The most effective toys are ones your child can play with for years. With most toys, children can play with them for a while but as they continue to develop their motor and cognitive abilities then their focus shifts towards more advanced toys.
The great feature of Connetix magnetic tiles is that they can be customized to the child’s age. As your child grows and develops, Connetix can be used to build more advanced projects. In a sense the tiles themselves increase and develop along with your child.
Connetix are available in a variety of shapes and sizes, and connect in a way which allows for three-dimensional and two-dimensional structures to be built. This is one of the main reasons to what makes Connetix so useful, as youngsters in the beginning stages may not be yet ready to construct structures in 3D. It is possible to begin by using the tiles in two dimensions, before graduating the three-dimensional builds that become more complex with time.
Let’s look at a few instances of ways your kid’s cognitive and motor skills can progress to improve their Connetix playing more sophisticated.
First Stage
If your child is the first to play with their Connetix magnets, they are likely to be in early childhood. They might not be able to build any kind of structure at this point, but they will be captivated with the tiles. The children in this class like to look at their surroundings using all of their senses such as their touch sense.
The tiles will be inspected and take note of the different shapes and colours. They might be enthralled by the feel when they join the tiles before separate them while moving the tiles around in their hands. This is the first stage where they are taking in all of the sensory information like little sponges and familiarizing themselves with all of their brand new playthings.
Don’t be discouraged if your child isn’t ready to build anything at the moment! Children of course develop different capabilities at different times, and this early observation stage is vital for learning about what’s happening around them. They are still learning what the tiles look like at this time and the construction will start in stage two.
Second Stage
Your child is now beginning to realize that shapes and colours that are tiles may be put together to form a larger design. This may not look like something you can recognize at first, but eventually they will begin to construct pyramids, boxes and other patterns that appeal to them. They’ll mostly work in a 2D way however the Connetix helps them to get an understanding of how small things can come together to create a grand thing.
At this stage you can expect them to begin to identify their favourite colors and could even exhibit an interest in the symmetrical shape over the asymmetrical. They might not know this initially, but observe their play and you’ll observe that they develop a tendency to replicate basic shapes that are symmetric when they reach stage three.
Third Stage
In the third phase the cognitive abilities of your child as well as their motor skills become highly developed. It’s at this point where they begin to become more interested in the way that elements interact inside a 3D space. Instead of just a simple shape or style, the tiles will soon begin to create actual structures.
At this age, children are more inclined to be fascinated by building structures with a lot of height. You’ll see them piecing together castles, towers and every other basic building that could exist in a 3-dimensional building space.
Fourth Stage
This is when your child begins to exhibit some flair. The brains of children are getting more curious about building useful things which could even help solve problems that they design.
Perhaps they have decided they need an alternative for their action figures and dolls to get across the moat to their castle. So, they decide that they’ll use their Connetix to construct the bridge, and show themselves to have a bit of an engineer’s perspective.
For children who like toy cars, there’s nothing more fun than watching their cars go off an enormous ramp. This is the time in their development at which they are now able to use your Connetix tile magnets in order to create the perfect ramp for their toy cars.
Other ideas for creative constructions your child may experiment with at this stage are basics ball plays, or even a farm with animals.
Fifth Stage
In the fifth and final stage your child is now ready to play with the most challenging and complex constructions.
A lot of children are drawn to mazes. Connetix are the perfect tool for them to build large and complex mazes. They’re likely to be used to seeing the mazes with a pen and paper design and then watching them transform into a real three-dimensional object is a lot of fun.
If they’re mini architects, they’re more likely to begin playing with building and homes which are more creative and intricate. Connetix gives your child the ability to not only make different room layouts in their homes, but they are also able to experiment with various colours and see how they match each other.
At five, the possibilities of what your child can construct with the Connetix tiles is limited only to their own imagination. The more imaginative they get, the more they unlock the potential of what they can build.
Finalizing
Connetix can be adapted to your child’s developmental progress. That means that if they begin playing with Connetix pastel mega pack in the early years they could become a perfect learning tool as the child becomes more advanced in their ability to think. The ease of playing with the tiles as they progress will only aid in an increase in your child’s imagination and understanding of how to construct structures.
It doesn’t matter what the colors or shapes, or the variety of things they can construct, children of all ages will enjoy and benefits of building with Connetix.