Learning Resources Design and Drill My First Play Workbench (Grey)

My 3 year old son loves this and so do I. It is well made, looks good quality and teaches him a lot e.g. fine motor skills, plus how to use an electric screwdriver with a ratchet.The screws are actually like split-pin old-style washing pegs - hence how they hammer in (using the supplied plastic claw hammer). You remove them with the claw - the hammer works just like a real claw hammer.The screws have a bolt head and come with an electric screwdriver, with a three-position switch (tighten/off/loosen) and another pressure sensitive squeeze-to-operate switch to make it work i.e. an on-off switch - again, just like a real electric screwdriver. The beauty of it is that it has a ratchet so your son/daughter can’t overtighten the screws, and learns how to use a ratchet screwdriver.There’s a tray with a divider to store the screws and nails in, and two recessed areas on the top for storing the electric screwdriver and hammer in their upright position. It looks neat when stored.The nails and screws come in various colours so your son/daughter can make basic images with them - a small booklet is supplied with diagrams of those images e.g. a fish.Initially my son would use the electric screwdriver for too long (so the ratchet sounded - but don’t worry, the ratchet is far quieter than on real screwdrivers, so much so that it is barely audible). Within about 30 minutes he’d learned to use the screwdriver for just the correct amount of time. He also started off not holding the screwdriver vertically over the screws - within 30 minutes he’d corrected that. He should then have got bored but he hasn’t - he likes screwing and unscrewing, hammering in and then clawing nails out.I wouldn’t want this with a manual screwdriver.For storage, it stands on its end to minimise its footprint.I don’t know who likes this more - him or me. It’s wonderful. And good quality - it doesn’t look cheap. 5 stars.

This is a good, practical, educational toy with a lot of learning opportunities built in. The workbench is nicely made (albeit all in plastic) and sturdy, and doubles up as a storage system for all of the component pieces - with a drawer that pulls out to accommodate the bolts and nails, and slots in the bench to hold the drill and hammer. This set teaches some really practical skills - how screws and nails go through a surface, using forwards and reverse on a drill/driver to insert/remove screws, hammering and using the claw side of a hammer to prise nails loose. This also helps to teach colour, practical applications of counting and pattern matching (including use of space) - as well as offering role playing opportunities for budding young builders/DIYers, and free styling opportunities. The set includes a booklet with a small number of pattern suggestions to copy - it's easy enough to generate your own additional patterns, and some smaller Hama bead designs can also translate.I do think the price point is a little on the high side, and in terms of the teaching of number it might make a more sense for the board to be designed with 10x10 holes rather than 9x9. It's a bit of a pity that the mini drill requires batteries - my brothers had a couple of similar toys (construction based vehicles that were held together with plastic screws, nuts, and bolts) when we were growing up, and these worked using a spring loaded 'drill driver' that required the user to simply push down.

This is a really smart workbench that combines the traditional kids pastimes of DIY and drawing pictures in a way that will have a broad appeal.It’s nicely presented, and the wood-effect worktop and aluminium-effect drawer on the brown one I’m reviewing, though not really convincing, gives it a bit of a distinctive character compared to the usual bright primary colours of toys like this. The drill (three AAA batteries not included) is a simple tool that a three-year-old can easily learn to control, quite satisfyingly it seems, and the way in which the drawer is part of the toy, yet also serves as a good way to tidy up all the bolts when you’re inbetween sessions, is quite endearing as well to a parent tired of little toy pieces strewn all over the place. The storage spots for the tools are another plus as well.The pattern sheet, showing kids how to make pictures by following the instructions, are an interesting learning exercise as well, though the bolts are so spaced out and the brown colour is so dominant that I wouldn’t say you get fantastic-looking pictures out of it. It was more fascinating to watch my kids making up their own patterns, for better or worse. My older daughter also suggested you could play draughts using this board, but given the number of bolts of each colour and the fact the board is 9 by 9 instead of 8 by 8, that’s an idea that needs a bit of finessing perhaps.This is quite a heavy-duty toy that feels like it’s going to be very durable, and last through at least a sibling or two, perhaps even a generation if you’re lucky and patient enough; but that’s reflected a little bit in the price. At the time of writing the current asking for the brown one is thirty-eight quid, which does seem a bit steep, but as it’s a really strongly built bit of kit that would hold its own in a playgroup or other less forgiving environment, I’m going to let it pass and give it the full five stars it deserves.

This is an excellent toy that is both fun and educational and is great for children aged approx 3-7. The board, screws, nails and tools are of a high quality and are strong and chunky. My 3-year old daughter has enjoyed getting creative with her own patterns as well as the mathematical thinking of figuring out how the tools work. As she gets older and concentrates for longer I think she will be more interested in making the patterns provided. 3x AAA batteries are required and a very small screwdriver for opening the battery compartment.