The Lego Story / Would You Want to Be in a Lego League?

It had been a hard year for Ole [OH-lay]. In 1931, he was a carpenter. That is someone who builds with wood. He lived in a little town in Denmark. 

Ole and his family did not have much money. He had three sons. His wife was going to have another baby. There was not enough food.

But Ole had plenty of wood. His village was filled with trees. He used wood to make furniture. Then he started to build toys.

Lego bricks have been a big success! There are more than 400 billion Lego bricks. There are also Lego theme parks, movies, video games, and more.

But the idea behind Lego bricks has not changed. It has been the same since Ole and his son made wooden toys. That idea is even part of the name Lego.

The word lego comes from the Danish term leg godt. It means “play well.”

Every year, 600,000 kids around the world take a big Lego challenge. They are all part of the First Lego League. The kids work in teams. They have a coach.  

The first step is to pick a team name. Kids pick names like the Lego Legends, the Electric Legos, and the Master Builders. 

Next they work on a Lego challenge. For one challenge, kids learned about places where people share their talents. Then they built a place like that with Lego bricks. 

One team built a Lego community. It had a theater, a comedy club, a skate park, and a stage. It even had a motorized car. They built all of these things with Lego pieces. So cool! 

The teams meet for months to work on their challenge. Kids in teams have to cooperate. They work together. “If you don’t work well with your teammates, you won’t be successful,” says Anya Wiens, from the First Lego League. 

When the teams are ready, they go to a big festival. The kids wear team uniforms. “Last year, we wore lime-green T-shirts with our team name on them,” says Lego coach Liz Fitzgerald. 

At the festivals, kids show off their work. The festivals are exciting. Everyone gets an award! 

Kids love Lego League. “I like it because sometimes it is challenging,” says Oliver, age 8. His team is called the Shock Hawks. “You make mistakes that help you learn.”