Geek toys for a 7year old girl
October 19, 2017 2:15 PM Subscribe
It turns out I'm the only geek in the life of a 7 year old girl, which means I'm responsible for nurturing the geeky side of her. Help me find a birthday present for her?
My first option was a USB microscope, but it turns out none of the android devices available support USB OTG and I have lots of memories of smashing slides on the proper microscope I had as a boy.
So, I'm open to any suggestions. She loves her kindle, dolls, nature, batman, and Lego. But she's not the most focussed of kids and things that involve too much fiddling with parts put her off.
My first option was a USB microscope, but it turns out none of the android devices available support USB OTG and I have lots of memories of smashing slides on the proper microscope I had as a boy.
So, I'm open to any suggestions. She loves her kindle, dolls, nature, batman, and Lego. But she's not the most focussed of kids and things that involve too much fiddling with parts put her off.
These look fun!
Goldie Blox Female friendly construction kits and books.
Fun kid project subscription service
posted by dreamling at 2:33 PM on October 19, 2017
Goldie Blox Female friendly construction kits and books.
Fun kid project subscription service
posted by dreamling at 2:33 PM on October 19, 2017
My kids enjoyed a subscription to the Spangler Science Club. They've changed the offerings since I was a subscriber but the "experiments" usually didn't require too much set-up time or effort (except occasionally when things needed to grow) and were often impressively showy.
I always enjoyed growing crystals at that age as well and then having the pretty crystal I grew. Lots of kits out there for that.
posted by The Elusive Architeuthis at 2:38 PM on October 19, 2017
I always enjoyed growing crystals at that age as well and then having the pretty crystal I grew. Lots of kits out there for that.
posted by The Elusive Architeuthis at 2:38 PM on October 19, 2017
The brand-new Women of NASA Lego set. Each mini-set within it is small and doesn't require excessive attention span.
A Lottie Doll.
posted by DarlingBri at 2:50 PM on October 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
A Lottie Doll.
posted by DarlingBri at 2:50 PM on October 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
I have lots of memories of smashing slides on the proper microscope I had as a boy.
Eh, I smashed a few on mine as a girl, but I also loved that I didn't have to plug it in (it had an option for batteries for the light) and it was light enough I could just take it to the backyard, and I looked at EVERYTHING under it. Don't rule that out! Or one of those little handheld ones, too.
I'm not a 7-year-old girl but I really want Snap Circuits. If she likes Lego, what about Technic or another Lego robotics-type system?
posted by fiercecupcake at 2:51 PM on October 19, 2017 [7 favorites]
Eh, I smashed a few on mine as a girl, but I also loved that I didn't have to plug it in (it had an option for batteries for the light) and it was light enough I could just take it to the backyard, and I looked at EVERYTHING under it. Don't rule that out! Or one of those little handheld ones, too.
I'm not a 7-year-old girl but I really want Snap Circuits. If she likes Lego, what about Technic or another Lego robotics-type system?
posted by fiercecupcake at 2:51 PM on October 19, 2017 [7 favorites]
I loved the concept of the Goldie Blox and got 3 sets for my 6/7yr old girl as they came out. She did them once, on her own, in less than 30 minutes and hasn’t touched the boxes again. It was a bit of a meh experience for her.
I totally agree with the basic (but decent) microscope and the Lego kits. We’ve had a lot of fun with Tinker Crates, but they DO require adult involvement- might be a fun monthly ‘date’ for the two of you!
posted by PorcineWithMe at 3:07 PM on October 19, 2017 [3 favorites]
I totally agree with the basic (but decent) microscope and the Lego kits. We’ve had a lot of fun with Tinker Crates, but they DO require adult involvement- might be a fun monthly ‘date’ for the two of you!
posted by PorcineWithMe at 3:07 PM on October 19, 2017 [3 favorites]
After she turns eight or nine, get her Snap Circuits! My son and I loved that.
posted by artistic verisimilitude at 3:30 PM on October 19, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by artistic verisimilitude at 3:30 PM on October 19, 2017 [2 favorites]
I agree with everything PorcineWithMe says. I have four boxes of TinkerCrates still on the shelf waiting for a rainy day. Plenty of those days but the kits are fiddly and hard to do without an adult or patient teenager. Then when you're done with the thing, it's pretty much trash.
I got my kiddo and my niece a toy microscope last Christmas. It has an LED light that takes batteries and we've all had fun with it. She has on her shelf next to it some "collections" that we've made - a bee sting we took out of her foot and then put on clear tape, a spent butterfly cocoon, a weird dead bug we found in the windowsill, a bird feather, and some rock crystals. She likes to show them to her friends and occasionally we take the microscope out to the yard to look at everything. You can also apparently buy slides of things online but finding things is more fun. Get something that can be knocked about and go anywhere.
Magazine subscriptions! My daughter, 7, likes "High Five" and I've been looking through the kids magazines at our local library for other ideas. Thinking of "Ranger Rick" next. Also, I hate to say it but the Lego Elves series of kits is pretty fun and it has some books that go along with it. My daughter is pretty into it. If she likes comic books at all, I highly recommend Lumberjanes.
posted by amanda at 3:45 PM on October 19, 2017
I got my kiddo and my niece a toy microscope last Christmas. It has an LED light that takes batteries and we've all had fun with it. She has on her shelf next to it some "collections" that we've made - a bee sting we took out of her foot and then put on clear tape, a spent butterfly cocoon, a weird dead bug we found in the windowsill, a bird feather, and some rock crystals. She likes to show them to her friends and occasionally we take the microscope out to the yard to look at everything. You can also apparently buy slides of things online but finding things is more fun. Get something that can be knocked about and go anywhere.
Magazine subscriptions! My daughter, 7, likes "High Five" and I've been looking through the kids magazines at our local library for other ideas. Thinking of "Ranger Rick" next. Also, I hate to say it but the Lego Elves series of kits is pretty fun and it has some books that go along with it. My daughter is pretty into it. If she likes comic books at all, I highly recommend Lumberjanes.
posted by amanda at 3:45 PM on October 19, 2017
Kiwi Crates are great for kids who like building, making, drawing, coloring. They incorporate engineering, science, art, and even story. The only downside is that the subscriptions are expensive, about $30/month, and your house tends to fill up with crates.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 3:53 PM on October 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Winnie the Proust at 3:53 PM on October 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Go with your first instinct and find a microscope that will work!
I got a pretty basic one when I was probably about 7 or 8 and spent so many hours with it up through middle school. I looked at everything I could find with that thing—and I used to make “quizzes” for my parents by having them guess what they were looking at.
Please—get her a microscope!!!
posted by bookmammal at 4:57 PM on October 19, 2017 [2 favorites]
I got a pretty basic one when I was probably about 7 or 8 and spent so many hours with it up through middle school. I looked at everything I could find with that thing—and I used to make “quizzes” for my parents by having them guess what they were looking at.
Please—get her a microscope!!!
posted by bookmammal at 4:57 PM on October 19, 2017 [2 favorites]
Snap circuits are amazing for this age.
posted by gryphonlover at 5:17 PM on October 19, 2017
posted by gryphonlover at 5:17 PM on October 19, 2017
Little Bits synth kit, or an OP-12 are good geeky music toys that are also not just toys.
posted by Acari at 5:26 PM on October 19, 2017
posted by Acari at 5:26 PM on October 19, 2017
A microscope that's low cost and sturdy? How about a foldscope!
We adore Kiwi Crates for my 8-year-old. Also Snap Circuits! (It's possible I may wait for my kids to go to bed and then build Snap Circuits by myself ...)
On the expensive end, a World Discovery Box ... my kids each have one and use it to store treasures found on nature exploration (and we add store-bought treasures for them for holidays). Certainly you could find a box yourself and assemble some rocks/fossils/bugs/etc. for a lot less money.
I can't think of the title of the specific one I like best, but there are "nature journals" and "nature adventure books" that have lots of activities kids can do on walks and hikes and in their backyard, and record their observations and tape leaves in and so on. Another option would be to get her a moleskine and a set of nice colored pencils (or the biggest box of crayons) and make a nature journal together. My kids ADORED doing this; one winter when we were going stir crazy (and they were 4.5 and 2.5) I put up a bird feeder and we'd go sit at the window and we'd all try to draw a bird in our nature journals, and then they would dictate their observations to me and I'd write them under the picture. The 2.5 year old would do a red scribble and tell me to write "RED BIRD! HOPPED!" and 4.5 year old would very seriously draw stickman birds and then have me write "I saw a cardinal and it eated and it hopped and there was snow and it was very cold." Anyway, they kept it up for quite a while and the older one eventually started writing his own captions and recording the temperature and counting how many birds and so on. And then when it got warmer they would come home from a walk around the neighborhood and draw a picture of a mushroom or a pinecone they saw. That would be something you could do together or if you see her weekly you could always catch up on all her entries for that week ...
Another option would be a year's membership to a zoo, botanic garden, science museum, planetarium, or similar, near her house. (Nearer is better so she can visit very frequently, even if it means it's a smaller facility than one that's a long trip downtown or across the city.)
Another thought, weather station. Nerdy kids love weather stations!
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 6:05 PM on October 19, 2017 [2 favorites]
We adore Kiwi Crates for my 8-year-old. Also Snap Circuits! (It's possible I may wait for my kids to go to bed and then build Snap Circuits by myself ...)
On the expensive end, a World Discovery Box ... my kids each have one and use it to store treasures found on nature exploration (and we add store-bought treasures for them for holidays). Certainly you could find a box yourself and assemble some rocks/fossils/bugs/etc. for a lot less money.
I can't think of the title of the specific one I like best, but there are "nature journals" and "nature adventure books" that have lots of activities kids can do on walks and hikes and in their backyard, and record their observations and tape leaves in and so on. Another option would be to get her a moleskine and a set of nice colored pencils (or the biggest box of crayons) and make a nature journal together. My kids ADORED doing this; one winter when we were going stir crazy (and they were 4.5 and 2.5) I put up a bird feeder and we'd go sit at the window and we'd all try to draw a bird in our nature journals, and then they would dictate their observations to me and I'd write them under the picture. The 2.5 year old would do a red scribble and tell me to write "RED BIRD! HOPPED!" and 4.5 year old would very seriously draw stickman birds and then have me write "I saw a cardinal and it eated and it hopped and there was snow and it was very cold." Anyway, they kept it up for quite a while and the older one eventually started writing his own captions and recording the temperature and counting how many birds and so on. And then when it got warmer they would come home from a walk around the neighborhood and draw a picture of a mushroom or a pinecone they saw. That would be something you could do together or if you see her weekly you could always catch up on all her entries for that week ...
Another option would be a year's membership to a zoo, botanic garden, science museum, planetarium, or similar, near her house. (Nearer is better so she can visit very frequently, even if it means it's a smaller facility than one that's a long trip downtown or across the city.)
Another thought, weather station. Nerdy kids love weather stations!
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 6:05 PM on October 19, 2017 [2 favorites]
My science-loving girls adore ASK magazine & Ranger Rick.
posted by belladonna at 6:05 PM on October 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by belladonna at 6:05 PM on October 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
I got a chance to listen to the founder & CEO of Goldie Blocks speak at a conference, and she's freaking amazing. Her mission is "disrupting the pink aisle" in the toy stores, challenging gender stereotypes and introducing girls to the world of engineering. I wish I had more younger girls in my life to buy these toys for, although I dont yet have any direct experience with the actual toys myself.
posted by cgg at 7:26 PM on October 19, 2017
posted by cgg at 7:26 PM on October 19, 2017
Looks like for about 50 bucks you can get a real microscope.
posted by Sophont at 7:33 PM on October 19, 2017
posted by Sophont at 7:33 PM on October 19, 2017
Kazoo Magazine is a quarterly magazine for girls age 5-10. It has no ads and lots of articles on art, science, tinkering, and all-around fun stuff.
Bitsbox is a subscription box company that teaches kids to code. Each box has a theme and includes related toys or gadgets.
posted by mogget at 8:39 PM on October 19, 2017
Bitsbox is a subscription box company that teaches kids to code. Each box has a theme and includes related toys or gadgets.
posted by mogget at 8:39 PM on October 19, 2017
My own geeky daughters (8 & 10) love snap circuits and legos! We've also had fun with Tinker Crates, but I agree that they can be fiddly and that we have several unopened crates still waiting to be used, many months after they arrived. Kazoo magazine is great, but (understandably) quite pricey compared to other kids magazines. Don't be afraid to go low-tech too... my kids love to wander with field guides, a headlamp, and a magnifying glass. I think that the Audubon First Field Guides strike a nice balance of quality info in an accessible level of detail.
posted by hessie at 6:52 AM on October 20, 2017
posted by hessie at 6:52 AM on October 20, 2017
I bought this miscroscope a year ago, and it works great with my android tablet. It's not the best quality thing, but at $35 it seemed well worthwhile to me.
posted by Kikujiro's Summer at 6:57 AM on October 20, 2017
posted by Kikujiro's Summer at 6:57 AM on October 20, 2017
As a kid I really enjoyed Radio Shack xxx -in-1 electronics kits. I have very fond memories of making a radio and a burglar alarm and other things. The snap circuits stuff is just an easier and more straight forward version of those things.
As an adult who gets to play with my nephews, I really enjoy marble run toys. It scratches the same itch as Legos for constructing things but you still have to be disciplined enough to engineer something that will actually transport the ball from start to finish.
posted by mmascolino at 12:14 PM on October 20, 2017 [2 favorites]
As an adult who gets to play with my nephews, I really enjoy marble run toys. It scratches the same itch as Legos for constructing things but you still have to be disciplined enough to engineer something that will actually transport the ball from start to finish.
posted by mmascolino at 12:14 PM on October 20, 2017 [2 favorites]
Crazy Forts is a construction toy that you can use to make structures that you play in. My 6 yo geeky girl loves both parts. (The construction may require some adult participation, depending on the age of the kids.)
posted by Winnie the Proust at 1:43 PM on October 25, 2017
posted by Winnie the Proust at 1:43 PM on October 25, 2017
Response by poster: Hard picking a best answer. In the end I went with the real microscope idea and she loved it.
Snap Circuits sounds good for a next gift. Someone else got her Goldie Blocks, and that was greatly appreciated too.
Thanks all!
posted by sodium lights the horizon at 12:42 PM on November 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
Snap Circuits sounds good for a next gift. Someone else got her Goldie Blocks, and that was greatly appreciated too.
Thanks all!
posted by sodium lights the horizon at 12:42 PM on November 2, 2017 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by FencingGal at 2:19 PM on October 19, 2017 [8 favorites]