How Lego-based therapy makes a world of difference
People with autism are improving their communication and social skills through Lego. Here speech and language therapy technician Francesca Gallo explains why these plastic bricks are far more than just toys...
psychologist Dr LeGoff in the United States.
He noticed that children with ASC were more motivated to engage in social interaction when it was through the use of Lego.
Dr LeGoff also found that children with ASC would tend to gravitate towards Lego-based materials, rather than playing with other toys.
He was conscious that motivating children to learn new skills through means that were not of interest to them was difficult and thought that a child’s inherent interests and motivators could be harnessed to indirectly teach new skills.
As a result, he created this intervention.
Lego-based therapy was originally only aimed at individuals with autism, but more recently has been adapted and used with children affected by other related conditions.
Individuals with ASC are inherently motivated to engage in activities that change in predictable ways.
Construction toys such as Lego are predictable, systematic.
Thus Lego-based therapy utilises a child’s strengths and interests to develop new skills and motivation to interact with peers.
Aside from Lego, a number of different construction toys can be used such as K’nex, Duplo and any other building and construction toys. structured and
During the 12 weeks, we have seen our students developing a variety of skills, ranging from basic language skills to peer interaction and social communication.
Students started using new vocabulary, such as adjectives and prepositions, and appropriate ways to request and offer help.
We also witnessed students expressing feelings of frustration when the building got difficult, alongside growing resilience as they learnt to control these feelings.
On top of this, there was an increase in peer interaction where students may not have typically engaged with each other before.
■ Beechwood College, based in Sully, Vale of Glamorgan, is a specialist residential and day college for individuals with autistic spectrum conditions and related conditions. It is part of Ludlow Street Healthcare, an independent healthcare, social care and specialist education provider for people with complex mental health problems, autism, learning disabilities, and neurological conditions including dementia and acquired brain injuries.