STEM-oriented toys are a fantastic and fun way to provide hands-on learning experiences for kids. Whether its as a stocking filler or as a main gift, kids will get great enjoyment out of STEM toys, games and kits, and will learn to embrace STEM in the process.
You often hear adults interviewed about their career in Science, Technology, Engineering or Maths talking about how they first developed an interest in their chosen disciplone. More often than nowt, the answer is a toy they had as a child, maybe a Chemistry Set, Meccano, a box of LEGO they shared with siblings or an electronics set.
Let’s give our kids something educational and fun this Christmas. Check out this STEM Guide I have pulled together, there’s something for everyone on this, even the big kids!!
This gide recommends toys that are readily available in most Irish toy stores, and are only a sample of the many STEM-based toys out there, but hopefully we’ll get you thinking in a different way this Christmas! All of these toys are suitable for both boys and girls who like to explore the workd around them.
So here we go, in no particular order….
KAPLA Building Blocks
We bought KAPLA BLOCKS for one of our boys when he was 9, and at the time, I really wondered why we were spending money on a box of wooden planks. We have been converted, this toy is fantastic! What our son created with these planks is just phenomenal, and it gave him hours of fun, imaginative and educational play. The planks are still used to this day on our house by our boys to create all kinds of things from castles, houses and robots to roads, bridges and tunnels.
Playing with KAPLA planks helps children understand geometry, physics, language, arts, problem-solving, logical tinking, maths…the list goes on. KAPLA is currently used as a teaching tool throughout the French educational system and in other countries all over the world.
In my opinion, it is well worth the investment and has longevity that some other toys don’t have.
LEGO
As parents of four boys, we were initially reluctant to go down the route of LEGO, as it can be very expensive. My boys loved all things make-and-do when they were younger, so as the years went on, we gave in and embraced LEGO. We haven’t looked back since, we still have LEGO coming into our house to this day, my boys are now 16 and 13 and still get LEGO Technics. It has been one of the best investments we made over the years, and our kids have learned so much fromit. The skills kids learn from LEGO are similar to the skills they learn from coding, so LEGO is a fantastic foundation for any STEM subject.
Parents of girls, remember, you don’t have to stick to the LEGO Friends range, there is a whole section in Smyths and other toy stores with all types of LEGO that will interest and challenge your young girls and encourage them towards STEM.
Electronic Kits
Beginners Electronics Kits are a great gift for any young boy or girl who is interested in how things work. With these kits you can make anything from a flying disc, burglar alarm or a voice recorder to an FM radio or a lie detector. We have the TroneX kit in our house, it hasn’t be used in a few years , but was taken back out recently to decide what subjects to pick for first year and TY, as both Technology and Physics in school cover what this kit has. My boys are now able to follow the teacher and understand the electronics concepts fromtheir play time with TroneX.
Chemistry Sets
A chemistry set is great for kids to explore the world of chemistry in a safew way, with child-friendly sets available for all ages and budgets. There are kits of all kinds in this range, with exploding volcano’s, magic potions, you name it, you can get it in a chemistry set.  These kits help kids prepare for secondary school, giving them an odea of what chemistry is all about. But watch out, they can be very messy!
Biology Sets
There are lots of biology sets on teh market that explore the human body, animals, all things edible, etc. Kids learn about how things work and get to try out experiements of their own with their kits. These toys are great for kids to realise the world of Science is accessible to them and something they could get more involved in as they progress on their education journey.
Space
Any toy or kit that teaches your child about Space is a top-rated toy in my opinion. I have an in-built interest in space from my childhood, and it came from going outside at night with my Dad to look at the stars. I can still remember the mobile planatarium visited my school in the 1980’s, they had an inflatable space dome that looiked like the quarantine tent in ET, it was fascinating to 8 year old me. We all wanted to be astronauts after that visit!
If kids learn about space and the night sky, thats knowledge for life. You don’t even have to buy toys, just get wrapped up, go outside to a dark space on a clear night, and look up at the sky. As your eyes adjust, you see more and more stars, its fascinating. You can get a schedule for when the international space station is going to pass over your area, so give it a try, pop out and see it….its small and fast!
Thre are lots of space-themed kits and tpys to choose from in Smyths Toystore. Space books, posters, lights and duvet sets are also a great idea for young kids…. make them want to go to bed early!
Robotics Kits / 3D Modelling
Robotics kits my seem like a great toy for an inquisitive toy. In our house, we’ve had mixed experiences with toy tobotics kits over the years, we had a few of the more expensive ones that are supposed to work with an app and never did. This has put me off a little, but there are lots of robotics kits that are very basic, cheap and teach kids just as much in terms of STEM skills. Always remember, it isn’t always teh biggest or dearest set that is the best. 3D modelling kits are great for kids from about 10 up. We have had endless learning and fun from smaller kits like these shown here.
K’NEX & Meccano
K’NEX was a big hit with one of my boys but the others didn’t take to it as much. The one who did used it in so many different ways, his imagination just took off with this tpy, and you don’t need a fancy big set, the beginner’s box is perfect.
Meccano was popular with my older boys but my younger boys weren’t interested in it at all. I think its a great toy, they learn so much from it. If you decide to invest, start small and see if there’s your child is interested first. Watch out if you have small kids in the house, there are lots of small metal parts in Meccano that wouldn’t be suitable for them.
Marble & Magnet Sets
I’m not quite sure what to cal these types of sets, but they are Excellent for kids. They are interesting, challenging, offer lots of scope for imaginative play and are very educational at the same time. These three examples are ones we particularly found great in our house, but there are lotsw more ot there like these, where kids can challenge themselves in different and creative ways.
The biggest hit in our house was Gravitrax, we still take it out at times. It’s a very clever set, we got the starter set initially and then got one or two extra accessories to make the set more challenging. In my opinion, all three of these brands are well worth the investment, you will have them for years to come.
STEM Boardgames
There are some very educational STEM-related boardgames that kids can play. Here are some examples of ones we found worked well in our house, but there are lots and lots more to choose from.
Rubik’s Race is a great game for both adults and kids. Everyone gets very competitive with this in our house. Watch out if you buy it, you can easily lose a piece and the game isn’t really playable. We lost a piece over 3 years ago and found it last week, just in time for Christmas!!
Conclusion
This is only a fraction of what is on offer for kids in terms of STEM toys, it is by no means a definitive guide but a sample to get you exploring. If you find something that you think might work well on this guide, let me know. I hope to build on it for next year! If you’re looking for advice on something STEM related, drop us a message on our Contact Page, we will get back to you as soon as possible. Happy Shopping!
