When you think of LEGO®, chances are, you picture colorful bricks, imagination-fueled creations, and maybe even a few accidental “brick-to-foot” encounters. But behind the playful façade lies a company deeply committed to something even more powerful…inclusive and joyful learning for every student.
In a season 5 episode of The Learning Experience podcast, Stacia Jackson, Senior Learning Design Manager at LEGO® Education, joined hosts Kelli Suding, Luis Pérez, and Bryan Dean from CAST to share how the science team at LEGO Education embedded the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) into their K–8 science product, and how that journey ultimately led them to become UDL Product Certified by CAST.
The intersection of play & UDL
LEGO Education is committed to playful, hands-on learning which aligns seamlessly with the CAST UDL Guidelines™, a tool to support educators, curriculum developers, researchers, parents, and more to apply the UDL framework to practice.
Early in development of their new science curriculum, the science team began mapping every lesson to specific UDL guidelines, first using UDL Guidelines version 2.2 and later updating their work just days after the launch of the UDL Guidelines 3.0. That process illuminated gaps, deepened their understanding, and ultimately shaped every aspect of the product’s design, from language choices to the structure of collaboration.
“Once we had done that initial mapping, it actually became part of our design criteria,” Stacia explained.
“Every time we have a lesson concept, we discuss how students access the learning and UDL became a key part of that.” Stacia Jackson, Senior Learning Design Manager at LEGO Education
The commitment of the team to UDL can be observed in the smallest details. For example, student materials use readable fonts with the same lowercase “a” that young learners recognize from handwriting (UDL Guideline: “Design Options for Language and Symbols). Lessons offer students the options to express their ideas through writing, drawing, building, or even recording their reflections as vlogs (UDL Guidelines: “Design Options for Welcoming Interests & Identities” and “Design Options for Expression &Communication.”
Beyond accessibility, the team focused on reducing unnecessary cognitive load and promoting what CAST’s Bryan Dean described as “relaxing into the learning,” a balance between productive struggle and meaningful challenge. Every student, Stacia emphasized, should experience success, no matter how they engage.
How do you design joyful, accessible learning experiences?
From the beginning, the mission at LEGO Education was to transform classrooms through playful, hands-on learning experiences. As Stacia explained, the approach goes beyond traditional toys. Each classroom kit and lesson is intentionally designed to help students explore key scientific phenomena through active engagement, curiosity, and joy.
The new LEGO® Education Science product line exemplifies this philosophy. With lessons aligned to both the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and state standards, the program invites students from kindergarten through eighth grade to engage in experiments, build with purpose, and explore complex concepts through creativity and collaboration.
Each kit, designed for grades K–2, 3–5, and 6–8, encourages students to ask big, inquiry-based questions like “How much energy does a snail need?” and then answer them through playful exploration. In one lesson called “Disco Snail,” students build a snail and a disco scene out of LEGO bricks to investigate potential and kinetic energy, a joyful blend of whimsy and scientific rigor that perfectly illustrates what Stacia calls “hard fun.”
How do play, flow, and productive struggle support inclusive learning?
When the CAST team highlighted “nurture joy and play in the UDL 3.0 Guidelines, Stacia said it was “so exciting.” The update validated a long-standing belief that play is not separate from serious learning. It’s how curiosity and engagement thrive.
As students create, volume and excitement rise, then gradually quiet as they enter deep concentration. This cycle of engagement, high energy, focus, reflection, and re-engagement mirrors what UDL and neuroscience describe as optimal learning flow.
“Engagement looks different for every learner,” Stacia noted.
“It’s about giving students the space to find their own rhythm, whether that’s through collaboration, exploration, or reflection.” Stacia Jackson, Senior Learning Design Manager at LEGO Education
Earning UDL Product Certification
This deep commitment to designing for all learners recently earned LEGO Education Science the UDL Product Certification from CAST.
UDL Product Certification recognizes learning products that intentionally align with the UDL framework, ensuring they reduce barriers, amplify engagement, and create meaningful learning opportunities for all students. To achieve certification, products must demonstrate alignment with CAST’s Accessibility Baseline which requires submitting and accessibility audit that shows alignment to the WCAG 2.0 AA international accessibility standards, for digital materials and core accessibility requirements for physical materials. In addition, each product must demonstrate how it is aligned to the UDL Guidelines.
As CAST notes on the UDL Product Certification page, the certification highlights “products that exemplify the principles of Universal Design for Learning and provide educators and learners with flexible options that honor learner variability.”
Through this certification, LEGO Education joins a growing community of companies working alongside CAST to ensure that educational tools are designed to increase access to meaningful learning for every learner.
Looking ahead: UDL Beyond the Bricks
As LEGO Education Science launched into classrooms in 2025, the team is already envisioning what’s next. They recently collaborated with a diversity of researchers to publish the white paper Building Inclusive Science Classrooms. This white paper explores inclusion and accessibility in science education and ways to support teachers in creating playful, inclusive classrooms.
The team’s journey illustrates what happens when accessibility and innovation go hand in hand, and when joy, curiosity, and inclusivity are at the heart of every design.
“We’re fully immersed with UDL in the bricks,” Stacia shared. “But we’re excited to go even further…UDL beyond the bricks.”
LEGO Education Science is now UDL Product Certified by CAST, recognized for meeting the Accessibility Baseline and exemplifying the power of playful, inclusive, and universally designed learning.
Learn more about CAST’s UDL Product Certification through the Product Certification FAQs, and explore more about designing accessible learning materials through The Accessible Learning Experience Podcast S. 03, Ep. 11: ADA Title II Updates and Requirements.
LEGO and the LEGO logo are trademarks of the LEGO Group. Used with permission. ©2026 The LEGO Group.
Go further designing for inclusion with UDL
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