Lay material after Fröbel

Fröbel’s original shapes are:

Friedrich Fröbel’s thoughts on game material suitable for children like ball-roller-cube and their divisions lead him to today’s lay material.

Starting out from these bodies, which he gave in the hand of the little child for playing (that is why he calls them gifts for playing), he finally discovered also the beautiful clear shapes and surfaces of the previously mentioned three bodies as an independent game material, which he produced as a game of shapes and colors.

In the course of time further shapes were added, e. g. circle and half-circle, trapezium, rhombus, rectangle. One can look at them as extensions based on Fröbel’s ideas. Finally they all became known as “Fröbel lay material”.

Also little sticks were used by Fröbel for laying. With them he invented an ideal material for counting and description. For him the stick was even the “representative for straight”. It embodies the number one. It offers wonderful additions for laying pictures, e. g. for fences, roads, tracks, sun beams etc.

Fröbel used the following decimal measures. 2,5 cm, 5,0 cm, 7,5 cm und 10,00 cm (in the primary colors):

Fröbel invented the little slabs to convey the beauty of color and shape to the children. To him nothing seemed to be more appropriate than conveying this to the children through playing. By doing so they should experience the division of colors and effects in areas – or colors in its effects in areas. Both belongs together, because colors can only have an effect as areas.

As the painter uses paint and brush, the child should get the opportunity to mould glowing colors and areas in many different shapes. And more than anything else the child should take pleasure in doing so.

The child has different alternatives:
-to put shapes side by side
-to invent shapes or pictures

Together with the joy of playing develops a sense of color combinations, a recognition of different shapes, and more than anything else. creativity.

­For this we offer the following lay games after Fröbel:­­

Art.-Nr. 3000600 Fa­szination Dreieck

Lay game with original slabs by Friedrich Fröbel with detailed instructions and illustration for parents, kindergarten educators, teachers

Art.-Nr. 09999400: Fröbel-Familien-Spiel-Kalender

Perpetual Calendar Text: Dr. Matthias Brodbeck Design: Bea Berthold

Art.-Nr. 09999900: Kleine Legespielschule

(Little School of Lay Games) Für Eltern, Erzieher und Kinder-gärtnerinnen (For Parents, Teachers, and Kindergarten Educators) Authors: Lore Thier-Schroeter, Hellmut Thier, Verlag IKS Garamond ISBN 3-934601-52-9

Besides the listed game gifts and lay materials the following game material after Fröbel must not remain unmentioned:

Art.-Nr. 02520000 Das Verschränken

Wood shavings in the colors of the rainbow can be “joggled” to form decorative patterns using the principle “underneath – above”. It takes a lot of patience, concentration, and persistence. The game inspires through an always new creative richness of ideas. Colors and shapes harmonize in an aesthetically wonderful way and support the interest in creativity. We recommend that adults give assistance in the beginning, to keep the child from losing patience. Recommended age: From five years on.

Art.-Nr. 03000400 Ringe Legen

Laying rings and half-rings forms nice shapes and your child develops an aesthetic sense. He or she learns about the interaction of shapes and colors, and elementary connections. You can lay me, put me together, and put me side by side and by doing so you create circles or semi-circles, ornaments, or shapes. Recommended age: From three years on.

Art.-Nr. 03000800 Punkte Legen

The small wooden bricks in the glowing colors of the rainbow look like dots. Skill and imagination are trained when the dots are laid. Shape and colors inspire to try out new motives again and again – in the beginning simple mosaics and ornaments, later maybe the favorite animal or memories of a vacation… Recommended age: From three years on.

Art.-Nr. 03000700 Stäbchen Legen

One, two, three, four … this is how learning is fun! Parallel to learning how to count and during the learning of colors, this multiuse play material can be used for laying and for construction. Recommended age: From three years on.

Materials for folding, weaving, prickling, threading, and much more.