4 ways to team-build with LEGO® bricks on Zoom video calls

Video calls were already an important part of many businesses’ day to day operations, and all the more so with the coronavirus pandemic causing many more employees to work from home than usual.

Video call platforms such as Google Meet, Microsoft Teams and Zoom have enabled us to stay in touch with colleagues and friends throughout the lockdown present in many countries, albeit without that human touch present in face-to-face meetings.

Here are Bricks McGee’s ideas for  team-building activities with LEGO bricks you can do virtually on Zoom and other video platforms. Many professionals will have a small amount of LEGO bricks at home if they have a young family (or our adult LEGO® fans!), but it can also be cost-effective to send each team member a small package of LEGO for these activities. We’re happy to advise on your LEGO team-building workshops, too – including running virtual workshops with LEGO bricks for your teams.

1. LEGO® tower building team-building activities

This is a twist on the classic tower building challenge – building the tallest tower from marshmallows and spaghetti, or paper and cardboard.

Using LEGO bricks to build the tallest tower is all well and good if you have a large tub of LEGO, but if your team members don’t, try these challenges to even the playing field:

• Build the tallest tower you can in 15 minutes with no parts of the same colour touching. This is much harder than it sounds, depending on the LEGO bricks available to you!
• Build the tallest tower you can in 15 minutes, using only parts in a single colour (e.g., red, pink, yellow, or blue).

2. Self portraits activity

Building self portraits out of LEGO bricks is a great way to introduce some light-hearted fun in to your Zoom team-building:

• Give each team member a set amount of time (15 – 20 minutes is usually enough) to build a LEGO version of themselves in any style they like – perhaps like the one we’ve included here…
• This could include their full face, or just a key element of their style.
• If you’re building anonymously, you can send your portraits to the team-building facilitator and have team members guess who is who!

3. Catapult team-building activity

Our final idea for your Zoom team-building sessions is LEGO catapults: these are a great way to get creative and add some serious thinking, too.

• You can leave your team members to their own devices to build a catapult from LEGO bricks
• Alternatively, we have a picture guide on Twitter here on how to create a basic LEGO catapult
• Challenges can include accuracy – hitting (LEGO-built) targets or distance (what’s the furthest a team member can shoot a catapult?)

Enjoy these activities with your team, and let us know how you get on via Facebook or Twitter! If you need some help organising your own LEGO workshops, we’re here to help – email playtime@bricksmcgee.com, or contact us.

4. Bonus: hybrid animals activity with LEGO bricks

An additional bonus activity for keen builders – try combining two animals selected at random in to one creature, such as a giraffe-pig, or a Trex-unicorn, and take it in turns to guess what your LEGO creations represent!