Bricks with Miriam -
LEGO® themed courses & workshops

Bricks with Miriam provides a range of LEGO® themed workshops and courses for educators across all levels. New workshops are always in development and some are available online. The workshops are designed so that participants can use and adapt the activities to suit their own groups.

A range of online and face to face courses and workshops are available.

See some examples below. 

SIX BRICKS CERTIFIED Training 
Become a Six Bricks Practitioner 

Six Bricks supports all areas of development and executive functioning


Miriam brought the SIX BRICKS Programme to Ireland in 2019 having spent time in South Africa studying with Care for Education where the SIX BRICKS programme was developed in Partnership with the Lego Foundation. Miriam was the very first SIX BRICKS trainer in Ireland and has been accredited by Care for Education with lead trainer status. 

Miriam has been promoting SIX BRICKS in primary schools since 2019  and with the support of the Education Centres, has trained, in live sessions,  thousands of teachers, SNAS and other professionals to use SIX BRICKS. Miriam is a highly qualified and respected Education Consultant, Teacher, Trainer and Facilitator and has worked for more than 40+ years in the Education Sector.  Miriam's love and belief in SIX BRICKS is evident in the passion, knowledge and experience she brings to her training sessions.

Miriam provides certified levels 1, 2 ,3 and 4 training (Care for Education Levels) in using a set of six LEGO® DUPLO® bricks to create activities that are short, simple exercises designed to wake up the brain and get a child moving, thinking and remembering. The activities are not intended to be a curriculum, but they do support all areas of development in the curriculum. Miriam also runs thematic workshops e.g. Winter and Christmas with Six Bricks

Every child has a set of six bricks, one of each colour (Red, Yellow, Orange, Green, Light blue and Dark blue). The teacher or professional can then quickly and easily facilitate an activity at any time. Repetition brings about better organization of the brain and the secret of the success of these activities lies in their regular repetition which enables children to consolidate new knowledge. Six Bricks activities are in development all the time and there are now thousands of activities supporting different areas of development/skills.

A range of SIX BRICKS taster sessions and courses are available for different groups e.g. Primary School Teachers, Early Childhood Care and Education staff and Parents.  
Miriam also provides whole school training for staff groups (e.g. as part of Croke Park hours)  and training for specialist groups or networks etc.

Email miriamodonoghue@gmail.com for latest information pack on courses or check the courses and workshops section of this website for the current list of SIX BRICKS Courses on offer


SIX BRICKS Certificate Courses

Six Bricks Certificate  Levels 1 and 2

 

SIX BRICKS is a pedagogical approach developed by Care for Education in partnership with the LEGO® Foundation.

Six Bricks activities are short, simple exercises, many of which only take a couple of minutes to do. They are not a curriculum but they are designed to support all areas of development in the curriculum. They help to wake up a child’s brain and get them moving, thinking and remembering through playful learning.    

Every child has a set of six bricks, one of each colour (Red, Yellow, Orange, Green, Light blue and dark blue). The Teacher, Special Needs Assistant, Occupational Therapist, Speech and Language Therapist, Parent etc. can then quickly and easily facilitate an activity at any time. Repetition brings about better organization of the brain and the secret of the success of these activities lies in their regular repetition which enables children to consolidate new knowledge. Six Bricks activities are in development all the time and there are now hundreds of activities supporting different areas of development/skills e.g. bilateral integration, crossing the mid-line, working memory, inhibitory control, depth perception, numeracy, literacy etc. 

The activities are very versatile and can be adapted and scaled up or down depending on the age and stage of the children or groups you are working with.

Course Dates

Six Bricks Certificate Levels 3 & 4

The SIX BRICKS Certificate Course covering SIX BRICKS levels 3 & 4 is  for participants who have already completed hands-on SIX BRICKS Certificate Training at Levels 1 & 2 and is designed to build on and advance SIX BRICKS knowledge and practice.

We will 

  • Build on SIX BRICKS activities covered in Levels 1 & 2 and practice exciting new SIX BRICKS activities across a range of developmental/skills areas
  • Use a practice and design lab approach to co-create/design, test and share SIX BRICKS activities that support specific areas of the curriculum. Our key areas of focus will be on designing Activity Mats, story based activities, games etc.
  • Revisit the SIX BRICKS Move and Learn and B Line MATS and some of the basic movements before proceeding to explore and practice creative and advanced ways to use these MATS and other SIX BRICKS Mats to focus on a range of areas including spatial, memory, partnering and Maths from basic to advanced.

Participants will be able to further develop their SIX BRICKS knowledge, ask questions and share experiences of implementation with the support of the trainer, Miriam O Donoghue.
Course Dates

Six Bricks Thematic Course - Christmas

The SIX BRICKS Thematic Course (two hours online) is designed for participants who have already completed hands-on SIX BRICKS Certificate Training to at least Levels 1 & 2 and is designed to build on and advance SIX BRICKS knowledge and practice. This live hands-on workshop is also suitable for participants who have completed training to higher levels.

We will 

  • Build on our SIX BRICKS experience by practicing some exciting new SIX BRICKS Christmas themed activities across a range of developmental/skills areas
  • Revisit the SIX BRICKS Move and Learn and B Line MATS with some Christmas themed movements before proceeding to explore some new Christmas themed 6B MATS designed by Miriam especially for this workshop and not available elsewhere. The new mats will all be available in the shared folder that Miriam will give you access to and can be downloaded for use with your students.

Participants will be able to further develop their SIX BRICKS knowledge, ask questions and share experiences of implementation with the support of the trainer, Miriam O Donoghue.   Course Dates

NEW Course on offer...


DUPLO® PLAY & LEARN CERTIFICATE COURSES


DUPLO® Play & Learn Certificate Courses Levels 1 & 2

Play and Learn hands-on courses are designed for teachers and early years professionals to help them support playful learning using DUPLO® / LEGO® with younger children.
Courses cover Care for Education Certificate Levels 1 & 2.  
Course content and activities can be easily adapted and scaled up or down to meet children's levels, needs and interests, but is idea for lower to middle primary classes.          

Course materials and handouts:
  • All materials, DUPLO® & LEGO® bricks etc. are supplied for use during each in person course.
  • Advice on accessing/purchasing bricks for use afterwards is included in each course
  • Supporting electronic notes/lesson plans/manuals are provided.
Certification:
A level 1 and 2 certificate is provided to participants who fully complete the full course

Course duration: Each course level is approx. 2.5 hours duration (total 5 hours)

Trainer: Miriam O Donoghue is an authorised/approved lead trainer of DUPLO® Play & Learn Courses up to Levels 4

Booking: This course can be booked for groups. Contact miriamodonoghue@gmail.com if you would like to discuss.

Building with LEGO®: Supporting Creative, Social and Language (descriptive) Skills
Building with bricks can help children to creatively develop social skills and language and descriptive skills either in one to one or classroom settings.
This is especially important for children who struggle to verbalise or describe their world.
Suitable for Primary School Teachers.

Using LEGO® to explore Stories & Poems
Connecting LEGO® Creatively in the Classroom with Stories, Poetry and Newspaper Articles    
Using the imagination to unpack, analyse and enhance stories and poetry while building with the LEGO® bricks. This is a hands-on practical workshop suitable for groups of Primary School Teachers. Workshop length is approx. 2 hours and can be booked directly with Miriam miriamodonoghue@gmail.com




Playful Learning with Bricks (based on PLAY BOX)
A programme developed by Care for Education, that provides certified training in using LEGO® DUPLO® bricks and elements to provide engaging and challenging play-based learning activities designed to support the development of younger children. A range of courses are available for different groups e.g. Primary School Teachers, Early Childhood Care and Education staff and parents.Contact miriamodonoghue@gmail.com for more information


CPD Theme: What’s Quacking?

Building with just six LEGO® bricks to create a duck is a fun and powerful way to engage the brain into thinking with the hands. Everyone no matter what their age loves a Lego® Duck and participants will be surprised by the range and depth of learning that can take place. 

The real brilliance of the duck is that it can be used in so many different ways to help students develop skills such as team building, communication, decision making, problem solving, lateral thinking, executive functioning, memory and more… 

This workshop will take participants through a series of structured activities that will generate lots of discussion, learning and fun.
To book a course for your group contact miriamodonoghue@gmail.com

Using LEGO® to explore Well-being
A short LEGO® based workshop designed to provide a space for thinking and reflection based on building activities and tasks set around well-being themes.
Suitable for educators across all levels e.g. Primary, Post-Primary, Further Education and Training and Higher Education. It is also suitable for Early Childhood Care and Education groups, Parent groups and any other groups that love LEGO® and are interested in Well-being themes.

Christmas LEGO® based activities

This is a great workshop for staff who like to have fun and be a bit playful; while at the same time it provides an opportunity to be reflective and focus on what went well during the year, what you are grateful for, and what you appreciate in each other. The workshop finishes with a Kris Kindle that’s very different from the usual one!
Suitable for educators across all levels e.g. Primary, Post Primary, FET and HE. 
To book a course for your group contact miriamodonoghue@gmail.com

+353 87 6949094

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