WEEK 2

After a week of adaptation and ice-breaking, we held our first plenary meeting with our instructor Scott Stevens and ETC K12 representatives, Anthony Palyszeski and John Balash in the second week. We have had close communication with our mentor and clients, established work/communication hours and meeting schedules with our mentors, and understood the needs of our clients. Anthony and John introduced us to the Brick-By-Brick® Programme and proposed that they are planning to digitize the experience of the program while retaining some physical LEGO participation. We don’t need to consider deployment issues, but focus on the experience itself, and try to explore the best way of letting the users experience the Brick-By-Brick Programme online just like the real. After understanding these requirements, our team had extensive discussions. It established the following goals in weeks 2 and 3, and began the initial design of the user experience flow:

• Separate the experience into two sites: children and adult sites. Children use Android tablets with genuine physical LEGO, while adults use VR devices with virtual LEGO.
• Transform the original three roles of the Brick-By-Brick Programme into two, the guiders and builders (the guiders role is a combination of engineer and supplier, as humans are unable to supply physical blocks to the virtual world yet. We hope that one day the technology will allow us to do so).
• Both sites will each build a separate part of the same LEGO set, and finally combine the two parts through AR and showcase the combined set through some artistic special effects. This is also an attempt to make LEGO, which was originally static in reality, “come to life” in this way. This is also a way of going beyond the reality through virtual worlds.

The Brick-By-Bricks® Programme

Anthony and John also leaded us to experience the “Brick Club”, an educational program Hybricks highly related, the Brick-By-Brick® Programme designed by Play Included®. Endorsed by The LEGO Foundation, Play Included is the leading provider of LEGO brick-based therapy, offering evidence-based training for professionals in education, health, and care. The Brick-by-Brick® Programme, developed by the psychologist behind the model, helps children build social and emotional skills through collaborative play.
The Brick-By-Brick® is designed to be flexible and fun, with children deciding what activities they’ll do and how they’ll work together. Here’s what they’ll experience:

Collaborative Play
Participants take turns in 3 roles as Engineers, Suppliers, and Builders, working together to create LEGO models.
Building Friendships
In this supportive environment, young people naturally develop friendships and improve their social confidence.
Pride in Achievement
Children leave sessions beaming with pride about their creations, sharing their joy with others.
Improved Communication
Members learn to communicate by giving instructions, describing models, and sharing ideas—all while building.

Learn more about the Brick-By-Brick® Programme.