I recently purchased these for my grandson in order to encourage him towards more open-ended creative play. Although he is only 3, he is a very goal-directed child. He enjoys building things and putting toys together but he likes a plan. Recently he has enjoyed building with his Habba Smart Fellow Pegging Game and figuring out the insides of solid objects. I was hoping the Bristle Block Spinaroos might offer an extension with their cute faces and various moving parts, but so far they haven't. Owen was very excited to open the package and carefully examined all the various blocks and other pieces, but then he asked for the "structions". When I said that I didn't think there were any instructions and this was a toy that he could use his imagination to build with, he scrunched up his little face, and asked if I was sure. Looking as serious as possible (which is difficult given all his strawberry blonde curls and cherub face) he said, "maaayyybe, >big sigh< maybe, Grammy, the structions fell out. That can happen if you're not carefuls" Trying once again to explain the virtues of not having any instructions and in using one's imagination, I set out to build a few of my own creations, while my dear grandson watched. Owen carefully examined each of my five creative building attempts and even lined all of them up in a straight row before declaring in his same serious little voice, "Yep, Grammy we neeeeed some structions.” I had to admit, after trying my own hand at being creative, some sample building plans would be a useful addition and give me some ideas to expand from. On a more practical note, I noticed there was no lid for the plastic storage box the blocks had come in. And while, the plastic tub the blocks came in was a sturdy one because it didn't have a lid the bin there was a good chance of the various pieces falling out. However, I am not one to give up easily, and I am not the most talented when it comes to assembling toys of any kind; but I have sons who are talented when it comes to building sets. With my new plan in place, I asked both of Owen's uncles to give the blocks a spin ;). And I wish I could say it worked, but that wasn't the case. Uncle Benj said the Bristle blocks were difficult for Owen to put together and didn't connect easily. He agreed that a booklet of ideas would make building more fun. He liked the faces and the spinning pieces but he said the blocks were not "user friendly". Uncle David reaction was slightly different. He created a very realistic version of the Starship Enterprise, and even spent several minutes enthusiastically encouraging Owen to try putting blocks together. However, the next day Owen and I discovered that Uncle David had dug up one his old Lego sets and left for Owen on his toy shelves. When I asked David about it, he said the Legos were easier for Owen to connect and I could always download an idea booklet to help Owen get ideas. In conclusion, if you happen to have one of those children who seems to gravitate towards building sets then the Bristle Bocks Spinaroo set might be a welcome expansion, especially if your child has and enjoys playing with one of the other Bristle Bock sets. The spinning parts and brightly colored faces are sure to be a big hit. On a more practical note, my other recommendation is that Battat or BToys considers adding a lid to the plastic storage container and considers creating a booklet of building ideas to get kids going. From and Educational Perspective, Bristle Bocks Spinaroo Set facilities development in key learning domains such as Science and Creative Play and encourages growth of foundational STEM skills. However, I would suggest teachers and/or caregivers become familiar with the product before using it in a guided play manner, as children may have some difficulty connecting the blocks and benefit from seeing a demonstration.
