Educational blocks with enhanced manipulation features

An educational play block for grasping by a user's hand, the play block comprising:

• a) an interior member;
• b) a peripheral frame member surrounding and generally affixing the interior member, the frame member having an interior facing surface, a circumferential surface and at least one other exterior facing surface, the frame member portion between the interior member and the at least one other exterior facing surface defining at least one ledge, the distance between the interior surface and the at least one other exterior facing surface further defining a ledge width, and the distance between the interior surface and the circumferential surface defining a ledge height;
• and
• c) the ledge width and the ledge height being ergonomically arranged as enhanced gripping means by having the shape of the frame member ledge configured so that the user's hand, which has at least one finger having a distal phalanx portion length and a middle phalanx portion length, can ergonometrically grasp the block by extending the middle phalanx portion length of the finger along the ledge height and the distal phalanx portion of the finger along the ledge width.