How do My Family Builders figures help children explore diverse families?

My Family Builders magnetic wooden figures come in four skin tones with interchangeable heads, bodies, and legs, so children can build single-parent homes, blended families, two-mom or two-dad families, multigenerational households, and any other family they know or imagine. The 48-piece set includes both adult and child figures and supports thousands of mix-and-match combinations.

What makes My Family Builders different from other educational toys?

My Family Builders is the only magnetic wooden figure set designed around modular construction of human characters. Heads, bodies, and legs are interchangeable across four skin tones, so children build the people themselves rather than choosing from a fixed cast. This approach supports empathy through play, an approach grounded in social-emotional learning and recognized by the Parents' Choice Gold Award.

What ages are My Family Builders figures designed for?

My Family Builders figures are designed for ages 1 and up. The blocks are sized for small hands and the magnetic connection is firm enough for toddlers. The 16-piece Friends Set features children only and is the simplest starting point for the youngest users. The 32-piece and 48-piece sets include both adult and child figures and work well for preschool, kindergarten, and lower elementary classrooms.

Are My Family Builders figures safe for classroom use?

Yes. All My Family Builders figures are certified to ASTM, CPSIA, and EN71 safety standards. The magnets are fully enclosed in solid wood, the paint is non-toxic and water-based, and the pieces meet small-parts safety requirements for ages 1 and up.

How does My Family Builders support social-emotional learning?

The figures give children a hands-on way to explore family, friendship, and identity through play. Children build characters that reflect their own family and discover characters that look different from them. The 48-piece set includes 25 activity cards in English, French, and Spanish that guide conversations about empathy, belonging, and self-recognition during circle time or small-group activities.

What's included in the 48-piece classroom set?

The 48-piece classroom set contains wooden magnetic heads, torsos, and legs in four skin tones with both adult and child figures, plus 25 activity cards in English, French, and Spanish. The pieces support thousands of mix-and-match combinations and are designed for guided classroom activities, dramatic play centers, and structured social-emotional learning discussions.

Is My Family Builders used in real classrooms?

Yes. My Family Builders is used in Head Start classrooms, NAEYC-accredited early learning centers, and child care networks across the United States, including programs at Bright Horizons, Primrose, Goddard, and the YMCA. University early childhood education programs at the Erikson Institute, Penn State, and Northeastern have used the figures in classroom and research contexts.

How are magnetic wooden figures different from traditional dollhouse families?

Traditional dollhouse families come pre-grouped: one mother, one father, two children, usually one ethnicity. Magnetic wooden figures with interchangeable parts let children build any family they imagine: single-parent, two-mom or two-dad, blended, multiracial, or multigenerational. My Family Builders is designed around this flexibility, with four skin tones and modular construction in every set.

Used By

My Family Builders sets are used in classrooms, therapy centers, and early childhood research programs across the United States. Organizations including Bright Horizons, Primrose Schools, Goddard Schools, YMCA, Northeastern University, Penn State, Erikson Institute, and Old Dominion University use them with children and future early childhood educators daily.

From national childcare networks to independent Montessori schools and university child development labs, our sets are a consistent presence in early childhood environments across the country, in the hands of educators, clinicians, and the students training to become them.