When I was 3 years old, my mother would often say, “To invent an airplane is nothing. To build one is something. But to fly is everything.” Then, she and I would spend an afternoon building airplanes, houses, towns, and ships, and fly off to wherever my imagination took me. Some things never change. Today, construction sets continue to provide the perfect outlet for imaginative play.
Mega Bloks Farmhouse Friends, from Fisher-Price, is a perfect example of imagination fuel. The set sends kids on a barnyard adventure to build a home for the cow and chicken, while the farmer gets to work. But kids aren’t limited to a traditional barn, they can use the blocks to build anything, even a 2-foot tower featuring a perch for the chicken.
This construction set comes with 43 Mega Bloks, which are chunky and simple so little hands can grasp them easily. They stack together and come apart with ease, perfect for kids ages 1 to 5. The set also includes special parts like movable doors and windows, flip-and-reveal panels to hook onto, and larger panels for building taller and faster.
In addition to the cow and chicken, the set also comes complete with a rolling tractor and a farmer Block Buddy. All of the figures fit inside the tractor, so even the chicken and cow can drive the tractor (after all, we are playing pretend here!).
This set doesn’t skimp on detail. In addition to the bright and bold bricks, the peekaboo-style panels feature even more barnyard besties. A hatchling hatching to life, a calf looking into the frame as if it were taking a selfie, and a piglet’s shining face add to the farmhouse fun.
For older kids who want to build the set just like it looks on the box, visual instructions allow them to follow simple steps without any reading skills required. Of course kids are bound to make mistakes and go astray, but that’s the point of building blocks—to unbuild and reimagine as you go. That’s how kids can learn to go back a step or two and get back on track, or simply take off on a different tangent, letting their imagination soar high. After all, to fly is everything!