Nurtured Noggins Stages of Block Building
Written by Ann McKitrick, MS Early Childhood Consultant Stage 1: Carrying blocks
Blocks are carried around in a bucket, bag or purse but not used for building anything. Toddlers love to put blocks in a container, dump them out and then put them back in again. Generally you see this stage with very young children or inexperienced builders. (approximately 1-2 years of age)
Stage 2: Building begins
Children mostly make rows, either horizontal (on the floor or table) or vertical (stacked like a tower). There’s much repetition in this early building pattern, which is the most basic functional play with blocks (approximately 2-3 years of age)