Construction Toys

Construction toys in their simplest form, are a collection of separate pieces that are connected together to create models. They encourage a child to use their hands to create and learn dexterity. They have been in existence for over a century, but the undisputed king in the world of construction toys is the LEGO Company.

Founded in 1932 making wooden toys, Lego soon progressed to using plastic as a moulding material. This led to the creation of their first building brick, with which the company is most strongly recognised. Many other companies have imitated Lego, but none have had the same global success. Meccano, Brio and K’Nex are also big players in the construction toys category, and competitors selling magnetic variations have emerged in recent years.

Wood has been, and still is, one of the most widely used materials for making construction toys. Most basic toddlers’ building blocks are made from wood - and nothing can compete with it for strength, warmth and feel. Other types of construction toys are scale plastic model kits, sometimes containing hundreds of parts. These have to be glued together and then painted to make vehicles, soldiers and spaceships, or almost anything you can imagine. You can also find a list of model shops here.