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What a Klutz LEGO kit actually teaches
These kits are engineering lessons in disguise. Here is what each one is really about.
Motion from a crank
LEGO Gear Bots are automata. Turning a handle spins an axle, a cam on the axle lifts a rod, and the rod moves a paper creature. The book names each part, so a child ends up knowing what a cam is.
Energy passed along
LEGO Chain Reactions is ten small machines that hand motion to each other. One swings, the next rolls, the next drops. Linking them teaches cause and effect better than any diagram.
Gravity and friction
LEGO Gravity Drop and LEGO Race Cars both run on a slope. Change the angle of a ramp or the weight of a car and the result changes. That is an experiment with one variable, which is the heart of science class.
Tinkering
LEGO Gadgets ends every build with a prompt to modify it. LEGO Mini Golf asks you to design nine holes and rebuild the board each time. The lesson is that the first version is never the last.
