Beginner Lego organization ideas
July 10, 2023 11:33 AM Subscribe
How do you sort and store Lego for a little kid with a toddler around? How should I think about Lego?
My 5 year old got some Lego sets and really enjoyed building a bunch of small projects. Now what?
How to store Lego so it’s manageable? The collection is small- under 1000 pieces- it would all fit in a casserole dish so far.
I have an impulse to keep sets together but I want to override my impulse to encourage creative play.
Taking apart all the sets to make loose Lego feels like it will be overwhelming - too many pieces with no plan.
Kiddo will be sad to disassemble the things that got built - but I also think Lego is probably more fun when it’s useful for free building.
I thought maybe I’d keep all the manuals but discard the other packaging.
I do NOT want to overly sort the pieces - kiddo is 5 and will be overwhelmed with too many places to put things away and is too little to want to search for specific pieces.
I don’t want a dusty “forever display” of Lego builds - plus 2 year old sibling will destroy things and cause agony.
Can you help me think about Lego differently? Right now it feels like precious sets and builds that must be preserved.
When we were in the MegaBlox era we just had a giant basket of MegaBlox and when something was built it was then taken apart within a day or so to save space. We treated it like normal wooden building blocks- ephemeral constructions. I want Lego to be like that, but because it’s so delicate and takes longer to build, I don’t think it will feel like that to my kiddo.
This kiddo is going to looooove Lego for the next decade (we can complexify the storage and sorting later but not yet!) so I want to get off to a good start and not have sibling fights when the toddler investigates stuff.
Ideas, storage gadgets, and Lego philosophies are all welcome!
My 5 year old got some Lego sets and really enjoyed building a bunch of small projects. Now what?
How to store Lego so it’s manageable? The collection is small- under 1000 pieces- it would all fit in a casserole dish so far.
I have an impulse to keep sets together but I want to override my impulse to encourage creative play.
Taking apart all the sets to make loose Lego feels like it will be overwhelming - too many pieces with no plan.
Kiddo will be sad to disassemble the things that got built - but I also think Lego is probably more fun when it’s useful for free building.
I thought maybe I’d keep all the manuals but discard the other packaging.
I do NOT want to overly sort the pieces - kiddo is 5 and will be overwhelmed with too many places to put things away and is too little to want to search for specific pieces.
I don’t want a dusty “forever display” of Lego builds - plus 2 year old sibling will destroy things and cause agony.
Can you help me think about Lego differently? Right now it feels like precious sets and builds that must be preserved.
When we were in the MegaBlox era we just had a giant basket of MegaBlox and when something was built it was then taken apart within a day or so to save space. We treated it like normal wooden building blocks- ephemeral constructions. I want Lego to be like that, but because it’s so delicate and takes longer to build, I don’t think it will feel like that to my kiddo.
This kiddo is going to looooove Lego for the next decade (we can complexify the storage and sorting later but not yet!) so I want to get off to a good start and not have sibling fights when the toddler investigates stuff.
Ideas, storage gadgets, and Lego philosophies are all welcome!
The Lego boxes from ikea are delightful and would probably work well for at least part of your needs right now. They can be used for storage of loose pieces or small very stable completed projects but also the tops have pips so you can build and display on the boxes themselves. You can connect multiple boxes with other bricks and there are three different sizes. The boxes can be disassembled to store fairly flat.
You can keep the instructions for the sets but the brand itself makes a ton of them available for digital download on their site. Depending on your storage space and how your kid likes to play, you might check to see if the files are available online before keeping the build instructions. For the instructions I’ve kept, because they are the fancy ones for grownups with extras, I try to keep them in a magazine file that fits on a bookshelf.
As a grownup who came to lego enjoyment late in life, I try to have a couple shelves for my sets and if I want to display another one I have to make space. That might mean meticulously deconstructing a huge set and storing it in a separate labeled box, or it could mean dumping it in a big plastic tub in chunks with all my other loose half disassembled sets and extra bricks. Depends on how precious I feel about it. For your kid, maybe treat it a bit like displaying art on the fridge. Designate a shelf or dresser top to long term display, and if they fill it up they will need to remove older things to make room for new sets. I think it’s okay to have a completed build out in a central spot for a week or so (depends how chaotic your home is) for folks to admire and work around, but long term display means making room in the right spot for it. This could be good practice for thinking about their space and cherished items as they grow and change. And smaller builds that act more like regular toys can be collected into a basket or small box after they are done being played with, until they want to take them apart and toss them into the parts box again.
Big ziplock bags with gusseted bottoms are very good for Lego storage too. High visibility of contents, and you can stack a bunch inside a bigger container for sub sorting. If you get the heavy duty ones they last forever and stand up to the sharp corners just fine.
One thing, if your kid does get into highly detailed sorting (this is like a third of the value or lego for me, notably I’m not neurotypical) suggest that they sort by size and shape, and only then by color. It’s much easier to find the one blue 3x4 in a pile of other ones than finding the one 3x4 in a pile of blue bricks.
posted by Mizu at 11:57 AM on July 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
You can keep the instructions for the sets but the brand itself makes a ton of them available for digital download on their site. Depending on your storage space and how your kid likes to play, you might check to see if the files are available online before keeping the build instructions. For the instructions I’ve kept, because they are the fancy ones for grownups with extras, I try to keep them in a magazine file that fits on a bookshelf.
As a grownup who came to lego enjoyment late in life, I try to have a couple shelves for my sets and if I want to display another one I have to make space. That might mean meticulously deconstructing a huge set and storing it in a separate labeled box, or it could mean dumping it in a big plastic tub in chunks with all my other loose half disassembled sets and extra bricks. Depends on how precious I feel about it. For your kid, maybe treat it a bit like displaying art on the fridge. Designate a shelf or dresser top to long term display, and if they fill it up they will need to remove older things to make room for new sets. I think it’s okay to have a completed build out in a central spot for a week or so (depends how chaotic your home is) for folks to admire and work around, but long term display means making room in the right spot for it. This could be good practice for thinking about their space and cherished items as they grow and change. And smaller builds that act more like regular toys can be collected into a basket or small box after they are done being played with, until they want to take them apart and toss them into the parts box again.
Big ziplock bags with gusseted bottoms are very good for Lego storage too. High visibility of contents, and you can stack a bunch inside a bigger container for sub sorting. If you get the heavy duty ones they last forever and stand up to the sharp corners just fine.
One thing, if your kid does get into highly detailed sorting (this is like a third of the value or lego for me, notably I’m not neurotypical) suggest that they sort by size and shape, and only then by color. It’s much easier to find the one blue 3x4 in a pile of other ones than finding the one 3x4 in a pile of blue bricks.
posted by Mizu at 11:57 AM on July 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
Allow one display piece at a time. If they want to leave a set assembled and keep it somewhere they can see it LET THEM, but also its one at a time so they have to choose ... the old build, or the new build? (As kid got older we made an exception for larger kits that they were actually doing imaginative play with -- basically if its acting as a toy it gets to stay together but only one "on display" at any time. We had at least one big build that stayed together for a few years, but it had regular toy visitors almost every day.) (also any kit of less than 30-50 pieces - basically the holiday sets/models got to stay together but often ended up just getting pitched in the box)
The gold standard of how to sort LEGO is by block type and color, which in our case meant that we got some dedicated tiny storage bins for smaller weirdo specialty pieces, and then kept every block 4x4 and larger in a big bin for play. (So, we had a bin that was just figs, a bin for 1xx, a bin for 2x2, a bin specifically for weirdo pieces from the Minecraft Sets, a different bin for specific weirdo pieces from the Star Wars sets, etc). That makes it easy to find connectors and headlights and nose cones while also encourage free building. The bin we used had drawers like this one but I think we bought it at the hardware store. It is clear which really helps. Starting the habit now of sorting things when they're put away will pay BIG dividends later, but you'll probably have to do the bulk of the sorting work at first.
Make sure you keep instructions for the sets, that way you can rebuild them whenever. We also kept the boxes, cut down flat, because kiddo wanted the photos and we had room.
Have a dedicated building area (ours was an old train table flipped over) where the LEGO is kept, so its easier to put things away.
Finally, invest in some classic build sets that are multi functional, so they don't feel like everything is a kit that is made to be a specific way.
posted by anastasiav at 12:08 PM on July 10, 2023
The gold standard of how to sort LEGO is by block type and color, which in our case meant that we got some dedicated tiny storage bins for smaller weirdo specialty pieces, and then kept every block 4x4 and larger in a big bin for play. (So, we had a bin that was just figs, a bin for 1xx, a bin for 2x2, a bin specifically for weirdo pieces from the Minecraft Sets, a different bin for specific weirdo pieces from the Star Wars sets, etc). That makes it easy to find connectors and headlights and nose cones while also encourage free building. The bin we used had drawers like this one but I think we bought it at the hardware store. It is clear which really helps. Starting the habit now of sorting things when they're put away will pay BIG dividends later, but you'll probably have to do the bulk of the sorting work at first.
Make sure you keep instructions for the sets, that way you can rebuild them whenever. We also kept the boxes, cut down flat, because kiddo wanted the photos and we had room.
Have a dedicated building area (ours was an old train table flipped over) where the LEGO is kept, so its easier to put things away.
Finally, invest in some classic build sets that are multi functional, so they don't feel like everything is a kit that is made to be a specific way.
posted by anastasiav at 12:08 PM on July 10, 2023
I would let your little guy decide whether to disassemble or not. It's HIS Lego. And if he disassembles reluctantly I would give him the option of keeping those pieces separate, and help him to do so. Zip lock heavy duty freezer bags work well. You will need to figure out if he is capable of keeping the assembled models intact, or if they will end up in pieces under the dresser. You'll need to figure out if he ever actually reassembles the models a second time. You can make your decisions by observing and talking to him about it. It is very possible that he will never reassemble the models a second time, if you get rid of the boxes, because he needs a big bright picture of the model as inspiration. If you have space, you might want to save boxes and put the parts back in their own boxes, inside the ziplock bags. It is more than probable that your five year old will need a lot of help keeping parts separate so things can be reassembled. He may need this kind of help right up until he is ten or more.
In the long run almost certainly you will soon have an enormous heap of unsorted Lego with partially intact models in the heap, and at that point you'll start using a shovel and doing no sorting at all because the many hours it would take to sort it can be undone in seven seconds and it is not worth your effort. In the end we had a three and a half foot long trunk full of Lego but the big unsorted bin discouraged creativity, as they could never find the kind of parts they wanted. Trying to make a jeep for the minifigs and being unable to find four matching wheels will destroy their enthusiasm, but trying to keep sets separate when they dump things together is too difficult.
Aim for having a smiling kid, and you not being aggravated by dealing with it all.
posted by Jane the Brown at 12:14 PM on July 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
In the long run almost certainly you will soon have an enormous heap of unsorted Lego with partially intact models in the heap, and at that point you'll start using a shovel and doing no sorting at all because the many hours it would take to sort it can be undone in seven seconds and it is not worth your effort. In the end we had a three and a half foot long trunk full of Lego but the big unsorted bin discouraged creativity, as they could never find the kind of parts they wanted. Trying to make a jeep for the minifigs and being unable to find four matching wheels will destroy their enthusiasm, but trying to keep sets separate when they dump things together is too difficult.
Aim for having a smiling kid, and you not being aggravated by dealing with it all.
posted by Jane the Brown at 12:14 PM on July 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
I spent a lot of time with Lego as a kid. Once our collection grew to a few sets, we put an old sheet on the floor and dumped all the pieces out on that. Cleanup is easy, just pick up the corners of the sheet, pieces all slide to the middle. I'm sure fancier versions of this exist nowadays with drawstrings or velcro, but an old sheet was fine for us. Better if you have a carpeted floor. spreading pieces out on a flat surface makes finding what you want easy. Deep boxes make it hard.
As a grownup, I still play with Lego, and I empathize with your desire for organization and keeping things as sets. But as a kid (for me and my peers at least) it was all about making new things out of the heap of assorted parts. I'd say start with a heap, and maybe make available a few random tupperware or smaller containers to see if kiddo *likes* sorting things, and follow their lead - if they like the heap, you're done. if they like sorting/organizing, offer more options for that.
posted by mrgoldenbrown at 12:35 PM on July 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
As a grownup, I still play with Lego, and I empathize with your desire for organization and keeping things as sets. But as a kid (for me and my peers at least) it was all about making new things out of the heap of assorted parts. I'd say start with a heap, and maybe make available a few random tupperware or smaller containers to see if kiddo *likes* sorting things, and follow their lead - if they like the heap, you're done. if they like sorting/organizing, offer more options for that.
posted by mrgoldenbrown at 12:35 PM on July 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
As a(a albeit older) kid, I had a couple hardware drawer unit (like this) i eventually got pretty granular, but just sorting flats, x1s, x2s, and people will get you a long way to being able to lay hands on the piece you want quickly.
posted by DebetEsse at 12:36 PM on July 10, 2023
posted by DebetEsse at 12:36 PM on July 10, 2023
If you do want to see specific options for organizing Lego you can look at /r/legostorage on reddit.
posted by mrgoldenbrown at 12:38 PM on July 10, 2023
posted by mrgoldenbrown at 12:38 PM on July 10, 2023
Just to chip in that one of my two absolutely loves loves loves building sets according to instructions and does so way above her age-range, then takes them apart and makes them again. It's only as she's hit 7 to 8 that she's started to get anything like as much enjoyment out of self-driven creation, and that's generally more driven by play along with her 5 year old sister.
In our situation it was definitely worth bagging up disassembled sets and keeping them like that until they'd been rebuilt a few times. Gradually things migrate to the great tubs on the shelf but certain special / large sets still get quite carefully kept together.
Finally, you've probably seen them but the 3 in 1 sets are especially good for people with that sort of Lego-tality. Some even have a 4th model that you can download instructions for via the Lego app, which is just the cherry on the cake :)
posted by protorp at 12:58 PM on July 10, 2023
In our situation it was definitely worth bagging up disassembled sets and keeping them like that until they'd been rebuilt a few times. Gradually things migrate to the great tubs on the shelf but certain special / large sets still get quite carefully kept together.
Finally, you've probably seen them but the 3 in 1 sets are especially good for people with that sort of Lego-tality. Some even have a 4th model that you can download instructions for via the Lego app, which is just the cherry on the cake :)
posted by protorp at 12:58 PM on July 10, 2023
Some chaos muppets respond well to the big sheet with a drawstring round it (e.g. 'swoop bag') approach.
Maybe: dump a couple Lego Classic and Creator sets mixed together in the bag, with the understanding that these sets will always be loose for creative discovery.
If your kid is an order muppet and gets precious about certain sets, maybe there's a couple clear plastic shoe boxes or bags where assembled sets live.
If space permits, consider flattening the boxes and putting them in a poster sized art carrier, tucked in the back of a closet, rather than discarding. If both kids end up being order muppets, or one Identifies as Lego-human (as you seem to think might be likely), or you aim to pass these sets along once they age out, having the boxes that match the instructions can be really nice.
Take pictures of the creations. Don't force any specific approach. Keep it fun. Wear slippers.
posted by enfa at 2:41 PM on July 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
Maybe: dump a couple Lego Classic and Creator sets mixed together in the bag, with the understanding that these sets will always be loose for creative discovery.
If your kid is an order muppet and gets precious about certain sets, maybe there's a couple clear plastic shoe boxes or bags where assembled sets live.
If space permits, consider flattening the boxes and putting them in a poster sized art carrier, tucked in the back of a closet, rather than discarding. If both kids end up being order muppets, or one Identifies as Lego-human (as you seem to think might be likely), or you aim to pass these sets along once they age out, having the boxes that match the instructions can be really nice.
Take pictures of the creations. Don't force any specific approach. Keep it fun. Wear slippers.
posted by enfa at 2:41 PM on July 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
One more suggestion from a different angle: take photos of the complete projects and a have a "wall of fame" where you can print and post the pictures so the memory is preserved even if the actual construction has been destroyed and reused.
posted by metahawk at 4:48 PM on July 10, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by metahawk at 4:48 PM on July 10, 2023 [1 favorite]
In terms of when to break up assembled pieces, I would follow the kiddo's lead. We have storage boxes of lego. When things have been built they get placed on top of the pile in the box, then kiddo eventually starts cannabalizing his own creations for parts at his own pace. If I broke it up too soon he'd be upset, but he's not going to let those good pieces sit there unused for long.
I can see how it really depends on your child's personality however. Some kids might be ready to smash them up right away, other's might be more attached and be upset about breaking them apart. All this is to say, suppress your grown up instincts to manage this for your child and let them take the lead! This is, after all, the joy of lego :-)
Although be warned about what this can lead to. I went along with my child's first ever classification system when we got him a set of storage boxes. I suggested maybe sorting by color, or maybe function. Nope, he wanted to go with the totally sensible classificatory system of: 1) Red things, 2) Blue things, 3) Mini-figs and weapons, 4) Bricks, 5) Everything else. I still get twitchy just thinking about it...
Oh and the instruction manuals might as well be thrown away with the boxes after first assembly. If you really need them, you can download them off the internet.
posted by EllaEm at 6:02 PM on July 10, 2023
I can see how it really depends on your child's personality however. Some kids might be ready to smash them up right away, other's might be more attached and be upset about breaking them apart. All this is to say, suppress your grown up instincts to manage this for your child and let them take the lead! This is, after all, the joy of lego :-)
Although be warned about what this can lead to. I went along with my child's first ever classification system when we got him a set of storage boxes. I suggested maybe sorting by color, or maybe function. Nope, he wanted to go with the totally sensible classificatory system of: 1) Red things, 2) Blue things, 3) Mini-figs and weapons, 4) Bricks, 5) Everything else. I still get twitchy just thinking about it...
Oh and the instruction manuals might as well be thrown away with the boxes after first assembly. If you really need them, you can download them off the internet.
posted by EllaEm at 6:02 PM on July 10, 2023
Great observations and suggestions so far. Nthing the cloth sheet on the floor routine. Keeps most of them out of the foot traffic aisle.
Your 5 year old may have already passed this stage, if so, great. But try to nip in the bud any habitual disassembly of mini-figs down into individual hand, arm, torso, head, and leg parts. At less than 5 our grandson cleverly discovered that each 8+ piece minifig could be deconstructed into their constituent parts which then mingled in deeper LEGO storage lurking unseen for weeks at a time and only rarely migrate back together to present a non-amputated LEGO person. Attempts have been made to reconstruct the original people, but I am sure that many of his minifigs are absolutely unique creations.
We have gotten good use out of several clear or light colored trays with edges - think cookie sheets or serving trays. These can be nested/stacked for storage inside a larger box and allow for a good amount of pieces at a time, but then can hold the partially completed construction to be resumed at a later time.
All 6,854 LEGO sets instructions are available for download..
posted by tronec at 6:20 PM on July 10, 2023
Your 5 year old may have already passed this stage, if so, great. But try to nip in the bud any habitual disassembly of mini-figs down into individual hand, arm, torso, head, and leg parts. At less than 5 our grandson cleverly discovered that each 8+ piece minifig could be deconstructed into their constituent parts which then mingled in deeper LEGO storage lurking unseen for weeks at a time and only rarely migrate back together to present a non-amputated LEGO person. Attempts have been made to reconstruct the original people, but I am sure that many of his minifigs are absolutely unique creations.
We have gotten good use out of several clear or light colored trays with edges - think cookie sheets or serving trays. These can be nested/stacked for storage inside a larger box and allow for a good amount of pieces at a time, but then can hold the partially completed construction to be resumed at a later time.
All 6,854 LEGO sets instructions are available for download..
posted by tronec at 6:20 PM on July 10, 2023
I have two huge plastic tubs full of Lego. They're stacked one on the other and in the corner by the sofa, where they work as an end table. The only pieces that get kept separate from the mass are the minifigs ---and bits of minifigs, I say go ahead and amputate anything you want, it's high quality plastic and will snap back together -- which are kept in a Costco croissant clamshell, for some reason.
Lego is one million times more fun when it's just a big pile and you claw through it and it makes that noise and you get inspired. I have never reassembled anything from the directions.
Lego is expensive and I don't understand just playing with it once and then sending it to gather dust on a shelf (although for some reason our White House is still assembled and on display). If your kid thinks something they made is awesome, let them take photos of it and then take it apart. I have photos, movies, and stop-motion animation on my computer of stuff my kids made.
Is your toddler still thinking about eating Lego? When my kids were little the Lego had to stay in one room, and the smaller kid wasn't allowed in there when the Lego was out.
My credentials: I still have my Legoland driver's license from 1983.
posted by The corpse in the library at 1:07 PM on July 11, 2023 [1 favorite]
Lego is one million times more fun when it's just a big pile and you claw through it and it makes that noise and you get inspired. I have never reassembled anything from the directions.
Lego is expensive and I don't understand just playing with it once and then sending it to gather dust on a shelf (although for some reason our White House is still assembled and on display). If your kid thinks something they made is awesome, let them take photos of it and then take it apart. I have photos, movies, and stop-motion animation on my computer of stuff my kids made.
Is your toddler still thinking about eating Lego? When my kids were little the Lego had to stay in one room, and the smaller kid wasn't allowed in there when the Lego was out.
My credentials: I still have my Legoland driver's license from 1983.
posted by The corpse in the library at 1:07 PM on July 11, 2023 [1 favorite]
You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments
posted by carolr at 11:53 AM on July 10, 2023 [1 favorite]