Team Building with CONNETIX

By Emily Hanlon

When it comes to play, toys are more than just fun – they are powerful tools for learning and development. I am a huge believer in ensuring we select toys that can nurture children’s development in a number of ways, and CONNETIX are not only a delight to play with but also serve as an excellent resource for developing crucial team-building skills in children. Whether you’re a parent looking to support your child’s social skills or a teacher aiming to foster cooperation in the classroom, CONNETIX can be a valuable addition to your toolkit. Plus, these toys grow with your child, meaning you can use them for multiple children, across diverse age groups.

Understanding the Importance of Team Building in Childhood

Before we delve into specific activities, it’s important to understand why team-building skills are essential for children in terms of their social development. Firstly, teamwork helps support the development of social communication. Children learn to be clear and respectful in their communication to be able to express their ideas, listen to others and negotiate. Teamwork also naturally enhances problem solving abilities, which is fundamental to everyday life and across all areas of development. When children are engaged in collaborative play this encourages them to think critically and creatively to overcome challenges. Problem solving through teamwork can also help support the development of empathy and other crucial cooperative play skills in children, because working in a team teaches children to understand others’ perspectives and to cooperate towards a common goal. And finally, teamwork can help children understand the importance of leadership and taking responsibility for our actions.

Incorporating team-building activities into playtime can provide opportunities for children to develop these skills in a natural and enjoyable way.

CONNETIX are open-ended toys, meaning they can be used in countless ways to stimulate creativity, problem solving and cooperative play. The simple yet versatile tile design allows children to build anything from 2D shapes to complex structures, making them ideal for collaborative activities.

Here’s why they stand out as a tool for team building:

Versatility:

The tiles can be used to build a wide range of structures, encouraging imagination and creativity.

Durability:

Made from high-quality, non-toxic materials, they are safe and durable, ensuring long-lasting play.

Inclusivity:

Suitable for various age groups, making them perfect for family playtime or mixed-age classroom activities.

Educational Value

They support STEM learning by introducing basic concepts of geometry, magnetism and engineering in a playful manner.

Here are three engaging team-building activities that can be used in both classrooms and home settings to promote collaboration and teamwork among children.

1. Collaborative Castle Building:

The aim here is for children to work together to design and build a large castle – fostering communication, planning and cooperation.

You will need:

CONNETIX
A flat surface for building
Optional: Miniature figures or toy characters to add to the castle

Instructions:

Divide and Conquer: For larger groups, start by dividing children into small groups. Each group is responsible for constructing a specific part of the castle, such as the towers, walls or gates. For smaller groups of 2-3, have children explore what type of castle they will need and what features it will have.
Plan Together: Encourage children to come together and discuss their ideas before they start building. They can decide on the overall design and how each part will fit together.
Build and Connect: Allow each group to build their section of the castle. Once the individual parts are complete, the groups must work together to connect all sections into a cohesive structure.
Decorate and Play: After the castle is built, children can use miniature figures to play out stories and scenarios, further enhancing their imaginative play. And really, who doesn’t love an activity that has multiple uses and takes longer than 5 minutes to finish!?

This is a great activity because it supports children’s social communication. Together, children must discuss and agree on the design and construction process. It also encourages problem solving and cooperation as each child works together as part of the group to ensure the structure is working. If any adjustments need to be made, they can collaborate to ensure all parts connect properly and that everybody is happy with the design.

2. Magnetic Maze Challenge:

The aim of this activity is to create and navigate through a magnetic maze, enhancing problem solving, creativity and teamwork.

You will need:

CONNETIX
Small toy cars or balls
A timer (optional)

Instructions:

Design the Maze: For larger groups, divide children into teams and challenge each team to design a maze using the CONNETIX. The maze should be large enough for a small toy car or ball to pass through. For smaller groups of 2 or 3, encourage them to create the maze together. When the groups are small, they may want to make 2-3 mazes to test which one works out best.
Set the Rules: Explain that the goal is to navigate the toy car or ball through the maze as quickly as possible. Teams can take turns timing each other if desired.
Build and Test: Once the maze designs are complete, allow the teams to build their mazes. After construction, each team can take turns navigating a toy car or ball through the other teams’ mazes. You could even try it blindfolded, while your team member guides you through the maze.
Evaluate and Improve: After each run, teams can discuss what worked well and what didn’t, making improvements to their maze designs if necessary.

By working together and designing/testing the mazes, children can work on their creativity and learn to collaborate when faced with tricky tasks. This activity can also help children with resilience, by encouraging them to evaluate and improve maze designs based on performance.

3. Storytelling Structure:

The aim of this activity is to build structures that represent scenes from a story, promoting creativity, narrative skills and teamwork.

You will need:

CONNETIX
A selection of children’s books or story prompts
Paper and pencils for planning (optional)

Instructions:

Choose a Story: Select a book that your children/class loves or create a simple story prompt. Read the story to the group or present the prompt to get their imaginations flowing.
Divide the Story: Split the story into key scenes and assign each scene to a small group of children. Each group is responsible for building a structure that represents their scene using CONNETIX. For smaller groups, you can simply choose a scene together as a starting point and work your way through the book as each section is completed.
Plan and Build: Allow time for the groups to discuss their assigned scenes and plan their structures. Encourage them to be as creative as possible in their designs.
Present the Story: Once all structures are complete, bring the groups together to present their scenes in sequence, retelling the story through their constructions. This can be a fun, interactive storytelling session.
Reflect and Discuss: After the presentations, have a discussion about the experience. Ask questions like, “What was challenging about building your scene?” or “How did you decide on your design?”

This is a great activity to incorporate literacy into play. By understanding and representing key elements of a story, children can work on their narrative skills. They are also working on teamwork and social communication by collaborating to build a cohesive scene and discussing ideas/planning together.

There are so many ways to use CONNETIX to encourage teamwork and social development. These tiles are more than just a toy; they are a gateway to endless learning opportunities and developmental benefits. By incorporating CONNETIX into team-building activities, parents and educators can help children develop essential social skills, foster creativity and promote cooperative play. Remember, the goal is to make learning fun and engaging, creating an environment where children feel supported and encouraged to explore and collaborate.

As parents, your involvement and encouragement is key. Play alongside your children, guide them through challenges and celebrate their successes. By doing so, you are not only helping them build strong teamwork skills but also creating cherished memories and strengthening your bond.

Emily Hanlon

Emily Hanlon, otherwise known as The Playful Psychologist, is a Clinical Psychologist from Sydney. She is also the proud mum of 4- and 1-year old boys, and is expecting her third baby this year. Emily has a specific interest in autism spectrum disorder and developmental delay. She has experience providing individual and group therapy for children, adolescents, and adults with a variety of presentations including ASD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), mood-related disorders, anxiety, poor social skills, and other behavioural concerns. Emily draws on her own personal experiences of having a brother on the Autism Spectrum, and uses her unique first-hand experience, to facilitate her own therapeutic practice. Emily started The Playful Psychologist to share her love of creativity within her work. She enjoys sharing her ideas, and also loves learning from others! As a psychology student, and a young psychologist, she always wished she had somewhere to turn for inspiration - and that is what she hopes to do for educators, parents, and psychologists alike! Emily is extremely proud of the online community she has created to support the social and emotional development of children by upskilling the adults who support them.

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