Young Science nerd/geek

[Methenyouplus4]

Our gorgeous middle son (nearly 6) is obsessed with non-fiction information such as: dinosaurs, volcanoes, insects, how things work, the planets etc etc.

He soaks up all such books and his teacher has said his general knowledge is far above that of his peers BUT he is awaiting a dyslexia diagnosis at school, so we are currently reading all of these to him.

Can anyone suggest some lovely gifts from Santa for such a boy? He already has a globe/ bug collecting kit/ books thst don't rely heavily on words (e.g. maps, insects etc).

Ideas gratefully received.

Oh, and he already has Lego (passed down from big brother) and magnatiles (from grandparents last year).

www.brightminds.co.uk/collections/science-toys

Some great ideas! I bought a Crystal growing kit for a kid a while ago, was pretty cool but there are some cool other stuff.

Tickets to a science museum? Could even get tickets for one of those "sleepover at the museum" things. You get those fun build a robot kits nowadays as well

A microscope, one he can plug into a computer. Check out the science museum shop. I had an electronics kit but I think I was a bit older. Raspberry pi but again maybe in a year or two.

Or a little tablet (wee brother got one for £50 when he was 10) and he can have those national discovery apps and use it to learn science stuff - some of the apps read aloud and have special apps that can put colours on pages to make books easier to read for dyslexics. Just make sure you get a durable case for it. A lot of phone companies and currys/pc world will set up parental locks on it properly for free.

Snap circuits.

Brilliant ideas-thank you.

Checked and most of the sleep over museum events are down South (we live NE), but it did make me think I would renew our long expired Centre for Life ticket.

Microscope is a wonderful idea as he got a book on microbes and is now obsessed with cells etc. Can anyone advise on a good one, seems to be a huge range in price and would like something he can actually see something.

That Science shop linked is fab, but has reminded me to check out TK Maxx which often has such things.

He already has a tablet so that would be a great idea to add extra apps (not for chistmas as such but in general). Different colour screens would help (he currently thinks a purple acetate helps) but is still just able to do cat/had etc so will be some time before he is able to engage with anything that relies on you being able to read instructions.

Snap circuits look amazing! Thank you all so much.

for a microscope, the key requirement is to have a very good light. If there is only a mirror, the microscope will only work if you can position it in direct sunlight. Get one with an led light source if you can. And get some sample slides with it because it is hard to make good slides at home.

One word of warning re the snap circuits, if he advances on to breadboards/more advanced electronics

At 9 I loved reading (still do) but obviously had a time to put the book away and go to sleep. I had an alarm set up so I could continue reading and when my mum started to climb the stairs I would know to put the book down.

Marlins have electronic projects and if he starts with the snap circuits and wants to move on to components then they are really cheap from Amazon. In my day I used to buy them from Tandy - I miss Tandy.

For a microscope I'd suggest a portable and /or digital microscope. You can get a digital one that will plug into a laptop for about £10 - 15 and that will give you a much better range of magnification than a traditional one for the same price. BUT this will not be his microscope for life, it will be a starter. Also with a digital and a computer he will be bale to print out images.

A portable or pocket microscope can be taken to the park.

www.lightinthebox.com/en/p/microscope_p6332471.html?currency=GBP&litb_from=paid_adwords_shopping&country_code=gb&utm_source=google_shopping&utm_medium=cpc&adword_mt=&adword_ct=230396852045&adword_kw=&adword_pos=1o10&adword_pl=&adword_net=g&adword_tar=&adw_src_id=3516490533_855199413_47074009806_pla-379873812441&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIl8b87NyE3AIVhDgbCh1bdQsPEAkYCiABEgLjifD_BwE

www.thegiftandgadgetstore.com/product/natural-history-museum-pocket-microscope?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiJDY9t2E3AIVOCjTCh065gAsEAkYEiABEgI0r_D_BwE

Maplins not marlins.

I second a portable microscope for the garden/Park. And if you’re getting a desktop microscope, make sure it’s simple enough that he can use it without adult help.

A giant desktop magnifying glass is also great.

An ant farm or worm farm might be good.

Kit to raise butterflies (though it can be very traumatic saying goodbye)

Lidl do excellent child size garden tools in wood and metal that will stand up to serious digging.

Glow in the dark stars for his ceiling

Not a gift per se but The Magic Schoolbus on Netflix might appeal to him at this age.

This is a really good thread! My daughter's are both into this stuff and its nice to see ideas beyond 'stink bomb etc' kits. That dont work.