With so much technology and entertainment all around us, it can be hard to keep kids minds engaged.
Rather than buy yet another TV or game-related toy, why not exercise their skills and their developing minds with an educational STEM toy or kit?
I’ve put together a list of the best educational STEM toys for kids of all ages so children can combine having fun with learning too!
What are STEM toys?
Stem Toys are toys based on principles of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths. They are created to encourage curiosity and learning.
STEM learning is a big buzz word in education right now.
It essentially means developing kids' skills and focus in the four areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.
And, while plenty of this happens in a school setting, STEM Toys are a great way to reinforce these key areas of learning in a fun way.
What are some STEM activities?
STEM isn't a new thing and something as apparently simple as building LEGO is a STEM activity.
There are also plenty of easy fun science experiments you can do at home that will reinforce learning and spark an interest in all things STEM.
STEM learning helps to teach children all kinds of skills, in addition to scientific and mathematical concepts.
Kids can learn about creativity, curiosity, problem solving, lateral thinking, perseverance, acceptance of failure, critical thinking, leadership, decision making and entrepreneurship.
What are the best STEM toys?
STEM toys can therefore include anything from coding to building to basic math building skills.
The skills taught are foundational learning skills that can easily be applied from a young age, so there are STEM toys for children of all ages.
The best STEM toys encourage kids to explore, experiment and invent.
They help to promote critical thinking skills and creative thinking in young minds.
And, in a world dominated by computers and technology, these STEM learning toys offer screen-free and immersive ways to develop logic, grasp scientific concepts and promote problem solving abilities.
A few of the toys on our list do bring STEM into screen time, but most of them help to separate your child from their screens as they learn in ways that just don’t feel like learning.
Our list contains some of the best learning toys around for all ages, from toddler and preschooler to school age kids.
There are fun and engaging toys for kids from toddlers to age 12+ so you are sure to find some fun and engaging toys your child will love on this list.
Scroll down to check out the full list of the best educational STEM toys for kids!
Kids as young as 3-5 years old will enjoy this fun and creative toy.
Watch as they practice fine motor skills, hand to eye coordination, creative play, and more.
It includes over 500 pieces for endless possibilities and hours of fun.
This is a toy that will grow with your kids and last for years.
Suitable for ages 3 up, this magnetic toy lets kids explore all kinds of patterns and structures.
Magna Tiles are the ultimate open-ended educational STEM toy that will get hours of play as they learn about shapes, colours, patterns, cause and effect, hand-eye coordination, and so much more.
This is one toy they will play with for hours and hours!
I’m not going to lie, I’m kind of jealous of how cool toys are nowadays!
Perfect for kids aged 8 and up, they can create logic marble games.
Grab a challenge card and get to work setting up a structure to reach your target.
Kids will have hours of fun practicing building, logical thinking, and so much more.
This engaging STEM toy introduces different aspects of coding to kids as young as 3-6 years old.
Each piece includes a dial to programme a path and there are more than 1,000 different combinations.
Younger minds will LOVE this fun and exciting toy, and they won’t even know they’re learning!
From practicing math skills to composing their own songs, kids can engage in 5 different levels of musical game play, so they are sure to have hours of educational fun.
Kids aged 3+ will LOVE building their own instruments!
But it doesn’t stop there as you can make so many different structures.
Watch as they practice building skills, colours, creative play, and more as well as develop math and science skills through building.
This 55-piece activity set is perfect for engaging the minds of kids aged 5 and up.
Your child will practice critical thinking, cause and effect, coding skills, and so much more as they assemble the robot and track. This is sure to keep kids busy and engaged for hours.
Learn, play, and grow with this exciting robot toy.
Children as young as 4 can practice coding on their tablets using these little robots.
Watch them solve puzzles at varying difficulty levels as they press, slide, or rotate their robot helping them to learn foundational skills.
This is a toy your child can grow with as it has 100+ levels to take them from Preschool all the way up to age 12.
This is a classic puzzle toy from SmartGames that the whole family will love.
From age 7, kids will engage in critical thinking, planning, and problem solving by going through the different challenges to stop the stolen car.
If you want to take coding to a whole new level, Dash robot is perfect.
Starting at age 6, kids can give Dash voice commands to explore loops, events, conditions, and sequences.
Extend play with free apps, challenge cards, and more.
This little robot is the ultimate educational STEM toy for kids.
Kids everywhere will LOVE this science project based toy.
Starting at age 3, they can explore various physics concepts as they launch the glow-in-the-dark rockets up into the air.
The best part is it’s super simple to assemble and launch.
If your child is amazed by cause and effect, they will love this kit.
Starting at age 8, they will get to build moving machines to practice physics skills.
It includes the pieces and directions to build 10 different types of machines from a seesaw with a ramp to a falling hammer.
LEGO fans everywhere will LOVE this activity kit.
Get your preschooler started with a primary science kit to make all kinds of cool projects!
Included is a 22-piece set such as beaker, flask, dropper, project cards, and so much more.
Perfect for budding scientists of all ages.
This is the ultimate girl empowerment STEM toy.
Featuring a female engineer, kids will get to read a story and follow along building a spinning machine.
Ideal for kids aged 4 and up, this kit includes 34 pieces, 9 build ideas, and more.
If you’re looking to get the smallest hands on their first STEM toy, this is a great option.
For toddlers aged 18 months and up, they will get to explore magnetic tactile building pieces.
The set includes 20 pieces of rods and balls with various textures.
Great for small hands who are learning to build as they explore their senses.
Girls aged 8-12 will love getting their hands dirty in foundational chemistry elements.
This set includes essential items for learning about chemical reactions, molecular motion, and the effects of temperature.
Kids are sure to not just learn, but have fun doing it!
No matter if you’re simply working on shape and colour recognition or working on creating different pictures, kids are sure to get lots of value with this set.
Included are 40 pieces of coloured wooden shapes to get kids engaged in building and creative play.
Younger kids will enjoy this engaging counting toy for learning early maths skills.
Simply line up the cards and stack the wooden pieces to help them visualise number.
It also includes arithmetic cards to support learning.
Kids will not only learn counting but also colour recognition, patterns, hand to eye co-ordination, fine motor skills, and so much more.
Have a preschooler who adores bunny rabbits?
They will LOVE practicing matching and sorting these carrots.
Helps kids practice fine motor skills and more as they match different sized carrots into the appropriate holes.
The only thing more fun than running a race car across the floor is BUILDING one first.
Kids aged 3 and up will love to use a motorized drill to build their own car to play with.
This set includes the car body, drill, bolts, stickers, and more.
More educational STEM ideas:
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