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Explore Fun Facts About And The History Of Building Blocks

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History Of Building Blocks

History Of Building Blocks – Kids can get totally lost while playing with building blocks. It is amazing how these colorful blocks have successfully attracted every age kid’s attraction for generations. They are not just fun; they have many benefits for your child. As your kids build towers, bridges, and other different kinds of cool creations, they develop important skills they will need later in life.

While they play with different shapes of colorful plastic or wooden blocks, they use their brains to solve problems, think about space, and figure things out. 

They secretly develop their mathematics, engineering, and even architecture skills without even themselves knowing. So, in this article, we are going to explore the amazing journey of these magic blocks. 

Keep reading to learn fun facts and the history of building blocks.

History Of Building Blocks

Fun Facts And The History Of Building Blocks, The Timeless Toy

Building blocks have a surprisingly long and interesting history. 

Who Invented Building Blocks? 

Many people credit the German educator Friedrich Fröbel for inventing building blocks as a learning tool. He was special for other reasons, too, as he founded kindergartens in the 19th century. For Fröbel, play was a big part of learning, and building blocks were a perfect way to make it fun. He created wooden blocks called “Fröbel Gifts” to teach kids about shapes, balance, and how things fit together in space. But that is not the whole story.

History Of Building Blocks

Building Blocks Before Kindergartens

The idea of using blocks for learning is even older. In the 1600s, an English philosopher named John Locke mentioned “alphabet blocks” in his work. He suggested they would be a fun way for kids to learn letters and read.

This might surprise you, but some of the earliest building blocks were found in ancient Egypt. Yes, the ones with pyramids. Archaeologists have discovered wooden blocks from ancient Egypt that kids could use to build miniature structures, just like your kids do today.

Building Blocks Took Over America!

Building blocks became popular in America around the early 1900s. Let us explore the history of building blocks in America now.

Bright And Bold Blocks

An American game pioneer named Milton Bradley developed brightly colored wooden blocks to help kids learn about space and how to move their hands well. Teachers loved them, too, so building blocks quickly became a must-have in classrooms.

History Of Building Blocks

Standardized Blocks

In 1913, an educator and progressive educational reformer, Caroline Pratt, created special wooden blocks. They were all the same size but different shapes. These blocks became very popular in schools and are still used today.

Later, in 1916, John Lloyd Wright invented Lincoln Logs. Children could fit these interlocking wooden logs together and build awesome miniature log cabins and other structures. It was a fun way to get kids interested in building and design.

History Of Fun And Learning (Continued)

After we got unit blocks and Lincoln Logs, more American companies started making different types of building blocks. In 1914, Tinkertoys came out with wooden rods and spools kids could use to connect to build different things. Around the same time, Erector Sets hit the shelves. These sets offered metal beams and bolts for kids to build even stronger and more complex structures. Then, in the 1960s, LEGO came along and changed everything.

LEGO | Game Changer Of The Building Blocks World

LEGO offers perfectly designed plastic bricks that can fit together in endless ways. They gave children the opportunity to build anything they imagined. These little plastic toys were so much fun that even grown-ups loved them. LEGO also expanded its educational potential when it launched Mindstorms in the late 1990s. It was a significant step to combine STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education into play.

History Of Building Blocks

Fun Facts About Toy Building Blocks And Building Bricks

Building blocks are seriously everywhere. Enjoy these mind-blowing building blocks facts.

  • If you stack all the building bricks together in a line, they will wrap around the Earth’s equator more than once. Amazing, huh!
  • With just six regular building blocks, you can build over 915 million different things.
  • Have you ever wondered how many building blocks are out there right now? Over 400 BILLION! If you stacked them all on top of each other, they would reach ten times higher than the moon.
  • The tallest building block tower ever built is almost 30 meters high (about 97 feet). It was built with a massive 465,000 bricks.
  • There are more building block minifigures than people on Earth—over 4 billion! It is like a minifigure army.
  • The holiday season is the building block season. During Christmas time, almost 28 building block sets are sold every second.

Introduction To LEPIN

History Of Building Blocks

What Is The Origin Of LEPIN? 

LEPIN was a Chinese building block company that entered the industry around 2014. Their goal was to make building block sets affordable for more people. Their name even means “Happy to Build” in Chinese. They became famous pretty quickly, but not without some controversy. Actually, LEPIN basically follows LEGO designs, so you can purchase many LEGO design alternatives under LEPIN for a relatively lower cost.

LEPIN History 

When LEPIN started in late 2014, its founder had already created a brand called ‘Meizhi’ that also copied LEGOs. He later joined forces with three others to start making LEPIN building blocks. They kicked things off with the Cityscape series. They took advantage of LEGO sets that were no longer being produced to break into the market. It was a smart business move but kind of a shady one.

Evolution Of LEPIN

LEPIN grew really fast and started selling LEGO copies in China and other countries. At their highest point, they were the top seller in the entire baby and toy category on AliExpress. 

The Impact And Lessons From LEPIN’s Journey

In the end, the legal battles caught up with LEPIN. They could not keep copying LEGO and getting away with it. So, LEPIN’s reign as the king of cheap building blocks came to an end. Even with all the legal problems and controversy, LEPIN’s story shows how much people love building blocks.

Fun Facts About LEPIN

Here are some interesting facts about LEPIN.

  • LEPIN did not manufacture just a few LEGO-inspired building block sets. They made replicas of hundreds of LEGO sets. LEPIN even has released some special sets that LEGO fans designed, but LEGO never actually sold. In a few cases, they even came up with their own original designs.
  • LEPIN became really popular for a few reasons,
    • First, their sets were way cheaper than LEGOs.
    • Second, they offered replicas of LEGO sets that were no longer being sold so that LEGO fans could still build those sets.
  • For some collectors, LEPIN was a lifesaver. They could save so much money by buying a LEPIN replica instead of a rare and expensive LEGO set.

History Of Building Blocks

 

The World of Building Blocks

When considering the building block manufacturer collectively, you will realize that there are plenty of cloned brands and independent brands. 

For example, LEPIN, Sluban, Enlighten, and DECOOL are a few of the clone brands. MEGA BLOKS, Qman, Mould King, and COBI are independent building block brands.

Conclusion

Here, we explored a lot of fun facts and the history of building blocks and gained some amazing knowledge. However, the most important takeaway from this article is that building blocks are not just toys. They are like little stepping stones that help kids develop their creativity, problem-solving skills, and other skills they will need later in life. Throughout the building block history, educators and toy manufacturers have made LEGOs, and even LEPIN sets an educational investment in your child’s future.