National Geographic Geodes Kit

Smash-and-bash geodes

Lego Education Spike Essential Kit

Hands-on Lego learning

$21 at Amazon

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Check out some of our favorite toy gift ideas that fall squarely in that STEM space. From magnetic building blocks to a cool robot factory and even a chocolate pen for budding chefs, here are our picks for the best STEM toys to give your children. These hands-on educational toys and activities will get young kids building, blending and exploring to help light a spark within. We won’t blame you for wanting to play with them yourself.

Kids who love candy (and who doesn’t?) will appreciate this Gummy Candy Lab kit. Not only will they learn about different chemistry concepts, but they’ll get to munch on delicious treats in the process. The kit comes with everything they’ll need for candy-making, including a plastic mold, carrageenan (a natural gelatin), cherry and lemon flavorings, and storage bags. Maybe if you’re really nice, they’ll share.

If you are looking for coding toys, Artie teaches coding line-by-line… by drawing lines on paper. Kids program this expressive bot buddy to doodle designs with three color markers loaded in its back. It has built-in tutorials and an easy-to-follow guide so kids can jump right in after unboxing — and seeing something happen on paper gives immediate gratification. It teaches five coding languages: Blockly, Snap!, JavaScript, Python and C++.

Artie can also sense colors and follow lines, be remote controlled, and it has a “cliff sensor” to avoid falling off tables. 

Circuit Explorer is kind of like Lego, but this STEM skills toy teaches the very basics of how a circuit works in programming. Kids learn that they need to connect the lines on the side to complete a circuit and make things light up or move. Choose from three different sets with rocket ships, Mars rovers and space stations or mix and match parts to invent your own monster machine. They can even connect with Lego bricks. 

Thames & Kosmos make some of the best build-it-yourself engineering toys and they are often hard to find. (We’re looking at you, Candy Claw Machine and Mega Cyborg Hand.) But here’s one fun gem that we’re still seeing widely available: This wacky, waving, inflatable arm-flailing tubeman has a blower that lets kids conduct experiments with air pressure, air flow and aerodynamics. Air basketball. Air cannon. Air tube man. Good for ages 8 and up, and we stress the “up” because obviously you want this for your desk. (No judgment here.)

Here’s a different twist on the DIY robot. Kids can build anything their young minds can imagine out of plastic with this 3D printing pen. The 3Doodler Start Plus is slim and light, making it easier for small hands to hold. With a 30-minute charge, this pen melts sticks of plastic so kids can draw them into any shape, but the nozzle and melted plastic are not hot — so it won’t burn little hands. (And I’ve tested it; you can put the tip to your skin and draw on your finger. I had no worries giving it to my kids.) Draw right on paper or a table and the plastic creation pops right off. 

It comes with 72 filament strands and an activity guide with 10 new projects. To take the learning up a notch, there’s a $9 Edu Stem Accessory Kit with more activities.

There are easy ways to get kids crafty even if you aren’t the crafty type. I subscribe to KiwiCo Crates, which are hands-on learning activities in a box. Packed with a few science and engineering lessons, they come in the mail and cater to different age groups. I’m a long-time subscriber for my kids, and I like the quality of items. But it’s not just for tiny tikes; there are boxes for all sorts of ages — even engineering boxes for adults. Subscriptions start at $16.95 per month, but you can also shop the KiwiCo Store o purchase items individually. 

This cute robot for ages 5 and up teaches basic programming, has various challenges and is screen-free with no phone or tablet required. Botley can detect objects and move around them, follow looping commands, navigate obstacle courses and follow a black line your kid designs. And with an included 46-piece activity set, there’s plenty to keep kids busy.

I’m a fan of this geometric brain-training toy. There are many spins on the magnetic building-blocks trend, but I’ve personally taken a liking to Magformers in how it’s designed and the options available for different types of box sets, so it can expand easily for different age ranges. My advice: Get a starter set with wheels, so kids can give their creations some speed. Some models can even be controlled by remote. 

More holiday recommendations

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