I’m running a weekly after school program at my library for elementary school kids, and I thought I might as well use this blog as a way to record some of our activities and share my thoughts on how things went!
This week we played with KEVA planks. KEVA planks are a bit like fancy JENGA blocks – they’re rectangular planks of wood that children (and adults!) can use to build all sorts of amazing structures. The planks come in a single shape, and are designed to stack together perfectly, so builders can create without the need for glue or screws or any other kind of fastener.
First off, let me say that these planks are not inexpensive. I believe we have this educator kit at my library, which includes 800 planks. I really wouldn’t recommend running a program with a smaller set, as it takes a lot of planks to build anything impressive like a skyscraper or bridge. The planks are definitely an investment, and may not be accessible to all schools, libraries or out of school care programs, though they do seem to be very durable, and should hopefully last for a few years at least.
You can use the KEVA planks in many different ways, depending on your group and your setting. You could put children in teams and run building challenges, encouraging them to build the highest structure, or the longest or strongest bridge. You could run timed challenges, or invite children to create works of art like the fish shown above (from the KEVA website).
Or you could do what we did, and just dump all the planks on the floor and let the children have at it! Our weekly kids club is a drop in program, so we never know how many children will be attending, or what ages of kids will come, so we have to keep that in mind when planning activities. We also want to keep the program as fun and relaxed as possible, as children are coming after a long day of school, and aren’t looking for more coursework! Whenever possible we like to offer open-ended activities that allow children to explore their creativity, problem solve, interact with their peers socially, and in general just have a good time in a safe space.
We had over 20 children and several adults at our program, and it got pretty wild towards the end, the children were so excited to build the tallest and widest and weirdest structures they could imagine!
My suggestions for anyone wanting to use KEVA planks would be:
- Get the biggest set you can afford – more planks = more building options/less fighting over planks
- Use all of your space – more space = less chance of accidental tower destruction and ensuing meltdowns (we did definitely still have to do a bit of emotional damage control)
- Encourage sharing – no matter how many planks you have, there will never be enough, and children might need to be reminded that they have to share a limited resource, even if that means they can’t build a miniature Eiffel Tower.
- Get grownups involved – if you have younger children, encourage caregivers to stay and build, it’s great fun for all ages, and a nice bonding opportunity
- Get children involved in clean up – it should go without saying, but get kids involved in cleaning up the planks after the program, otherwise it’s a lot of work for staff.
All in all, a simple program that’s very easy to run, lots of fun for kids, and adaptable for repeatability. The KEVA website has tips for grant writing, if that might be of interest to some groups, as they really are an investment, but one that I think is very worthwhile.
See you next week for more kids club fun!