Hedgehog had a picnic to get to. There was just one problem. A river.
“My sandwiches are over there,” said Kai in Hedgehog’s voice.
Lena stretched a blue scarf across the mat.
“Then we’ll build you a bridge.”
Hedgehog had a picnic to get to.
There was just one problem.
A river.
“My sandwiches are over there,”
said Kai in Hedgehog’s voice.
Lena stretched a blue scarf
across the mat.
“Then we’ll build you a bridge.”
Twelve picture-book cases for young detectives.
Lena and Kai notice what gets in the way of their play, make a guess and try one small change. For ages 6 to 8, with extra challenges for curious 9 and 10 year olds.
Can you find five clues?
Move the magnifying glass over the picture. On a tablet or phone, tap where you want to look.
0 of 5 clues found
- 1Not found yet
- 2Not found yet
- 3Not found yet
- 4Not found yet
- 5Not found yet
BOOK 01 / FREE PDF
The Lost Brick
5S for Kids
Less searching. More play!
Lena and Kai are building a bridge so Hedgehog can reach a pretend picnic, but searching for bricks keeps interrupting their play. They try a visible tray beside the bridge and a shared place to put things back.
Written by Marek Dabrowski. Book 1 of 12, ages 6 to 8.
Twelve cases.
Every book is a case of its own, so you can start anywhere. Pick a cover to open it.
CASE 01
The Lost Brick
5S for Kids
A bridge to build. A picnic to reach. But where is the right brick?
Lena and Kai are building a bridge so Hedgehog can reach a pretend picnic, but searching for bricks keeps interrupting their play. They try a visible tray beside the bridge and a shared place to put things back.
For grown-ups: Max Zigzag represents Motion waste: unnecessary walking, reaching and searching. He shrinks when a better home for the bricks reduces that extra movement, leaving more time to play.
Meet the detectives.
Lena
Lena searches, and writes what she finds in her notebook. Sometimes she thinks she has the answer a little too soon. Her best discovery: a good guess still needs a test.
“Then we’ll build you a bridge.”
Kai
Kai lives across the street. He builds, counts the steps and asks one more question. He also speaks for Hedgehog.
“I’ll count your steps. There and back.”
Both have ideas. Both can be wrong. They work it out together.
Open a case of your own.
Pick one small thing that keeps getting in the way. Maybe the crayons are hard to find, or your building project keeps stopping. Watch first. Then try one change.
Case File
Detective: ____________ Date: ________
Our mission
What do we want to do?
Look for clues
What made it hard? What did we actually see?
Guess and try it
Detective’s guess: I think… Our one change is…
Check the clues
What happened when we tried it?
Our next move
What will you keep? What will you change or try next?
Lena & Kai: On the Case. Every adventure begins with a good question. leanmark.ai/lean-for-kids
FOR GROWN-UPS
Read together. Wonder together.
You don’t need to know Lean to join in. Start with something your child wants to do. Ask what makes it difficult. Give their idea room to become a small experiment.
The eight little thieves make everyday waste visible. They don’t secretly break or hide things. They lose their power when the children change the conditions that let a problem grow.
There is no race to be the fastest child. Running, dancing, resting and playing are not waste. The goal is to notice, ask, try, and make more room for play.
Written by Marek Dabrowski. Lena & Kai: On the Case is a LeanMark project.
The eight little thieves
| THIEF | WASTE | CASES |
|---|---|---|
| Max Zigzag | Motion: extra walking, reaching and searching | 01, 09 |
| Wally Waitabit | Waiting: time spent waiting to begin | 02 |
| Daisy Oops | Defects: mix-ups and doing it again | 03, 05 |
| Shelly Shush | Unused skills: ideas that go unheard | 04, 11 |
| Izzy Just-in-Case | Inventory: supplies piling up | 06, 07 |
| Otto Too-Many | Overproduction: making too much, too soon | 08 |
| Olive Overdo | Overprocessing: extra work that does not help | 10 |
| Toby Truckalong | Transport: unnecessary trips for things | 12 |