Lego turns 90 years old soon! Can you believe it? It has certainly come a long way since 1932. Lego’s popularity continues to rise around the world, showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon. With toy stores filled to the brim with new releases each week, Lego attracts creatives of all ages. Let’s take a look at what makes Lego so great:
Lego History
Lego originated in Ole Kirk Kristiansen’s small carpenter’s workshop in the year 1932. Yes, Lego Blocks were wooden! We can’t believe it either. Then, in 1958, the plastic brick was born. The interlocking tubes made for unlimited possibilities of the imagination. Lego has been named toy of the century twice!
The Lego Group is a privately held, family-owned company with headquarters in Billund, Denmark. Lego is actually derived from the Danish phrase “leg godt,” which means “play well.”
Such is their international success, the toy company also has offices in Shanghai, Singapore, London, and Enfield, USA. The company now has over 18,000 employees, representing more than 70 nationalities.
Educational Lego
Lego is an amazing educational toy. Problem-solving, teamwork, artistic skills, and even maths come into play – without you even realising! Children and adults with disabilities also benefit from playing with Lego. Hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, colour finding, and also sensory skills are being used for endless amounts of fun!
Lego isn’t just about the brick, though. Education is a massive part of their company. They’re supporting science, STEM, and coding for pre-school, elementary, and middle school students – that makes the Lego brick one of the smartest building toys out there!
Games
As well as the infamous brick, Lego has made lots of fun games such as Creationary (a Lego Pictionary), Lego Ninjago maze game, What am I? (a Lego take on guess who) and a whole fleet of other games.
Video games are so much fun with Lego. They have Lego Dimensions, Lego Star Wars, and a whole other bunch of movie-based games. There’s also Lego Worlds. This game lets you create your own universe out of any piece imaginable. You can explore other lands to find resources and create endless structures.
TV & Movies
Now to the movies! Lego movies first hit the big screen in 2003, with Bionicle released alongside the game. It then went on to release many many more, with Lego Hero Factory, The Adventures Of Clutch Powers, The Lego Movie, Lego Batman, and the latest release Ninjago.
With many more in the mix, everything Lego on the big screen is just AWESOME!
TV has come a long way too, starting with Lego Hero Factory in 2010 then moving to Star Wars, Ninjago, Lego Friends, Mixels and Nexo Knights, the TV series will definitely be rolling for a while.
Legoland!
We couldn’t write about Lego without mentioning the Legoland theme parks! The original theme park opened in Billund in 1968, with 625,000 visiting during the first season. We got our own Legoland in 1996, named Legoland Windsor Resort, followed by parks in California, Florida, Dubai, Japan, and Germany! Even more parks are on the way as well, with South Korea, Shanghai, and New York joining the party.
The parks are designed so that everything appears to be made from Lego bricks and, like always, education is an important aspect of all the parks.
Why is Lego so Good?
Lego is my favourite toy! I’ve always loved it, as a kid and as an adult, and I can now share the joy of it with my kids. It’s fun to build with and the possibilities are endless. Apart from the bricks, the video games are my favourite. The levels are so much fun and it’s brilliant to see it all in brick!
I also run a Lego club for children who love Lego just as much as I do. We play games, have building competitions, and have lots of Lego colouring too! And that’s why I think Lego is so great!
You can read more of Vicki’s post on Mumma and Her Monsters.
Don’t forget to share your experience with our top toys for girls by using the hashtag #Toystreet on Instagram and Twitter!
Editors note: This blog was originally published on January 18th, 2018. Updated on March 30th, 2022 to improve the information available.
