Learning Resources Itrax Critical Thinking Game
Product Details
Web ID: 7939050Ratings & Reviews
17 customer images
12 years ago
Absolutely Love!
We received this to review and we absolutely LOVE it & highly recommend it. The shapes are large in size making it easier to grasp for those with fine motor skill delays. This is fantastic for special needs kids. Kids working on copy/design skills or coordination. It's great for any kids (even without special needs) as it is a fun game and works on kep developmental skills. Everything stores easily in the box. There are plenty of building activity flashcards to do. I love that each flashcard includes additional instructions to try after you have built the model.
12 years ago
Wonderful Resource!
I am so pleased with this product! As an educator and homeschooler, I look for resources that meet Common Core Standards and Mental Blox fit the category! These colorful blocks help children master listening skills, following directions verbal communication and so much more. Although the age recommendation for this product is 5-13, my 3 year old did very well and loved it as much as my 5 year old! I love how the cards have various degrees of difficulty and allow students the ability to work on higher and lower level cards. I am extremely happy with this product and I highly recommend it!
Recommends this product
12 years ago
Mental Blox - both my kids love it!
Both my kids (2 and 5) love this set, and I love that it doubles as a concentration/memory/strategy game and colorful building blocks! I use this set with my 2-year-old by asking him to: • Hand me a blue circle or purple square (color & shape differentiation) • Stack certain shapes on top of others (learning to follow instructions) • Hand me the shape identical to the one I am holding (there are two of each block) Two ways to play: 1. Players are allowed to look at one of the challenge cards for 10 seconds, then they try to re-build the pattern from memory! They look at the card in 10-second increments. 2. Someone not on either team (a "caller") describes verbally what is in the picture and the teams try to re-build the pattern by description and memory. The cards come in varying levels of challenge from easy to hard, and there are optional bonus questions at the bottom of each card. The blocks themselves are made of a light but tough plastic, are hollow, and feel well-made. They stack sturdily (obviously or I wouldn't be able to stack the spheres so high!) and aren't too easy to topple over. My 5-year-old really enjoys playing independently, pulling out random cards and copying the pattern exactly. It sounds easier than it is - I've challenged her to get everything just right and it has taught her to be more observant of small details like whether or not the lines on a block are vertically or horizontally oriented. I can't think of anything we don't like about this set - isn't that awesome? :) It's recommended for kids age 5-13 but I would say younger children will enjoy it as well since there are ways to simplify the gameplay.
Recommends this product
12 years ago
Great Thinking Game
We received the iTrax Game. This game is geared towards ages 6 and up. It is a game that will challenge your child and make them think. The game can be played at 3 different levels too. This makes it easy for beginners and then they don't get frustrated. So how does the iTrax Game work? It has a variety of different cards and they have different levels on them. We start with the easiest level for our 6 and 7 year old and then move up as they got the hang of it. Each player gets a card. The card has a series of different shaped blocks printed on it. Each players goal is to place the actual physical block that is shown on the card on the block shown. However, the goal is to connect 2 cubes together with a series of different blocks (as shown). sample provided for review
Recommends this product
12 years ago
More than just blocks!
Learning Resources contacted me to review this item after using it in my Kindergarten Classroom. I have to admit, it didn't get very far before my own 5 and 6 year old boys got a hold of it and didn't want to give it up. In this bright colored box are 20 colorful, fun 3D shaped blocks to challenge, engage and fascinate your students. My own sons were immediately intrigued with what they could do with these fun blocks. There are also 20 double-sided picture cards included that pose building challenges. At first, the boys just looked at the pictures to see who could make theirs mirror it first. Then, I hid the pictures and only gave them verbal cues to make the structure. When they had theirs built, I would show them the picture to see how close they got to the real thing. Finally, I had them describe structures to build to each other. Wow! That was a huge challenge, but man was it fun!!! You can really see how this activity can build verbal skills and increase visual discrimination.The cards also have questions in addition to the pictures where can create more challenge and extend the activity which makes differentiating a breeze.I really love this product. It's fun, engaging, students have to use strategy to meet balancing and building demand, it meets common core standards for speaking and listening (SL.K.3) and math (K.GA.1) and creates so much interest that little people don't even realize that they're learning. If I had to suggest only one thing different it might be to add a cone shape so that it would be aligned with Common Core Standards for 3D Shapes. But as is, it's a fantastic product.
Recommends this product
12 years ago
Love this Game!
I was given this game to review on my blog. I definitely recommend this game, it doesn't take up a lot of game shelf space {a big plus for me}, has multi-use pieces, is simple once you read the rules, can be played quickly, and provokes deep thought!
Recommends this product
12 years ago
Great Fun for Critical Thinking!
I reviewed this game on my blog and there are lots of great activities listed on the included cards! There are also 2 separate games posted in the instructions sheet that could be played as a whole class divided into teams, or in small groups. Personally, I love how the learning can move from concrete to abstract simply by starting with the cards AND the blocks, and then moving into some scenarios where students might draw out the solutions, and finally maybe even moving into a place where it is done mentally. Some of your students will rock this game - and it will probably be those that you would not normally believe would. I have a really tough time with these types of activities myself if I am not able to manipulate the objects. Is anyone else out there that way too? :) This is a great item to place in a center for students to be able to explore the objects and the vocabulary associated with them. I do think that some of the cards might have sentences too challenging for beginning readers, but a simple audio file on a tape player, etc. could be implemented in the center for those situations to allow for independent learning.
Recommends this product
12 years ago
This toy is really versatile!
I am always looking for a challenging activity for my son who is always conquering activities and getting bored. One thing he has always liked to do since he was very young is build with blocks and follow a pattern to build something (architect someday, maybe....). So when I saw the Mental Blox from Learning Resources, I knew they were going to be the perfect game for my son to play! And I was SO RIGHT! My son instantly LOVED the Mental Blox that we received for review! This game is aimed for Ages 5-13 but my son is 3 and can follow the patterns perfectly so ages may differ! I loved that this game is so versatile. It can be played with multiple players when my son has friends over or it can be played alone for days he is by himself. It also can be played with younger and older children. For younger children like my son, they can simply just build the picture they see on the card. For older children, they can have an extra challenge by doing it in a time limit or answering the questions on the cards. I love that this game will be used for MANY years to come and with all my children no matter what age! My son loves building and is so proud when he gets the blocks built exactly like the card! I love watching him learn and have fun at the same time! I highly recommend!
Recommends this product