subject: The Enduring Popularity Of Legos [print this page] One of the most popular and enduring toys for children (and many adults!) is Lego. With a huge range of sets available from dinosaurs, medieval castles, fire stations and other buildings to sets based on popular movies such as Star Wars and Harry Potter there is always something new to fire a child's imagination. The simple building blocks, first produced in the 1930's, have evolved into one of the most diverse and imagination filled games available today. Legos are not only fun but develop creativity and manipulation skills in your children. Lego Technic kits are more intricate and suitable for older children and adults and include motors to make working models of tractors, excavators and many other vehicles.
The Duplo Lego Range
Young children can begin their exploration of Lego with the Duplo range with simpler designs and large bricks, ideal for small hands! When they get older and progress to regular Lego the Duplo bricks can still be used incorporated into the regular blocks.
Legos can be divided into three distinct categories that includes the Make And Create sets, Stories and Action sets, and Lego Technics. One of the most popular is the Make And Create sets with a huge range of sets available including sets based on themes such as space or towns. The actual construction is intricate with many pieces in each set. Many people find these types of sets great fun to make as the emphasis is on the construction more than the actual play.
The Lego Stories and Action series
The Stories and Action series sets are based on themes such as dinosaurs, pirates or themes from movies such as the hugely popular Star Wars and Harry Potter sets. These sets are generally easier to build than the Make And Create with more emphasis on the resulting play than the construction. Accessories are often included and there is a huge number of mini-figures to populate the sets after they are built. For instance Star Wars sets can be populated with mini figures of Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Hans Solo, Darth Vader etc all in various costumes to go with the particular scene fro the movie you are creating. You can find Hans Solo encased in carbonite or Darth Vader as he is transformed from Anakin Skywalker.
Lego Technic Sets
Lego Technic sets are designed for teenagers and adults as they are the most intricate to put together, many of them very large with a huge number of pieces. The Lego Technic back-hoe loader for example, costs nearly $1000 and can be made into two different vehicles has a movable shovel and backhoe, engine cylinders that move up and down and a pneumatic system with two pumps, seven valves and three huge cylinders. Other Lego Technic sets include tow trucks, rescue vehicles and some
Lego Ultimate Collector's Sets
No roundup of Lego sets would be complete without mention of the Ultimate Collector's sets. many of these are huge and include Star Wars Ultimate Collector's Millenium Falcon. With 5196 pieces it is the largest model ever produced by Lego!
Conclusion
There are a huge range of sets available but you can also buy sets of bricks in various attractive colors to make up your own designs or to add to your sets. Legos are wonderfully creative toys for our children and can be played with endlessly. Bored with a particular model? Then just break it down and make it into something else! Children of each new generation will love Legos just as much as we did in our childhood.
