From big bricks to bigger imaginations: Building skills, stories and smiles
It begins, as many family rituals do - at the table.
It’s here we meet Olive and her dad. Olive starts building, dad is on brick handing duty. Together, they create a world from LEGO® DUPLO®, inventing stories, collapsing towers and rebuilding again.
As Olive’s hands get bigger, the LEGO bricks get smaller, but the laughter stays the same.
Twice the size of standard LEGO bricks, DUPLO pieces are designed for little hands still learning to grip, stack and build. The name itself reflects that difference: DUPLO comes from the Latin word for double, a nod to the brick’s 2:1 scale, making it twice the size of a standard LEGO brick in every dimension.
Guiding the graduation
For families, these playful moments build so much more than the eye can see. 9 in 10 parents of toddlers say play helps create family memories, improves family happiness and develops their child’s creativity, problem solving and critical thinking skills*.
Michaela Edgerley Stovicek, Head of Preschool at the LEGO Group, thinks a lot about the first stages of childhood: “These are the years that matter most,” says Michaela.
“It is a time when confidence and imagination are taking root, so we spend a lot of time making sure young children have the right tools and inspiration to build whatever they can imagine. And families are a big part of that.”
Let’s start building
That belief sits at the heart of the LEGO Group’s Let’s Start Building campaign. As Olive grows from toddler to confident preschool builder, her dad remains beside her - his role shifting gently over time. At first, he steadies the tower, negotiating colours or sizes. Soon, it becomes a combined effort and playful activity they both enjoy.
What’s clear is how creativity evolves along the way. As Olive moves from LEGO DUPLO to smaller LEGO bricks, the builds become more detailed, and she begins to shape stories with greater confidence and independence. The shift is not just in size, but in how children begin to express their imagination.
This approach is now reflected across the way the LEGO Group designs sets for even the smallest creators, helping children build creative confidence as they move from LEGO DUPLO bricks to their first 4+ and 5+ LEGO sets.
By design, these sets have similar characteristics, so the same stories, characters and themes that resonate with toddlers continue into the preschool years and beyond.
“When children can stay in a world they love, they’re more confident exploring it in new ways,” she says.
As their skills grow, so does the depth of their play.
It also opens the door for shared building. Themes that span different ages allow the whole family to join in at their own level.
It’s a familiar feeling for many. You start building with a child, but very quickly, the whole family is captivated. “Before you know it, you’re both building something you care about,” says Michaela.
Now let’s keep building
As children like Olive grow, so too does the Let’s Start Building platform, celebrating every step of the preschool journey and supporting parents and kids through the preschool years.
The towers might get knocked down but the confidence, creativity and family memories are what lasts.
(*)LEGO® Play Well Study 2024: commissioned by the LEGO Group, carried out by Edelman DXI between 13.12.23 – 24.01.2024. Total sample size of 61,532 respondents, including 36,000 parents and 25,532 children aged 5-12 years old from 36 markets.