How to make something out of Lego. What can be made from Lego? Various options and video tutorials

Lego Duplo appeared at our house when my son was a little over one and a half years old, at that time dad was thinking of what to build. My husband and I imagined that the child himself, growing up, would put the cubes into certain figures, thus developing his imagination and fine motor skills. But nothing like this happened, we decided to try to buy a few themed sets from the Lego Duplo series. They also took our son to a short time, and he himself never built anything.

Knowing child psychology and how different children are, I just decided that I needed to wait. But not idly by, but by offering the child other constructors and observing his reaction to them. It turned out that Alexander likes the wooden constructor more than Lego. The designer Wedgits Starter also captivated the boy, he liked it less than wooden blocks, but more than the subject of our discussion. A breakthrough in the interest of the son to the designer Duplo arose after the order appeared in the details. I wrote about this in an article.

1. What to build from Duplo
2. Alphabet
3. Numbers
4. Cartoons
5. Interesting Facts

What to build from Lego Duplo

Since writing about children's construction, there have been some changes. Alexander, who is now 4 years 10 months old, began to take out containers with parts himself and try to assemble the composition.

- Mom, I built a forest for you!

The child was on summer holidays, and I work at home, so from time to time my son had to play alone in his room. To express his feelings, he often surprises me. It can be drawings, crafts, phrases written on a magnetic board. And this time there was a forest built from Duplo. The main thing is that everything is clear in this composition: trees, mushrooms, flowers, a bunny in a clearing, a duck in a pond and a house with people and animals on the outskirts of the forest.

All photos with our crafts can be enlarged by clicking on them.

A couple of days later, the animals were presented to me. Deer and giraffe.

Naturally, I was very happy with the gifts and expressed my sincere admiration. We left them until the arrival of the Pope, who, in turn, also expressed his delight. Alexander got motivation, but not everything worked out and the child called his mother for help. Then I noticed that if I join the assembly, then the child very carefully observes each cube I put and does the same. This level of copying was supposed to take about two years, but then Alexander was not interested in buildings from Lego Duplo. Now these birds have turned out, one is mine, the second is Alexandra.

Then we built the dogs.

Well, I thought, we need to try to build one structure for two, then each of us will have to contribute his share of imagination. Since I have a boy, I chose a motive according to his interests - a ship. In the end, he became a pirate, which was not at all expected, but Alexander's fantasy played out and they were offered such details as an anchor descending on a cable, a lifebuoy, a cabin boy looking and a ladder along which he climbs up.

That evening we played pirates and I felt the interest of the child, which I did not want to miss.

After returning from a seaside vacation, I played with my son in railway. But I personally am not interested in just rolling a train, and I offered to involve our pets Minion in this business. Of course, Alexander agreed, but with what joy! We built a fortress from Lego Duplo, through which the railway passed. The child again had a desire to make the Minions pirates and a little story was composed:

The Minion family had an engineer. He told the other Minions how to build a fortress and they did it under his guidance. But since they did not have money to buy land, they built it right on the railway track. Soon the Minions were hungry, and there was nothing around to work and earn in an honest way. So they decided that they would be pirates! When the trains passed through the fortress, the Minion robbed them.

Well, if the train managed to slip through, then other Minions jumped on it from specially built towers. They brought the booty to the fortress, where they divided it among everyone.

But here the most interesting began. Alexander immediately chose the role of the train, and I was the villain Minion. After a couple of robberies, the "train" decided to defend itself, and began to drop bombs (wooden cubes) on the Minion. As a result, the engineer had to repair the railway, the fortress, the towers, but the train was armed to the teeth, he bombed and bombed until there was no trace of the enemies left. That evening, our dad could only see the ruins...

The next day, the child solved the dinosaurs, at that moment I was drinking coffee and just threw a phrase that it would be interesting to try to build dinosaurs from Lego Duplo. Alexander, apparently inspired by the game with Minion, immediately laid out the containers with the parts. Five minutes later, a protoceratops appeared before me, then a brachiosaurus came, although initially it looked very much like a giraffe.

And then mom was called to help. The fact is that Alexander really wanted to make the horns of a Triceratops, but no matter how he put them out of the details, they did not look like in the picture. And who said that the craft can not be supplemented? I took out a hot gun, we found two ammo supplies that look like horns and everything quickly stuck. By the way, hot silicone is very easy to clean off parts, so I advise you to use it.

So a new one has begun academic year, I made a plan of our classes for a month. One of the points of the plan is the repetition of the Russian alphabet. Alexander went into reading whole words, he had a natural interest in the Spanish, English and French alphabets. It was through them that he went into reading in each of these languages, but the Russian alphabet did not interest him in any way. The explanation for this is simple, the child reads perfectly without his knowledge, the brain discards unnecessary information. But the education system is built differently, so knowing that my son learns information best through music, I picked up a video with the alphabet in Russian.

We received knowledge through hearing, now we need to touch it with our hands. Let's build the Russian alphabet!

By evening, Alexander was singing the Russian alphabet from memory, he learned it not just as a rhyme, but by passing each letter through his hands.

Yesterday was Tuesday, and in our family it's an evening with dad. Boys usually play with superheroes, soldiers, but yesterday Alexander SAM offered to build something from Lego. Dad was already ready to collect something grandiose, but in time he noticed that the child himself was sitting and folding his craft. It turned out that it was logical for Alexander to take up numbers after the alphabet and he collected from 1 to 10. There was no limit to the surprise of her husband, he just sat nearby and watched. Well, not quite easy ... during the construction of 10 numbers by his son, he assembled a steam locomotive on wheels.

Alexander is clearly not interested in solving examples within a dozen. But if your kids are just entering the world of mathematics, then I advise you to use the constructor to study it. Having passed the numbers through his hands, the child will remember them better, and playing with his own constructed numbers is more interesting than just writing them in a notebook.

Here's what my dad built. In general, I want to express one thought that has not left me for the past two weeks. Like many parents, I follow the new kits:

• Lego Duplo the engine;
• lock;
• house;
• pirates.

We have purchased all of these sets! But the child does not play with them. He was more interested in building his own pirate ship, your castle for your beloved Minion, your own house in which mom, dad and Alexander will live. And most importantly, all this is really built from individual parts Lego Duplo, which are bought and donated.

Of course, if the child shows great interest in role play with ready-made kits, that is, it makes sense to follow the news and buy them whenever possible. But if your son or daughter is like my child, then believe me - EVERYTHING can be built, and you will have to use ingenuity, imagination and fine motor skills. I mean, when several sets have already been bought for simple Lego cubes, and there are doors, windows, arches, roof details, a hill, then you can already connect your imagination.

Oh, I almost forgot! Our dad's train.

Lego Duplo cartoons

In order for the child to have an interest in the Lego Duplo constructor, you can show him several cartoons. There are not so many of them released, but now I will share with you only those that, in my opinion, will develop a desire or fantasy in a child with an independent role-playing game.

Farmer Vanya. We're going to visit

This cartoon, if you can call it that, is suitable for children from two years old. It involves Lego Duplo and the little men to it.

Cool races and rules traffic

Highly good video with Lego men. My son loves to read about the rules of the road and follow them. Yes, yes, he always quotes them when crossing the road.

LEGO City Undercover

If your child is 5+ and is fluent in English language, then he will definitely appreciate this Lego movie. It lasts an hour, during which there will be chases, love and American humor.

Cartoons about CARS, LEGO City

Well, of course there are a lot of cars! Air, sea, road transport and all of it from Lego! The cartoon, or rather several of them, are perfectly duplicated. This is just an endless drive, from which I will not hide my son was delighted. Fortunately, the American happy ending is present, the criminals are arrested.

Friends first series

Based on the series Frends, these cartoons are delivered. And although Lego Friends is considered for girls, Alexander enjoys watching these cartoons. By the way, they have quite good content, so if your children like it, look for the rest of the series.

1. 1. In Latin, "lego" means "(I) collect."
   2. In September 2013, Russia's first permanent exhibition of models made from LEGO GameBricks opened in St. Petersburg.

1. 1. In 2012, a limited edition of Moleskine notebooks dedicated to LEGO was released.

1. 1. In May 2013, the T-65 X-Wing starship from the Star Wars epic, consisting of 5,335,200 LEGO pieces and weighing about 23 tons, was exhibited in Times Square in New York.

1. 1. The world's most expensive LEGO brick costs $14,449.

1. 1. In September 2013, Norwegian Jon Jessesen entered the Guinness Book of Records for the largest Star Wars LEGO collection. He collected about 300 kits and nearly 750,000 parts to assemble.

1. In December 2013, a full-size LEGO vehicle powered by compressed air pistons was completed and launched. The developers claim that the construction of such a miracle of technology took about 500 thousand parts. The car develops speed up to 30 km/h.

In the popular understanding, LEGO toys are a way to entertain kids for a while with an exciting and educational game. They assemble buildings, roads, cars, robots and other forms from plastic bricks. Inexpensive. Interesting. Children develop their thinking better.

And the children of many countries even submit ideas in letters to manufacturers about what can be made from LEGO, and they respond with the release of new designers. Only added worries to parents: to collect the scattered details of the designer.

Brief history

But few parents think about where the game came from. Little is known about the fact that in 2000 beautiful crafts from LEGO surprised even a competitor from Britain - the toy association: it recognized LEGO as the Toy of the 20th century.

A foreman of carpenters from a small Danish town in the early 30s of the last century formed LEGO groups and laid the foundation for the production of children's toys made of wood. After 17 years, the company, barely recovering from the hardships of the Second World War, switched to the production of plastic components for design. All kinds of photos Lego crafts convince adults that play can be a serious activity for children.

Le-go in Danish means "play well", and in Latin and Italian it is the word "collect". Until now, the first plastic bricks combined with all those released in different years children's designers. And they allow you to perform crafts from LEGO of varying complexity.

At the same time, the developers withstand from the very beginning three tasks that children will have to solve mentally and practically: assembly modularity, assembly and disassembly skills and bring the kids closer to the concept of repairing equipment.

There are also more complex assemblies for teenagers with the inclusion of microcontrollers and electric motors in the designers. Below we will conduct a master class on crafts from LEGO, we will tell you what can be assembled from plastic bricks. For example, a case for a flash drive.

Flash drive

Children simply adore various gadgets (from English it is a “device”, “trinket”, “stray”). Today we propose a project simple creation original LEGO packaging block for a flash drive.

These electronic devices are produced without bells and whistles, as well as in the form of anything externally - lighters, key chains and even bullets. But even in the form of a LEGO block, the flash drive will look very unusual and quite original.

For work should be at hand:

• Flash drive
• Plastic parts-bricks
• Instant Adhesive
• light silicone
• Sandpaper
• Paint (but not watercolor or artistic oil)

Start of production - assembly of the USB flash drive case. Pick up two 6x3 rectangles (can be replaced with 4x3 and 2x3 parts). Carefully cut with a sharp knife (plastic cuts well) the walls of all the bricks that will be in contact with each other. Glue them. Next - install the flash drive inside the created block in the cut hole.

The main stage of skillful work is strengthening the USB drive inside the case. Use transparent silicone for fixation. Through it, you will need to observe the blinking of the diode "light bulb" - an indicator of the gadget's operation. Fill the void with silicone.

The final part is polishing and painting. Glue the back of the block. Handle the places of gluing and joints carefully with fine-grained sandpaper M63 or M50, or easier - five or four, so that the entire surface becomes smooth.

Paint the entire unit, without hitting the protruding USB connector, with a brush or spray paint. Cover the connector with paper. The spray can should be held firmly in the hand and the nozzle should be directed only at the product. It is advisable to wear any goggles to protect your eyes from accidental contact with the spray jet.

Spinner

Toy for adults and children from stress. Factory layout of metal, plastic, paper. We provide instructions on how to make a small LEGO craft. Designers are made of metal, plastic, paper.

For creativity according to our task, select an axle from the designer, a pair of round disks with holes 6x6 and 4x4 (2 pieces), as well as with a hole for the axle and one more flat one. Set aside 8 blocks of 3x2 and 4 - 2x2. Plates mouthk: large between two smaller ones; install a flat one on the axle.

Note!

On it, install the assembled part above, fix it with a flat washer, fasten it with a 2x2 part with a cross-shaped hole. Attach block weights 2x2 and 2x3 to the center. Grab the axle from above and below with your fingers. The spinner is ready to spin.

small house

You can create something from any constructors by mixing blocks from different boxes. For example, a luxurious house is our suggestion on how to come up with a LEGO craft on your own.

A few tips on "architecture". Select several platforms - one for the floor, the other, green, will become the yard. If the house is large, then take a place under the kitchen, hall and bedroom, and, of course, the nursery. If on two floors - select flights of stairs. We wish you success!

Photo of Lego crafts

Note!

Note!

My kids (however, like most children I know) are Lego fans. Of course, loving parents cannot refuse to buy another set for their children, although most often the available parts are 90% enough to repeat new models.

And here one of the tricks of Legov marketers is revealed. Almost all Lego sets contain one or more unique pieces. And to pay, frankly, a rather high price for a small piece of plastic - no toad can withstand this.
But we have a 3D printer and the only question is the model.
So, how do we make a printable model without the knowledge of Sketchup / SolidWorks, etc.?
To get started, download LeoCAD - a handy tool for virtual Lego modeling:

Then we go to LDraw.org and download the latest version of the parts library. We feed this library to LeoKad and look for the desired part in the list. In this case, we will try to make a rack 64448, very handy thing for the construction of new structures:

Next File->Export->Wavefront-> *.obj and save this detail to our directory.
We open Autodesk Netfabb (I don’t give links myself understand why, but everyone knows where to get it and import the model. Right click on the model, Extras-> Repair. After LeoCAD, the model turns out to be “dirty”, Netfabb perfectly fixes all problems automatically.

The next step is purely empirical, I don’t know why they converted millimeters into inches in the models, but this model needs to be reduced by 2.54 times: Part->Scale-> 39.4%
Well, the final step: Project-> Export to STL
And start printing:

Of course, children are interested not only in bricks, but also in all sorts of artifacts such as buckets, wheels, etc.
Only with thin rings the printer is not very good, so I set the extrusion to 120% and after printing I go through all the holes with a 4.8mm drill. Latch, of course, imperfect, but the children do not pay attention to it

Lego games have been popular with kids for decades. different ages. Almost every family with a child has several sets of this constructor. After all, this is not just a toy, but a whole fairy world, which allows you to create your own cities, buildings, structures and machines from small blocks and parts different sizes. It is very interesting for a child to fantasize how to make a Lego city, a farm or a police station. But sometimes simple observation and ingenuity will not be enough. It is important not only to have detailed instructions, but also gain experience in the construction of this constructor.

History of Lego

The history of the appearance of Lego begins in 1932, when at that time the little-known carpenter and carpenter Ole Christiansen, together with his twelve-year-old son, started producing ironing boards, stairs and wooden toys. But it was toys that began to be in good demand, so two years later the company specialized only in the production of goods for children. For everything children's world this moment was a turning point. In 1947, Christiansen became the first manufacturer of plastic toys, and two years later, the first building parts and elements appeared, which became the progenitors of the Lego constructor. However, 1955 is considered the year of the appearance of the famous toy, when the first building kits were released.

The very name "lego" came from two words - "leg" and "godt", which in translation from Danish means "I play well." In Latin, Lego means "I am learning".

Development of the company

The first kits included plastic parts of different sizes, which were connected to each other using pins. Interestingly, since 1958, Lego parts have almost completely corresponded to the modern designer and can be used in construction along with any series. The idea of ​​the company and the production technology of the constructor have not lost their relevance at the present time. The most important thing for the company is the high quality of products. The quality of the plastic meets high standards and is under strict control at all stages of the production of the designer, thanks to which Lego products are appreciated and loved by buyers from all over the world.

How to make a lego city

In 1968 from Lego parts a whole toy city was built. Since then in different countries Lego festivals and competitions are constantly held. For the convenience of buyers, each designer has assembly instructions, as well as last years many different author's manuals have appeared that describe in detail how to make various structures and mechanisms out of Lego with your own hands.

Currently, the assortment of designers is very wide, in stores you can even find various additions: figurines of animals, people, trees, vehicles, and so on. In addition, you can purchase sets of various themes, for example, dedicated to pirates, wizards, movie characters. But Lego City is the most popular among children.

It is better to collect your city on a flat and smooth surface: on the floor or on a table. While working, try not to mix up the parts used for different elements. Parts should be fastened to each other neatly and tightly so that they do not fall apart.

Instruction:

Draw on sheet rough plan the future city of Lego, designate its central part, residential area, park area, roads. It doesn't have to be an ordinary city. Perhaps your child will want to create a fairytale castle or an alien metropolis.

Pick up the parts that you will use to create a particular structure. You can use all the sets you have, as they are ideally combined with each other. To help your child, you can type simple instructions: how to make a Lego helicopter, a car, a farm and other buildings. The use of a schematic instruction is useful for developing the child's thinking and attention.

At the base of each block or building, a large rectangular piece should be placed; blocks can be connected by bridges, passages and railroad tracks. Complete your landscape with trees, ponds, flower alleys, cars, people and other figures. Assign roles and play with the whole family!

What else to do with Lego?

Surprisingly, the plastic constructor can be used to create various interesting things. For example, Lego can be used to make ice molds, fridge magnets, candle holders, even soap molds or a flower vase. As well as a decorative wreath for Christmas, Christmas decorations, a convenient key holder, a night light, jewelry. Fantasy has no limits!

The LEGO constructor has long ceased to be just an educational game for children. From tens of millions of cubes, full-fledged amusement parks for kids and their parents are built. Lego has made its way into the movies and gaming industry. Creative individuals use parts to create paintings and sculptures, and enthusiastic engineers make car bodies out of them. Looks impressive! Indeed, the limits of the use of famous figurines are limited only by human imagination, and it knows no boundaries. In this article, you will learn about the unusual uses of LEGO bricks in everyday life.

coin sorter

To distant Soviet times my mother worked as a salesman, and every day she dealt with kilograms of coins. I helped her sort them by face value. On the one hand, it was very cool to occasionally find commemorative copies, on the other hand, the boring task quickly got boring. It is a pity that in those days there was no LEGO constructor, so and so interesting recipe application of its details. The mechanism can be adapted to any coin diameter.

Stand

In the hot summer season, my computer likes to shut down due to overheating. Touching the surface on which the laptop rests causes slight burns. Therefore, it is necessary to create an air "cushion" under it to provide greater ventilation and better cooling. Several cubes are ideal as a stand.

The solution can also be used to save space in the kitchen. In the same way, the trays can go into the dishwasher.

Small things organizer

Forget about searching for keys, wallets and other pocket small things with the original organizer. If you're too lazy to drill holes in your bricks, LEGO sells pre-drilled key chains.

Educational game

Why not kill two birds with one stone? Combine the development of fingers and thinking of kids with learning to read and count. Mark the words and numbers on the cubes with a regular marker. Learning grammar will become much more interesting.

Task Manager

No successful undertaking is complete without planning and setting goals. Design studio from the UK offered its original approach to control the movement of projects. Based on Lego pieces.

But any concept is really good if it can be translated into reality. The Lego calendar has been successfully used by some companies to plan the work of 20 employees.

Lens cap holder

Do you like photography or video shooting? Then you know the “problem” of a loose or lost lens cap. Attach Lego pieces to the lid itself and the strap for a simple and practical solution.

office hacks

Place tiny magnets in the cubes and your paper clips, staples and holders will find their home. The mess on the table is defeated!

No magnets? No problem! You can make stylish cups for pens and other office stuff.

Rack

For any nonsense, usually lying around anywhere, you can make an unusual stand. For example, for a phone...

... joysticks, and even ...

... shaving supplies!

Picture frame

How amazing is a photo frame? Certainly! A flight of thought and Lego parts to help you.

Flower pot

Fans of home vegetation should like the idea of ​​​​a pot from a designer. Usually the rapid growth of a flower is accompanied by worries about buying and transplanting into a larger pot. With Lego, you can modify any existing pot to the required size.

themed house

Why trifle with pots, if you can accelerate to a whole house! Perhaps it will be a playroom for children, but adults will want to visit it by all means.

And what unusual options Do you know Lego applications?