Autism Parenting Magazine Issue 87 (Member's Dashboard) | Page 18

COMMUNICATION
Lego can be a useful tool to connect with others. We use it
regularly in my organization and many families I know use it
as part of their ‘toolkit of ideas.’
Top tips for your activities:
• Think of it as structured play—know what you
want to teach but keep it fun.
and Asperger Syndrome. J Autism Dev Disord. 2008
Nov;38(10):1944-57. doi: 10.1007/s10803-008-0590-
6. Epub 2008 Jun 20.
• Allow time to learn—repeating activities will
increase confidence.
• Keep activities short initially, increasing the
length of time as they become familiar.
• Adapt to your family—there is no ”right” way.
• Include free play as well as structured activi-
ties.
• Give the children some control—play their
games their way!
• Model it—do it first to show the children what
to expect.
Conclusion
Lego can be a useful tool to connect with others. We
use it regularly in my organization and many families
I know use it as part of their “toolkit of ideas.”
I would recommend having a go, keeping it simple
and having fun. The bricks bring the structure, but
it is your knowledge of your child or family member
that will make it successful.
Acknowledgments:
Eleftheriades, A (2015) Building Blocks for Communi-
cation; Activities for Promoting Language and Com-
munication Skills in Children with Special Education-
al Needs, Routledge, London
LeGoff, D. (2004), Use of LEGO© as a Therapeutic
Medium for Improving Social Competence Journal
of Autism and Developmental Disorders October
2004, Volume 34, Issue 5, pp 557–571
Owens G 1 ,  Granader Y,  Humphrey A,  Baron-Co-
hen S, LEGO therapy and the social use of language
programme: an evaluation of two social skills inter-
ventions for children with high functioning autism
18 | Autism Parenting Magazine | Issue 87
Amy Eleftheriades, PGCE, MEd in SEND, has enjoyed
over 20 years working in a range of social care and
education settings. She is a qualified teacher with
an MEd SEND, specializing in autism and social
communication difficulties. Amy lives in Norwich,
UK, with her husband, their young daughter, and
their bouncy dog. After many years working in both
public and private settings, in 2012 Amy decided
to become independent, setting up Alpha Inclu-
sion Ltd. Amy and her team work with young peo-
ple, their families, and professionals in education,
health, and social care settings. They also provide
services to the commercial sector, with The Block
Bus™ being utilized to deliver Lego activities at Cor-
porate Events and Team Building and Wellbeing
sessions for businesses. Profits from these services
are re-invested to provide ongoing care and sup-
port for children, young people, and their families.
Amy has written three books as well as a number
of articles for SEND magazines. Her book, Building
Blocks for Communication; Activities for Promot-
ing Language and Communication Skills in Chil-
dren with Special Educational Needs (Routledge),
includes further Lego activities for use at home
and school. Her most recent book Social Survival:
A manual for those with Autism and other logical
thinkers (Routledge, 2018) offers an insight into the
social world for young people with high-function-
ing autism and Asperger’s syndrome.
Website: www.blockbus.co.uk
Facebook: Alpha Inclusion Facebook
Instagram: Block_Bus Instagram