“AUGGGHHHH!” I hear screams, a crash and giggles galore.

The joy of Magna-Tiles® has returned to our ever-popular window-stacking play. When these colorful magnetic tile mosaics come crashing down from the window frame, the children respond with laughter and joy. By contrast, the collapse of three-dimensional block formations often elicits groans and tears.

Something about the suspense of the build (and the challenge of stacking the magnetic tiles higher and higher without triggering a collapse) keeps the children coming back to this activity time and time again.

For anyone unfamiliar with Magna-Tiles, they are magnetized tiles of different shapes that can be used to build the most amazing creations. We have purchased other magnetic block sets, but the children had difficulty figuring out the polarization or were frustrated by the lack of versatility. Ultimately, those more expensive sets were abandoned to collect dust in a corner while the children spent endless hours playing and learning with the Magna-Tiles.

Is there a more perfect block than a Magna-Tile? If I were stranded on an island with a group of preschoolers, this would be on my top-ten list of must-have learning tools. Heck, it would be on my top-three list. These are, without a doubt, the favorite block in our program. What’s not to love? Magna-Tiles build confidence and fuel hours of creative play. Our only problem with Magna-Tiles is that we never seem to have enough!

I read somewhere that you know you have enough blocks when there are still blocks on the shelves. I’m still not sure I have enough Magna-Tiles on any given day, and I always find myself purchasing more. (Full disclosure: I often purchase PicassoTiles, which are less expensive, equally rugged and nearly identical to my original Magna-Tile set. So, if your program is on a budget, don’t hesitate to buy this less expensive set.)

Magnetic tiles are a STEM classroom delight. We have math opportunities with shapes and colors, counting, blending colors, angles and geometry galore! We have science and engineering as we explore different designs and building techniques. The magnetic feature opens doors to design and construction options that regular wooden blocks cannot provide.

“What color is your tree?” Harrison asks his best friend, Jack, as they use their magnetic tiles to change the colors of the scene outside our window.

The collaboration continues as the two boys follow their creative impulses and develop their ideas.

Then Jack proposes a new challenge. “What if we try a triangle this time?”

The boys determine that the results will be the same regardless of the shape. I am convinced that the children’s understanding of different shapes has been greatly enhanced by the use of these magnetic tiles. Magnetic tiles are the perfect educational tool for teaching all things geometric!

I also love to observe the children as they engage in problem-solving when they are confronted with a shortage of large square magnetic tiles. They quickly determine that they can create the same shape with four smaller magnetic tile squares.

Magnetic tiles also lay the foundation for an understanding of sets and quantities, as well as concepts such as location and ordinal positioning as the children expand their STEM knowledge and vocabulary.

“Jack, do you think we can add this square and it won’t fall down?” asks Jack’s twin sister, Eve, who is working through her predictions and collecting data on what works and what doesn’t.

I watch as Eve gingerly pries the corner of the bottom tile away from the window and triggers a structural collapse that brings all of the magnetic tiles tumbling down.

This investigation of “What happens if…?” is met with delight and infectious laughter from Eve’s peers as the building collaboration starts all over again.

“If we add this triangle to the top, the trees will turn green and look different from the red trees down here.”

Jack and Eve continue to pursue different avenues of learning with the tiles. One minute they are investigating colors and the next they are observing patterns or determining which shape should be added to the mosaic.

I’ve noticed yet another benefit of our window-frame magnetic-tile mosaics: The activity often brings children together who don’t naturally play side-by-side.

In other words, this group endeavor builds community. I am not sure if it’s a team effort of US versus the WINDOW BLOCKS or if it’s simply the contagious joy of the activity that makes everyone want to join in the fun.

When the temperatures drop below zero for days on end, I know that I can count on our magnetic tiles to lighten the mood and enrich our learning through play.

One more note: I have been known to remove the magnetic tiles from our play on occasion.

Why? Because I believe that magnetic tiles are so easy to use that they create “lazy builders.” This is just a personal theory of mine, but I’ve seen it play out over and over again. Sometimes the children in my program need to be pushed out of their comfort zone.

I do this by pulling out my wooden unit blocks, which require the children to perfect the balance and symmetry skills needed to build a stable block tower.

When those wood towers fall, I remind my wee ones that they are great builders and then I help them start building again from the foundation up.

When I rotate the magnetic tiles back into our play after a period of going “back to basics” with the wooden blocks, I nearly always notice that the children’s building skills have improved.

Try it and let me know your results. Happy building!

“Look!” squeals three-year-old Eleanor.  “I can pick up these two balls! It’s magic!”

Have you ever seen young children playing with magnets? The “magical” properties of magnets never fail to captivate early learners and spark a play buzz!

Children learn by investigating, observing and figuring out how things work. Magnets fuel that curiosity in a way that is simple and accessible.

As they explore the properties of magnets through play, children develop a deeper understanding of scientific principles by asking questions such as “why” magnets stick together and “how” magnets work.

Magnetic play helps lay the foundation for further investigations as we guide the children through activities such as developing hypotheses and theories, solving problems and making predictions. By observing and studying cause and effect, our young STEM explorers can begin to develop a basic understanding of concepts such as magnetic attraction, magnet strength and magnetic forces and fields.

Playing with magnets is a great way to introduce STEM into a child’s life. If you need to record observations, this is a great time to take a seat and watch as children incorporate predictions and conclusions into the learning experience.

To set the stage for magnetic exploration, I put out a wooden tray filled with magnetic wands and magnets in a variety of shapes and sizes. Then I give each of the children an aluminum tray to define their play space and keep the magnetic balls from rolling off of the table onto the floor.

When children add magnets or remove them from the tray, they are learning about math concepts such as more, less, off and on. They’re also learning about patterns, shapes and sizes.

I also fill simple sensory bins with colored rice or coffee beans. Then I add magnetic and non-magnetic objects, as well as a magnetic wand for finding the “treasures.” I set two baskets nearby to encourage the children to sort their objects.

“Is this magnetic?” asks one child. “This should work,” says another. “It’s silver!”

Making a prediction means focusing on what we think will happen next based on our prior knowledge. It’s considered a guess if we have no prior knowledge. We can help children develop their prediction skills when we are playing with magnets, reading a story or finding our way home on a walk.

When the children at our early learning center play with magnetic wands and balls, they love to “catch” the balls on the wand and count how many they have. Sometimes I will see them intentionally create patterns.

Playing with magnets is a powerful math and science activity in early childhood classrooms because it fosters conversation and exploration and provides a fun and engaging incentive for children to make predictions and observe outcomes.

If you can, give the children a long period of time to investigate the magic of magnets and work through their theories. This extended time to conduct STEM investigations and learn through focused play is a gift that they may not be given in their future academic lives.

It will amaze you when you see the amount of time that children will spend exploring the magnets on their tray. It’s a calm, quiet and very, very focused activity that slows down even our most frenetic friends.

As we continue to play, we engage in a discussion about the forces that pull magnets together. We keep it pretty basic. This young group hasn’t shown any interest yet in the whys and the hows of magnetic forces and fields. They are too enchanted by the magic of it all. I have been down this trail before. When the brain is ready, the questions will be asked and we will have the resources available to answer their questions and push the experiments and investigations a wee bit further out of their comfort zone. There will be many more experiments for extended learning. But, for now, exploring the magic of magnetism suits us all just fine! 

A few words of caution. Magnets are dangerous if ingested. We hope that our students no longer put everything in their mouths, but we can’t count on it. You know your students better than anyone. It is best to err on the side of caution and use large magnets that cannot possibly fit into a child’s mouth if you are at all concerned. It will make the day of magnetic play more enjoyable for YOU if you don’t have to worry.

Stay safe and take care!

This set has plus signs, minus signs, and equal signs.  Assembling these into coherent math sentences is not the goal for young children.  Playing with the numbers and symbols simultaneously will reinforce the concepts that these symbols are mathematical and go with numbers.  They have names, which can be learned, and meanings, which can be introduced.  These explorations will eventually lead to correct use and readings of these symbols.

I like this sorting center.  Children can sort the items into the paint cans by color or type.  Teachers can hand out the magnets and ask the children to put them in the color-coded can, or children can create their own activity.  Magnets are often hard to take off a flat surface so they might frustrate younger children (chunky magnets are better for little hands and younger fine motor skills) but for your older 3s and 4s, this might be a really satisfying set.

If I were to do it all over again, I would purchase these number magnets.

My kids had language all around them, while exposure to numerals was less apparent.  I also now know that Noah preferred manipulating numbers and these would have provided a more relevant experience for him.

Often, centers and classrooms have a magnetic surfaces somewhere in their spaces.  I have seen wall mirrors attached to the lower half of the wall so that crawling babies, toddlers, and preschoolers can see themselves.  Usually, these mirrors are magnetic, so mirrors provide not only a wonderful reflection of self, but create another area where children can explore magnets in a meaningful and consistent way.