How Legos can be a Cognitive Therapy Tool

You may have played with Legos when you were a child. While Legos can bring us a sense of childhood nostalgia, they can also be useful cognitive therapy tools.

Working with clients that have Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, Kitty Short uses Legos as part of her cognitive therapy plan with her clients. This therapy, called ‘Lego Therapy’ uses Legos to provide cognitive and emotional stimulation for people with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Using Legos, she carves out roles for each of her clients to fulfill: manager, supplier, and builder. Using these roles, Kitty teaches her clients cognitive skills such as verbal fluency, attention, executive functioning, and visual spatial skills.

Using Legos also provides multiple forms of stimulation: visual, tactile, kinesthetic, and if used in a group setting – social. Sensory stimulation is important for adults with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia because sensory decline is part of both disorders and the stimulation serves to help maintain connections between sensory and other key brain regions as much as possible. Activity directors, occupational therapists, nurses, and caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia struggle to find appropriate activities that provide adequate sensory, cognitive, and emotional stimulation because of the progressive decline caused by both conditions. Because of its versatility, ‘Lego therapy’ provides people working with these clinical populations a fun and adaptable activity that can be done individually or in groups for people in the early through late stages.

Cognitive stimulation is important for all age groups, especially for elderly populations. Providing cognitive stimulation can go beyond using fun worksheets and digital cognitive therapy tools. Using Legos as part of your cognitive therapy plan for your client’s with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia can help your client practice important cognitive skills such as verbal fluency, attention, executive functioning, and visual spatial skills.

Conclusion 

Looking for a fun activity that provides cognitive stimulation and laughter? Try ‘Lego therapy’ with your clients. Using Legos can teach your clients important cognitive skills, all well providing a fun and memorable experience either individually or in a group setting.

Dustin Luchmee

Dustin was HappyNeuron's Product Specialist. With research experience in stroke, Dustin learned how a stroke can change someone's life. He also learned how different kinds of therapists can work together to help a person get better. He is passionate about neuro-rehabilitation and finding the active ingredients for effective therapy.

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