Why Legos Could Actually Be A Child’s Best Math Tutor

SURREY, England — Your child is struggling with math homework, frustrated with fractions and geometry problems that feel impossible to solve. The solution might not be more worksheets or tutoring sessions, but something far more enjoyable: building with Lego blocks.

A study involving over 500 students across 16 primary schools in England found that kids who participated in a six-week Lego-based program made measurable gains in both spatial thinking and mathematics compared to classmates who received traditional instruction. It was regular classroom teachers, not the researchers, who led the program during normal school hours.

For parents and educators frustrated with traditional math instruction methods, the research offers compelling evidence that hands-on, engaging activities can lead to real academic improvement. The full paper is published in Mind, Brain, and Education.

How Building Blocks Boost Brain Power

The research team, led by Dr. Emily Farran of the University of Surrey, created the SPACE program, short for SPAtial Cognition to Enhance mathematical learning. Instead of relying on drill-and-practice worksheets, the program had 6- and 7-year-olds spend 30 minutes twice a week building Lego models from picture-based instructions.

Each session followed a consistent routine. Students watched a short video that introduced a themed story (pirates, aliens, superheroes) then worked individually to build up to six Lego models using step-by-step visual guides. Accuracy was emphasized over speed, and the children dismantled each model before starting the next.

To prepare, teachers received professional development training on how spatial thinking connects to math and were given prompt cards suggesting phrases to encourage mental visualization. One example: “Before you try, can you see your Lego model in your head? Can you turn the brick in your head to decide which way it should go?”

The sessions replaced about one-quarter of students’ regular math lessons over the six-week period.

Lego Play Leads To Improvements in Math and Mental Rotation

Of the 409 children who completed the SPACE program and the 104 children in the control group who received normal lessons, those in the Lego-building group showed statistically significant improvement in their ability to mentally rotate objects. This skill — imagining how shapes look when turned — is a core component of spatial reasoning.

They also performed better on math assessments that covered geometry and problem-solving tasks. When children work with shapes, graphs, or fractions, they rely on spatial visualization, the skills that the Lego program appears to strengthen.

However, while both mental rotation and math scores improved in the Lego group, the researchers found that improvement in one did not directly explain improvement in the other. In statistical terms, the gains in math were not mediated by gains in mental rotation alone. Other unmeasured spatial skills, like spatial memory or number-space mapping, may have played a role.

Why Traditional Math Teaching Leaves Gaps

Today, spatial reasoning is largely absent from mathematics curricula in the UK and many other countries. The researchers argue that this is a missed opportunity, especially given growing evidence that spatial skills are key to success in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).

Block-building engages multiple spatial abilities at once. Children mentally rotate bricks to fit a model, visualize complex forms, and hold images in their mind as they work. These exercises train the brain in ways traditional math worksheets do not.

Perhaps most importantly, the SPACE program didn’t require high-tech tools or expensive equipment. Just Lego bricks, guidance, and time to build.

The only area where children did not show added benefit was spatial language. This is the ability to understand and use words like “above,” “below,” or “through.” The researchers suggest that the language used during the Lego sessions may not have aligned closely enough with the vocabulary tested afterward.

Rethinking Hands-On Learning With Legos

The study’s exciting findings can reach far beyond the 16 classrooms involved. “Our findings have implications for school curricula where spatial thinking is largely absent; a spatialized mathematics curriculum could raise children’s mathematics attainment,” the researchers write.

They suggest that future programs might embed spatial thinking more fully across math instruction, rather than isolate it in special sessions. That kind of integrated approach could potentially lead to even stronger gains.

In short, better math education might be more hands-on than we think. For young learners, playing with blocks may help lay the foundation for understanding numbers—and doing it with the support of classroom teachers could make a big difference.

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