Clixo x Mr Andy Archives

Activity Idea – Clixo Games (Part 2)!

By Mr. Andy

Activity Idea – Clixo Games (Part 2)!

By Mr. Andy

February 2021

Clixo x Mr. Andy presents: Another set of fun Clixo games that are great to play solo or in groups! Play this with family or friends, young or old(er). 🙂 (In case you missed the first set of game ideas you can access it here).

Games are fantastic for children to partake in. It will help establish understanding of rules and in group settings, it will help kids learn to take turns. These games in particular target gross motor skills and help develop eye hand coordination.

Clixo Shake it off Game

This activity is a fun way to really get the wiggles out! It incorporates full body movements and a dash of high energy silliness.

Step 1: Create a Clixo Ball with 6 Quad Shapes

Step 2: Fit as many tiny items inside as possible.
Note: the items should be able to stay inside the ball but should be able to slide out if moved around. A good item for this would be small plastic figurines, matchbox cars, or Jenga blocks (pictured above)!

Step 3: Once you have a decent amount of items inside, loop a belt or a string into the Clixo ball and tie it around the waist of your shaker.

The goal of the game is to shake the loose items out of your Clixo ball without using your hands! Don’t be afraid to get silly with it!

Clixo Target Practice

Develop (or in a grownup’s case, test) hand-eye coordination with this fun activity.

Step 1: Stack up toilet paper rolls or milk cartons like a pyramid for the pitcher to practice their throwing skills. The target should be elevated using a table, chair, box, or stack of books.

Step 2: Decide how far you want to be from the pyramid. Younger kids can start closer to the pyramid. Adults should demonstrate proper throwing technique if necessary. Once the child has gotten better, you can slowly move further away from the target.

The goal of this game is to knock down the stacked items!

Variations for Older Kids/ Grownups:
(1) Assign the goal of only knocking down the top paper roll or milk carton
(2) Stack the pyramid with items that are not as “tall” as milk cartons or toilet paper rolls. Other suggestions can include Tupperware, which are lower in height and slightly heavier.

Helpful Information for Parents

Gross motor skills are abilities that allow people to do things that involve using the large muscles in the torso, arms and legs to complete whole-body movements. Getting your Clixo Builder to move is always great!

The behavioral schemas that may be witnessed during these activities fall under the trajectory schema, studying the movement of an object, or their own body, through the air. The concept they are developing through play would be linear progression, sequences, etc.

It is important for the adult to model good sportsmanship by praising the child’s efforts and celebrating their successes. Show your child how to set up each game and allow them to set up and clean up every time afterwards. This will establish the routines and rules that come along with playing games at home or outdoors.

About Mr. Andy: Andy Yung is an NYCDOE pre-Kindergarten teacher at P.S. 244Q. He has been teaching pre-K for 8 years. His programs include a Reggio-inspired play based curriculum where children’s interest drives the learning and a Tinkergarten program which is an outdoor, nature-based play program. Besides being a pre-K teacher, he is also a father of 2 boys, an advocate for play, and a toy enthusiast. He enjoys bringing in new toys and materials for his students to explore and sharing his child development knowledge and activities with parents and teachers. To learn more about Andy check out his Instagram, his classroom account, or support his DonorsChoose projects.

Clixo x Mr. Andy is a series of creative activity ideas developed by Mr. Andy for Clixo to help parents and kids get even more fun out of their Clixo packs. Try out some these activities in your play group today and share pictures with us! We’d love to see it! 🙂

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Activity Idea – Clixo Games!

By Mr. Andy

Clixo x Mr. Andy presents: Fun Clixo games that are great to play solo or in groups! Play this with family or friends, young or old(er). 🙂

_{Bowling may not be a new concept for grown ups but for young kids, this game is engaging and so much fun!}

Clixo Bowling
Bowling may not be a new concept for grown ups but for young kids, this game is engaging and so much fun!

Step 1: Line up toilet paper rolls like bowling pins.
* If you have 10 rolls, arrange them in a 4-3-2-1.
* If you have 6 rolls, arrange them in a 3-2-1 formation.

Step 2: Have them roll the Clixo ball to knock down as many pins as they can.
* If your bowler is new to bowling, they can start close to the pins. Once they become more adept at knocking down pins, they can start moving back to make it more challenging. Adults should model bowling technique if child is new to bowling.

Here’s a variation for older kids and for groups:

_{Content by: Andy Yung, Image by: Kenneth Fremer}

A variation on this is to create bowling pins out of Clixo pieces. For added challenge, arrange the pins in a wider formation and compete with family members and friends to see who can knock the pins down.

Clixo Ring Toss
Ring Toss has been a staple in many kids’ playrooms. Here’s a Clixo spin on this classic game!

Step 1: Use your Clixo pieces to create a ring for ring toss. Make sure your ring size is big enough to go over the target (water bottle).

Step 2: Depending on the player’s age, the player can start closer to the target and move further away from the target as they improve.

Step 3: To make the game more challenging, make the ring size smaller, but not too small that it cannot go over the target.

Here’s another variation for older kids and for groups:

_{Content by: Andy Yung / Video by: Kenneth Fremer}

A variation on this is to create targets using Clixo pieces. For added challenge, stand further away from the targets and compete with family and friends to see who is the best at this game.

Helpful Information for Parents

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Activity Idea – Clixo Run!

By Mr. Andy

Clixo x Mr. Andy presents: A fun challenge for budding engineers! Kick-start that STEAM mindset by creating a Rube Goldberg Machine!

A Rube Goldberg Machine is a machine intentionally designed to perform a simple task in an indirect and overly complicated way.

_{Inspire little ones to design and build their own unique, complicated, and fun chain reaction contraption}

Here’s an activity that’s fun for kids of all ages: Make a ball go from one end to another using a Clixo run. For this activity, you’ll need a magnetic surface to hold your machine up as the ball goes through.

In the example video, you can see that this Clixo run was stuck to a radiator. However, you can also use other magnetic surfaces such as a refrigerator door, a white board, or even a car door (don’t worry, Clixo magnets will not scratch or dent your car).

Your Clixo Quad pieces may be the superstar in this activity but other pieces will play a supporting role in adjusting or modifying the strength, shape, or overall structure of the contraption.

_{Make it as simple or as elaborate as you want!}

As an example, 3 Quad pieces connected together in a wide tube shape (as seen in the video above) can be a great shape for a ball to run through. All other methods are encouraged and welcomed!

Helpful Information for Parents

This activity is a great way to introduce kids to the “experimental mindset” and show them that iterating and trying new things (even if the first attempt doesn’t always work) is all part of the process. Often, the best way to learn new things is to simply jump in and try. In the beginning, this activity may feel intimidating for little ones, but being able to learn through play is safe, non-threatening, and fun! Every experiment teaches imparts a new piece of information, and each new lesson learned increases your child’s capability to do better and accomplish great things.

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Activity Idea – Intro to Math

By Mr. Andy

Activity Idea – Intro to Math

By Mr. Andy

October 2020

Clixo x Mr. Andy presents: A fun and approachable way to introduce young kids to mathematical concepts! A variation for older kids is included below.

Math is everywhere! This activity is a super friendly way to introduce children to the concept of measurement so when they learn about the standard units, they can easily apply their play experience to real world mathematical concepts!

The standard unit of measurement for length in the imperial system is measured in inches, foot, and yards.

Children see things as taller or shorter, bigger or smaller. To introduce measurement using Clixo, pick any one of the Clixo crew and measure something with it. How many Quads tall are you?

Liam (pictured below), is roughly 15 Quads long! Things may not always be exact. For those instances, use smaller Clixo shapes to get as close to a measurement as possible. If we took an exact measurement of Liam, he may be 15 Quads and 1 Tridot!

Just about anything can become a non-standard unit of measure! So, have fun and get creative with it!

The concept of Estimation using Clixo pieces can also be introduced.

The Common Core Standards include estimation skills for every grade level. It’s important to introduce children to terms that include such words and phrases as about, close, just about, a little more (or less) than, and between. Learning about estimation is important for kids because it enables kids to:

_{Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.}
_{Reason abstractly and quantitatively.}
_{Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.}
_{Model with mathematics.}
_{Use appropriate tools strategically.}
_{Attend to precision.}
_{Look for and make use of structure.}
_{Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning.}

You can start simply by asking your child “How many Quads do you think will equal the length of your arm?” If they aren’t sure of what to say, the adult can think out loud and model it. This is a great exercise for kids and could also be a fun game for kids.

The concept of Estimation using Clixo pieces can also be introduced.

A Variation for Older Kids:

– Allow older kids to think and calculate in Clixo Measurements.
– Give them the challenge of measuring each Clixo piece in inches
– Ask them to estimate how many connected Quads would equal a foot? a yard?
(Note: this does not have to be exact, 4 connected quads is about 1 ft)

After figuring out how to convert Clixo Measurements to standard units of measurements, we can now have some mathematical fun!

Challenge your Clixo Mathematician with the questions below!

– The average Giraffe height is 17 feet.
– The average Oak Tree height is 70 feet.
– The average train car length is 55 feet.
How many Clixo Quad pieces would a Giraffe, Oak Tree, and Train Car be?

Helpful Information for Parents

Children engaged in play will often exhibit specific behavioral schemas that are consistent across children all over the world during play. One of the first thing you may see your child do with Clixo is taking the similar pieces such as the Quads and connect them together in a long straight line. This may be seen in other toys when they line up their cars or blocks one after the other in a straight line.

The behavioral schemas that may be witnessed during the initial exploration of Clixo falls under the trajectory schema. The concept they are developing through play would be linear progression, sequences, etc.

For the younger children, this activity is an introduction to non-standard units of measurements that will help develop their understanding of measurements in a stress free, fun, and authentic way. When they do learn the standard units, they will have a familiarity of measurements. For older children, they’ll be using Clixo to further develop mathematical thinking by converting measurement units.

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Activity Idea – Shadow Play

By Mr. Andy

Clixo x Mr. Andy presents: THREE activities that invite your child to explore light, shadows, and to get creative with their Clixo masterpieces.

Gather your finest Clixo masterpieces! Whether you’ve created something from the guide book or something new and unique, we’re going to explore what their shadows look like!

_{Editor’s Personal Note: I’m a full grown adult and I was utterly mesmerized by the shadows}

What is a shadow? A shadow is a dark (real-image) area where light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object.

How are shadows created? To cast shadows, you can opt to use natural light or artificial light. You can even ask your little one questions such as: Where does natural light come from? How about artificial light?

You can invite your child to explore shadows with their bodies by having your child block the light source. You can use the sun, flashlight, or lamp. Afterwards, it’s time to create shadows using Clixo. Your Clixo work can be something that’s defined or abstract.

Activity 1: Clixo Shadow Clock: Start by positioning your structure so that it can form a shadow.

If you are using natural light from the sun, this would be a great opportunity to introduce your Clixo shadow explorer to the positions of the sun during various parts of the day. Using cardinal directions to locate the position of the sun during various times of the day will help your child understand where the sun rises in the morning (East) and where the sun sets during the afternoon (West).

The size of the Clixo shadow can also indicate the time of day. If your Clixo shadow doesn’t cast a shadow that seems to greatly favor any particular side, the sun is at its highest point and this typically occurs around noon.

This activity would require your Clixo structure to be left outdoors for an extended period of time. However, you can emulate this activity indoors using a flashlight or a table lamp.

_{This was Andy’s work. It kinda looks like Yoshi from Super Mario!}

Activity 2: Permanent Clixo Shadow: Clixo structures are meant to be deconstructed. Honor your Clixo masterpieces by drawing them and giving them a new lease on life!

Start by propping your Clixo creation up against a light source like a flashlight or a table lamp. Tape a piece of paper down where the shadow of your creation has been cast.

Your little artist may notice that there are some areas where light is able to pass through. This would be a great time to ask why they think that happens. On the piece of paper, they can opt to leave the openings as is, or opt to fill it in completely with a color or a pattern.

After your artist is done tracing the shadow, they can add details that will help immortalize their Clixo structure. Their imagination can fully come into play here. Go wild! Use all sorts of colors and art materials!

An extension on the activity: Your child can also do this activity over again by varying the height of the light source, or changing the position of the structure. This allows them to create a different piece of art with the same materials! It also gives them a valuable opportunity to explore why these shapes have shifted.

Activity 3: Clixo Shadow Puppet Theater: You don’t need TV screens or devices to entertain your child when you’ve got good old fashioned imagination!

Use your Clixo builds to put on a shadow puppet performance. Make characters from your favorite book or show. You can also develop original, new characters with their own personalities.

In a dark room, shine a flashlight against a wall and start performing. This could be a fun activity for groups of kids to exercise their storytelling skills. This would also be a great activity to wind down before bedtime.

Helpful Information for Parents

Shadow play is a great way to capture children’s attention and spark their imagination and creativity. For the younger children, allow them use flashlights to explore light concepts. It is not only fun but they are learning to manipulate the light and shadows.

For our older explorers, allowing them to explore shadows outdoors at different times of day will provide an interesting discussion about how shadows work. Have them make size comparisons of shadows throughout the day. It will make for interesting conversations about the position of the sun. As stated earlier, this would be a great time to introduce cardinal directions such as North, South, East, and West in relations to the sun’s position.

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Activity Idea – Bubbles

By Mr. Andy

Clixo x Mr. Andy presents: Clixo Bubbles! Who doesn’t love bubbles? How about BIG bubbles?

Bubbles are simply air wrapped in soap film. Soap film consists of soap and water. In order to make super bubbles that are strong enough to become big and hold, add cornstarch! Cornstarch is used as a thickening agent in liquid-based foods. In this case, we’ll be using it in our bubbles.

_{Use Clixo to create a cool bubble wand!}

Your Clixo set will be very important in helping you create big bubbles. In order to make bubbles, you’ll need a bubble wand. The bigger the opening on the wand the bigger the bubbles. You may also create a wand that can create multiple soap films for multiple bubble fun!

Use your Clixo pieces to snap together a wand that has enclosures that can trap soap films. Longy will serve as a handle to dip your wand into the bubble solution.

_{Materials needed + Instructions for the Clixo x Mr. Andy Bubble activity}

Helpful Information for Parents

Children engaged in play will often exhibit specific behavioral schemas that are consistent across children all over the world during play. In this bubble activity, when mixing the ingredients to make the super bubble, your child may be extremely focused on mixing and mashing the cornstarch into a mush and combining it into the soap and water solution. If they are super engaged during the bubble making process, let them continue mixing! This scheme is called transforming. The concept they are developing through play would be changing the state of the ingredients used.

During the bubble making phase of this activity, allowing your child to help empowers them and builds confidence. Introduce them to the different utensils you’ll need to prep and mix the ingredients. Show them how to use a whisk and measuring cup. Make connections to math by allowing your child to pour and measure the water, dish soap, and cornstarch. These may seem like small steps but they will go a long way in helping young children become independent.

Pro Tip! It is best to blow the bubbles outdoors! Not only for keeping your home soap suds free but the wind will help blow the bubbles really well, especially if you’re using a bubble wand that has created multiple soap films that blows multiple bubbles at once.

For bigger groups of kids: Turn this into a playful contest by challenging each child to create the biggest bubble they can make. Invite them to experiment with the designs of their Clixo bubble wand. For those who are extra cautious (can’t be too careful in these COVID-times), instead of blowing the bubbles with your mouth, you can use a portable, handheld mini-fan to blow the bubbles 🙂

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