Perceptual-Motor Challenges in Children’s Toy Play

Some toys (e.g., popular interlocking Lego and Duplo bricks) require specific motor actions to be used as the designers intended. However, little is known about how children learn the designed actions of toys and how the perceptual-motor requirements interfere with play. We observed 91 12- to 60-month-old children and 20 adults playing with six Duplo bricks. Children showed a developmental progression from non-designed exploratory actions to successful interlocking but building only towers to constructing multiple asymmetric structures. Unsuccessful attempts to interlock were distributed evenly across age (and displayed even in adults). Findings suggest that perceptual-motor requirements impede higher levels of play. Before children can engage in pretend play or build creative structures, they must overcome the biomechanical constraints of interlocking.