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Mother Love: Toca Boca’s New Blocks App

Written by Katie Hintz-Zambrano

Photography by Photographed by Shannon Sinclair

Winter break is just around the corner, which means the daunting task of entertaining your kids day in and day out is on the horizon. Thankfully, Toca Boca’s latest app, Toca Blocks, has just arrived and it’s sure to occupy those little hands and minds for hours on end.

Ideal for ages 5 through 9, Toca Blocks gives kids a blank canvas to build a world entirely from their imagination. Children have their pick from a multitude of uniquely colored and textured blocks that they can stack any which way. Depending on how they are layered, the blocks take on surprising new shapes and properties, sometimes transforming into items (a tree, secret door, toilet, or propeller to build a flying house) that can be placed into the worlds being constructed. (Take a peek at the app via YouTube here).

“Construction play isn’t only about creating something beautiful, it’s about how you get there,” explains Toca’s play designer Mårten Brüggemann. “When you create something, the materials you use get new meaning: a blanket becomes the ceiling of my playhouse, a chair becomes a stepping stone in the lava pit that’s erupted from the floor. Using your imagination naturally brings out an evolving ruleset from which you can use to create and play within. With Toca Blocks, we give kids a digital environment that enables this aspect of play.”

The $3.99 app is the 30th for Stockholm-based parent company Toca Boca, which started in 2011 and is founded on the belief in open-ended play via tech. All Toca Boca games come with with no obvious rules and fun gender-neutral characters, letting kids explore at their own speed and get creative. To try out the app yourself, check it out here.

Toca Boca Blocks 2

This post is brought to you by Mother + Toca Boca

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