cows and hens found a typewriter and sent him a note demanding electric blankets. The cows and hens went on strike until their requests were met. In the end, they got what they wanted.
I added a separate note that said that the horses request a new barn to be built. The girls task was to design a very cool barn for them. Bionic bloxs are perfect for constructing barns.
Here is what the girls built:
Maddy’s barn had stables, jumps, and gates. I love how she turned some of the blocks into horses. Such an imagination!
Olivia and Elizabeth’s Barn was inspired by some girl power music. They went big! This barn was huge with many stables, places for food, flatscreen TVs and a place with a roof. Great teamwork!
Olivia and Elizabeth’s Barn
Margo decided not to use many bionic blox because she liked just the plain blocks. She created a barn with stabled and rooms for food.
Here is the building process!
Overall, this was a great experience. Next time I need to remember to bring play horses. We LOVE these bionic blox!
2 comments
Chris
October 14, 2013 at 12:35 am (UTC 0) Link to this comment
You are doing a great job with the cross-curricular aspect of STEM — language arts, stories, building, solutions. Way to go! I see very little of that in the elementary grades. I do hear lots of talk but I “see” very little. Keep that up, your girls are in good hands.
Happy Building!
bionicblox.com
Susan
October 14, 2013 at 1:08 pm (UTC 0) Link to this comment
How fun to merge the story with a creative building challenge. The variety of barn designs is impressive, from basic to huge with flatscreen tvs – your approach and these tools inspired a lot of creativity.