Physical Manipulative: Lego® Dots
Introduction
I swear Lego discontinued their Dots products in 2023 because I started them using to teach. Lego dots were small geometric pixel-like pieces intended for children's crafts. While I have used Dots successfully in one-on-one tutoring, I plan on integrating them into my middle school classroom teaching. I prefer to write in present-tense, so this article will be written as if I am using them in the classroom, which will soon be the case.
I must acknowledge that this post recommends spending funds, whether personal or otherwise, on unconventional teaching materials. I also acknowledge that there are no commonly available materials recommended as an alternative. I understand that any spending money for materials is precious in the US, and that use of this manipulative might not be possible for your classroom.
Though discontinued, authentic products can be found on ebay or reused in the Lego Art series. For a more affordable option, a company called Mannidoo sells compatible pieces in bulk as well as the base plates. Below are some guidelines to using these in the classroom.
Why use Dots
From the beginning of the school year, Dots and a baseplate are affixed to every student desk. There are three distinct, yet often indistinguishable, purposes:
Fidget for focus
Play toy
Support for a math activity
Each use is important, as is student's free choice of use.
It's also important that these pieces are Lego or Lego-like. As we get older, play is encouraged less frequently. Toys are rarely marketed to adults purely for childlike play. Lego is an exception, with nearly 25% of their sales attributed to adult use. Math class is often a place of intense competition. In middle and high school, many students resist using tools because of stigma and fear of perceived weakness. A toy intended for kids and adults alike is less stigmatizing.
Leaving Lego pieces at every desk ensures students can discretely use the tool due to their small size and low noise. Furthermore, giving students the option to fidget with the pieces gives students more discretion, utilizing the tool for mathematical thinking under the guise of play.
Accessibility
There are diverse physical and emotional barriers to using tools in the math classroom; important tools should be as easy to access as possible. As long as students are old enough to resist eating Lego pieces (I fear there is always a risk, no matter the age), they can and should be kept at arm's reach. I recommend securing a jewelry style box-lid and a baseplate to each desk. Alternatively, base plates can be movable if secured with velcro tape. Dots placed inside a jewelry box are easy to move and replace at the end of a lesson.
If pieces are kept in a separate resource area, students might interrupt their learning to stand and get them, have mobility limitations that make moving less likely, or may forget to use the tool because it isn't easy to see. If students are given their own set, students may feel shame upon losing or forgetting them. It's important to keep the pieces accessible on the desk.
The Lego pieces provide important benefits for students with executive dysfunction. Providing a set of Dots on all desks normalizes fidgeting as a typical human behavior which reduces stigma, and provides an alternative to toxic squish toys and messy slimes. Students can strengthen inhibition by privately reflecting on if toys are helping or hindering their learning.
Uses
Fidgeting and Playing
Despite our intentions, students are given little power over their own actions in the classroom; adults closely manage their time and behavior. Most school administrations severely limit student bodily autonomy with strict bathroom rules and seating expectations. A set of Lego Dots allows students to choose what to do with their hands without repercussions, regardless of relevance to the lesson at hand.
Learning
Some use case examples:
Multiplication/Division
Pieces can be grouped as physical and visual tool for simple arithmetic operations and fractional values.
Combinatorics
Represent the combinations of objects as an organized list.
Transformations
Model the rotation of an object around a point.
Bases
Use pieces to symbolize values and operations in other bases, like binary addition.
Get creative! The possibilities are endless.
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