Our products and support are celebrated by educators and children alike.
Jaci I.
Director of Early Childhood Education @ Congregation Beth Elohim
We have set up a sensory room with many of Kodo’s materials–light table, magnet wall, wind tunnel–and it’s a favorite space for all of our classes to visit. Parents and professional visitors are quite impressed with the uniqueness and open-ended aspect of the materials.
I met with the founder many years ago at a NAEYC conference when he was just starting and had just a few products and was immediately impressed with his understanding of how young children learn. It has been a pleasure to watch the company grow while maintaining the integrity of your knowledge of how young children learn best through active participation and exploration of their environment.
Cathy H.
Teacher @ Tennie Russell Primary School
Our little learners are finding new ways to explore through light, movement, engineering and more. Adding the wind tunnel to our lab has been a game changer in terms of excitement level and inquiry. Students eagerly explore how things blow when the tunnel is adjusted to varying angles, and they discover the differences in materials and how well they move through and out of the tunnel. We expanded our engineering/building area by increasing choices with the Swiss Ramp Stands and the Discovery Ramps set. In doing that, we sparked a higher interest in force and motion, including problem-solving on how to stop said motion. These are just some of the items we purchased from Kodo Kids with our grant, and we look forward to seeing our young minds at work as we continue to expand our STEAM lab.
Anna D.
Nature Preschool Teacher @ Oak Ridge Elementary
The Outdoor Ramps have been a fantastic addition to support outdoor learning at Oak Ridge Elementary. Students in preschool through 1st grade have been able to use the ramps in multiple environments, including indoors, on our playground, in our forest outdoor classroom, and in our prairie outdoor classroom. In addition, all students, regardless of their abilities, have been able to participate in ramp play. Students who are wheelchair-bound are able to participate in ramp play with their classmates due to having longer length sections that reach the child’s chair height.
In early childhood classrooms, play isn’t a break from learning, it is learning. From visual tracking and fine motor development to social-emotional growth and early literacy, our tools engage children in experiences that align with their natural curiosity and individual developmental pathways.
When children engage with our materials, they’re doing more than stacking, pouring, or poking, they’re building competencies that support lifelong success. We partnered with a pediatric occupational therapist to help us outline how. Skill development includes:
Fine Motor Skills & Functional Independence
Materials like the Rainbow Pegboard, Light Lab Marble Board, and Toddler Ball Stacker encourage lateral pinch, three-finger grip, and hand-eye coordination. These skills are essential for tasks like writing, self-feeding, dressing, and even brushing teeth.
Spatial Awareness & Motor Planning
Tools such as the Wind Tunnel and the Weaving Wall help foster understanding of directional concepts like in/out, over/under, and left/right. These spatial relationships are foundational for everything from navigating environments to understanding math.
Early Literacy Foundations
Pre-writing and visual literacy are woven throughout Kodo experiences. Children engage in top-to-bottom, left-to-right eye tracking while exploring tools like the Weaving Wall and Magnet Wall. These subtle movements are the building blocks of reading and writing.
Cognitive Development
Materials like Gemstone Matching Tiles and Rainbow Pegboard build working memory, pattern recognition, and visual discrimination. These are key cognitive skills that help children make sense of the world and solve problems creatively.
Social-Emotional Growth
Empathy begins with connection. With materials like Empathy Dolls and Finger Puppets, children explore emotions, relationships, and storytelling—strengthening social skills in the process.
Equitable Play for Every Ability
Our approach ensures that every child, regardless of ability or background, can fully participate in meaningful play. Each material supports a variety of entry points and skill levels, giving educators the flexibility to meet children where they are developmentally, and take them further.
Ready to bring intentional skill-building into your classroom?Explore our curated collection of materials designed to support whole-child development through play. If you need support, contact the team.
In early childhood classrooms, play isn’t a break from learning, it is learning. From visual tracking and fine motor development to social-emotional growth and early literacy, our tools engage children in experiences that align with their natural curiosity and individual developmental...
At Kodo Kids, we’ve always believed in the transformative power of play. Not just any play, but play that is intentional, inclusive, and designed to celebrate the uniqueness of every child. That’s why our partnership with The Third Place for Kids feels like such a natural fit.
The Third Place is reimagining what community looks like for neurodivergent and disabled children and their families. Their mission is bold yet beautifully simple: to create welcoming, sensory-friendly spaces where kids can be themselves, parents feel supported, and everyone belongs.
When we first connected with their team, we were immediately inspired by their vision and eager to support it in a hands-on way. Our shared commitment to meeting children where they are—and supporting their growth through open-ended play and sensory exploration—perfectly aligns with the foundation of The Third Place’s approach.
If you're in Colorado, we encourage you to stop by and experience it for yourself. Inside their thoughtfully designed space, you’ll find Kodo materials like the Chalk Spinner, Flight Lab, and Wooden Gears—tools that invite curiosity, experimentation, and joyful discovery.
“We are thrilled to have our doors officially open and to be welcoming in families of all kinds! Thanks to our partnership with Kodo Kids, we’re able to provide our families with open-ended, sensory-focused play that empowers neurodivergent and disabled kiddos to explore and just be themselves in a space built especially for them. No judgement or crazy, overstimulating environments. Just community and connection.”— Casey Brown, The Third Place for Kids
But this partnership is about more than materials. It’s about shared values. Together, we’re committed to thoughtful design, honoring diverse learning styles, and expanding what’s possible for inclusive childhood experiences.
We’re excited to continue supporting The Third Place and the families they serve—through collaboration, creativity, and a shared belief that every child deserves a place to play, connect, and thrive.
Learn more about The Third Place: thethirdplaceforkids.org
At Kodo Kids, we’ve always believed in the transformative power of play. Not just any play, but play that is intentional, inclusive, and designed to celebrate the uniqueness of every child. That’s why our partnership with The Third Place for Kids...
At Kodo Kids, we believe children are natural problem solvers. Whether they’re stacking blocks, arranging loose parts, or telling stories in sequence, early play is filled with moments that mirror computational thinking.
What is Computational Thinking?
Computational thinking begins with big ideas made accessible through play. In early childhood, this includes foundational concepts like:
Patterning: The ability to recognize, predict, and create repeating sequences. Patterning supports early math and logic development and helps children build a sense of order in the world around them.
Representation: Using symbols, objects, or drawings to stand in for something else. This allows children to make sense of abstract ideas—like using a block to represent a button or arranging objects to stand for binary code.
Coding: At its simplest, coding is creating a sequence of instructions to complete a task. In early learning, this might look like giving directions to a friend, following steps in a song, or laying out a path for a marble.
Number Systems: Understanding quantity, order, and the relationships between numbers. Exploring number systems helps children develop early computational fluency—especially when paired with tactile materials like counters, grids, or pixel boards.
A Beautiful Way to Learn
We’re thrilled to announce our partnership with Learning Beautiful, offering a new collection of screen-free, Montessori-aligned materials designed to bring computational thinking to life in early learning environments.
These thoughtfully designed tools crafted from sustainable materials introduce concepts like coding, abstraction, patterning, and number systems using natural materials designed by experts at the MIT Media Lab.
The Learning Beautiful Classroom Set is ideal for educators looking to introduce computational thinking into their classrooms utilizing the designed materials for small group work and centers. This set supports teachers with a complete book of activity plans that support playful learning for children to explore patterning, representation, coding, and number systems.
The Learning Beautiful Learning at Home Set offers families a way to bring a screen-free, playful, and fun way to introduce computational thinking at home with a guide with over 30 lessons for children ages 3-9.
Play as a Pathway
Computational thinking isn’t about technology-it’s about the way children think. By nurturing curiosity, encouraging experimentation, and supporting resilience through hands-on materials, educators lay the foundation for lifelong problem solving.
Learn More
Want to dig deeper into Learning Beautiful? Join us on June 18, 2025 as we chat with Kim Smith Claudel, Learning Beautiful Co-Founder, to learn more about computational thinking, the materials, and computer science in early childhood.
At Kodo Kids, we believe children are natural problem solvers. Whether they’re stacking blocks, arranging loose parts, or telling stories in sequence, early play is filled with moments that mirror computational thinking. What is Computational Thinking? Computational thinking begins with...
At Kodo Kids, we believe in creating hands-on experiences that inspire curiosity, problem-solving, and a love of learning. One of our favorite ways to integrate literacy with STEM exploration is by pairing engaging stories with open-ended materials. By integrating ramps, children can experiment with force and motion, fostering creativity and engineering skills while strengthening early literacy connections.
Mighty, Mighty Construction Site by Sherri Duskey Rinker is a perfect book to spark conversations about teamwork, perseverance, and the power of machines. By combining this beloved story with ramp exploration, children can bring the book’s themes to life while building foundational STEM skills.
Ramps: The Ultimate Construction Tool
In the book, each construction vehicle has a special job—digging, lifting, and hauling materials to get the job done. Ramps play a similar role in real-world construction, making work easier by allowing heavy loads to roll smoothly from one place to another.
Using ramps, children can experiment with concepts like:
Incline and speed - How does a steeper ramp change how fast objects roll?
Force and motion - What happens when you add weight to a vehicle?
Problem solving - Can you build a ramp that helps a truck deliver “materials” more efficiently?
Exploring Different Types of Ramps
Ramps can be found everywhere! Consider using a variety of ramps to extend children’s understanding of material properties:
Discovery Ramps - Classic Wooden Ramps for Exploration: The Discovery Ramps provide a sturdy surface for endless construction-based challenges. Children can use them to create pathways for rolling objects, test different inclines, and combine with other materials to simulate real-world construction problems.
Great for: Creating multi-level ramps, testing force and motion
Rubber Ramps - Flexible and Bendable: Rubber Ramps are an exciting way to explore curves and slopes. Unlike traditional rigid ramps, these allow children to experiment with bends and waves, helping them visualize the effects of different ramp slopes and shapes.
Great for: Experimenting with rolling vs. sliding, adjusting curves for different speeds
Clear Ramps - See Movement in Action: Clear Ramps bring an added layer of discovery by letting children observe movement from every angle. They can see how objects roll underneath, providing a visual connection to concepts like gravity and momentum.
Great for: Observing cause and effect, understanding how motion works
DIY Ramps - Recycled and Natural Materials: Find your own materials to extend the understanding of material properties by using cardboard tubes, flattened cardboard, gutters, or even tree logs.
Use the following questions to enhance exploration and discovery of the different types of ramp materials:
How do different ramp surfaces (smooth, rough, flexible) affect movement?
What happens when we change the angle of the ramp?
Can we design a ramp system like the ones we see on construction sites?
Bringing the Story to Life through Play
After reading Mighty, Mighty Construction Site, set up an exploration area using Kodo ramps, blocks, and loose parts to encourage hands-on learning:
Can you build a worksite where trucks must use ramps to deliver materials?
How would the construction crew in the book solve a problem using ramps?
Big Ideas Through Play
At Kodo, we know that children learn best through hands-on exploration. By pairing Mighty, Mighty Construction Site with ramp-based investigations, we create opportunities for literacy, STEM, and problem-solving-all essential for early learning skills.
Roll into learning with ramps, loose parts, recyclable materials, and other block materials to inspire creative construction play!
__________________________________________________________________________
We want to see the way you play! Join or log-in to the Kodo Community to share your experiences learning with ramps!
At Kodo Kids, we believe in creating hands-on experiences that inspire curiosity, problem-solving, and a love of learning. One of our favorite ways to integrate literacy with STEM exploration is by pairing engaging stories with open-ended materials. By integrating ramps,...
Copy link to share