I think a lot about how to develop creative problem solving skills in my daughter. Many things come easily to her and I don't want her to get the idea that it will all come easy to her. Including problem-solving skills in her day encourages her to think a bit deeper, persevere, and try multiple possible solutions. Here are some of the things I use to help with this:
Lego Education Simple Structures. This has 16 simple builds with Duplo and each build has a component of exploration and testing. For example, the project we did this week included building three Duplo towers in different shapes, putting them on a platform, and then tilting the platform until each fell over. Comparing the towers that fell first to the ones that fell last, she then tried to guess why some were more/less stable and build new towers that would fall sooner or later. Through the process, she discovered that height, weight, and the distribution of weight in the towers effected stability. I had started to skip over this kit and go directly to the
Early Simple Machines kit, but I'm so happy I backed up and decided to start with this one instead. A child with more Duplo/Lego building experience might be able to skip this first kit, though.
Mighty Mind and
Super Mind. These start out very simple, using two semicircles to form a circle. They progress quickly, though, to shapes that need nearly all the pieces in the kit to fill in. The two products are sequential, with Mighty Mind having the first 30 puzzles and Super Mind having the next 30 puzzles. I highly recommend a magnetic set so small hands aren't knocking the pieces out of place.
Kanoodle. Another spatial awareness puzzle, I think of this one as an analog version of Tetris that eventually works up to 3D puzzles. In its early puzzles, however, the guide tells you where to put all but two pieces, so you can start out simple and work your way up.
Rush Hour and
Rush Hour Junior. One last spatial awareness puzzle for the list. We only have the Junior version right now because these got difficult for her fast. The concept is simple - vehicles are arranged on a grid and can only move forward or backward in their traffic jam as you try to maneuver one of the vehicles off the board. There is an app version of the game as well, which only costs a few dollars.
No Stress Chess. Chess is THE classic strategy game, and this version breaks things down to make the game very easy to learn. I learned alongside my child with this and now we both know the basic rules. After we get better at planning our own strategies, we will move on and find a good chess strategy book. (Recommendations, anyone?)
Can You Find Me? In general, I have been disappointed with the workbooks from Critical Thinking Company, but this is an exception. Though I still find it easier than the level it is aimed at, it was the one CTC product for younger children that seemed to really require my daughter to think.
Monster Physics. This iDevice app has several challenges in which you need to use virtual materials to build contraptions. Better for my daughter, it has an open space to tinker with the materials to build whatever you would like.
