Gakken is a brand of Japanese building waffle blocks. There are many thematic sets – amusement park, cars, railroad and so on. There are even a toolbox set. I especially liked triangular and big arch-like pieces. Tha animals are 3D and don’t look like sand forms like in some other building sets. The pieces have bright and dense plastic.
Unlike Plus Plus waffle blocks, Gakken blocks have pieces of many different shapes. They have round and curved pieces, long beams and H-like pieces. The empty spaces inside the blocks also can have different sizes and shapes, so you can stack inside different pieces in different positions. All this allows even more building possibilities than the waffle blocks sets with similar pieces. However, some pieces have less connection opgtions, because they don’t have pegs on the sides, or have only one hole.
Gakken brand appeared in Tokyo back in 1946 when it became an important component of Japan’s post-war efforts to rebuild the nation. Back then, it became incredible important to properly raise a new generation that will be able to create a better future.
The founder and educator, Hideto Furuoka, created first Gakken waffle buidling blocks. He later told that his inspiration was traditional Japanese wooden houses. There he saw an idea of flat blocks people can took apart and rebuild again when they need to. So he decided to create a toy which repeats this principle. Children can connect these Japanese building waffle blocks, stack them, lay them, plug, or tuck blocks in different orientations, for example, horizontally, vertically, and diagonally.
Yes, Gakken has many interesting and much-needed pieces. There are even pieces with hooks :)) It’s great!
I liked this set, but at first bought only a small set, because of these arch-like pieces and out of curiosity. It was later than we discovered that there are many interesting sets. My girls loved a set with simple grids, but of all colors. We saw it in ads. And the railroad sets, they have these cool streamlined cabin pieces. And the animals are good – chubby and cute.
This set is so cute! I wander what was firts, Danish Plus-Plus or Japanese Gokken? Who got the idea first?
I think Gakken is the older one 🙂
I think we really need a set like this one! Tatiana, do you have any idea where I can buy it? 🙂
In Japan 🙂 There are some sets on Amazon, but Japanese Amazon have so much more of them. Not sure about their delivery term though. The biggest set has 183 pieces, 38 types of pieces.
Thank you so much! I will check it out. My kids are obsessed with Plus-Plus sets right now, and its Japanese cousin is a great find. It will be great to have it.
My daughter will love this! She is six and plays with Plus-Plus every day. It’s a pity they don’t make pieces like this, it’s a goldmine.