Can we talk about dinosaurs

[lmhj]

Hello

I'm desperate for some MN help and ideas for DD who will be 7 in December. All she wants is dinosaurs or fossils.

She has a metal detector, used daily.
She has, in my view, all the toy dinosaurs one would ever need.
Her clothes are all dinosaurs.
We have done many of the days out.

I'm stuck.

She seems to be talking about a real dinosaur, a robot one? I can find nothing of her age that would fit this. All more remote control younger.

Is this the year we go for tech and she can build a Dino world or something? Does such a game exist.

I'm reluctant to give animals as a gift. We do have Rex the lizard and diplo the gecko. So that is sufficient.

She breeds butterflies. Collects rocks. Loves crafting. Marble runs.

I am completely out of ideas. Has anyone any genius ideas for main birthday, Christmas gift.

She's a good kid who doesn't really fit in and I would like to get her something that suits her interests

And maybe triops too?

Landmark Dinosaur Park in Carrbridge?
https://www.landmarkpark.co.uk/attraction/dinosaur-kingdom/

I second the suggestion to go to Lyme Regis or Charmouth, one day. If you walk along the beach at Charmouth when the tide is going out little shiny ammonites are just lying there waiting to be picked up, it's fabulous. Just outside Lyme Regis are the most massive ammonites in the rocks I'll try and find a picture.

Coprolite (dinosaur poo in fossil form) is always a fun present!!

my mum decided to sign up for that 150 part dinosaur magazine when my daughter was first born so we have a 4ft dinosaur T rex skeleton in her bedroom called Mr Poopy.He gets decorated with a Santa hat every Christmas

So she loves dinosaurs - last year we got her Coprolites…fossilised poo. Got some cheap from Etsy - she was both grossed out and fascinated by it.

We have also put together a palaeontologist kit for her with bag, tools, vest with lots of pockets which she loved.

lol great minds on the poo

Family games that her sisters can join in.
https://www.nhmshop.co.uk/museum-dinosaur-guess-who-game.html

@Poppins21 haha yes!!

The ammonite pavement at Monmouth beach, Lyme

Jurassic park tamagotchi

I've bought dd8 a set of stackable dinosaur highlighters from Next for her stocking.
Hobbycraft have some dinosaur sewing kits which she has done over summer too. I haven't looked but imagine combining dinosaurs and craft will bring up lots of results on Google.

Dinosaur pin badges? Lots on etsy

Dd is also just starting to get into dragons too, maybe you dd would like that which opens another avenue

We did a really informative fossil walk along Runswick Bay - just north of whitby which we all loved
www.fossils-uk.com/yorkshire-fossil-hunting-trips-i17

If you have time to enjoy it with her, buy her the Dinogenics board game.

It's not very easy to get hold of because it was a kickstarter game, but it is possible (be careful about the language you buy it in though)

https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/210296/dinogenics lists a few places that are selling.

It's a really brilliant game. A worker-placement type game ie there are 8ish different actions you can take each turn, and you have 5 workers to take those actions so you can't do everything each round. The scenario is that you are each trying to build and populate a dinosaur theme park, and you need to collect DNA of different dinosaurs and make sure you have appropriate enclosures to keep them in, appropriate food to feed them and hotels for the tourists who visit your park.

A RockWatch subscription (and she's perfect age for their Dorset residential in August)

I bought DD dinosaur poo for her stocking one year and an ammonite necklace that she still wears regularly 10 years on

There’s nothing wrong with being weird. She’ll find her tribe as she gets older. Dungeons and Dragons had been my DD’s saviour as she’s got older - gorgeous geeky kids who march to the beat of their own drum.

https://www.nhmshop.co.uk/monopoly-dinosaurs.html

Looks good

I have a 15 year old DD who has been dinosaur obsessed since she was about 3. Like your DD struggled with friendships etc. She's unsurprisingly on the neurodevelopment pathway now awaiting diagnosis for autism.

She's fab. She wants to be a paleontologist and knows exactly how she's going to get there. She's found her tribe as she's got older too at secondary school.

Agree with the encyclopedia prehistorica. It is an absolutely beautiful book.

A lot of stuff aimed at kids gets gimmicky doesn't it and then well informed dino grandad get annoyed at it not being correct.

DD has a lovely world map made up of dinosaurs print which she got when she was little and is still up there. Got from Etsy or something I think.

Does she have fossil hunting kit? Zoic paleo tech do a good beginner hunting kit. Comes in a nice box with safety goggles, hammer etc. If she sticks with it then they do very reasonable kit for fossil prepping. Even now you could get a polishing kit to polish some of her finds. It makes little pebbles with stuff like crinoid stems in look beautiful.

Digital microscope with camera function has been a long term hit here too. Can look up closer at some of the crystallisation in finds, look for micro fossils in sand etc. We got a Dino lite.

You could consider a guided fossil walk too. I only know Yorkshire coast ones because of where we live but if you were visiting that way then the ones run by the natural wonders fossil shop in Whitby are good. Spending rather more the Yorkshire Fossil Hunter does private ones so would just be you and whoever you invite.

Lego also fab. We have ended up with some excellent sets over the years.

Oh and some great dinosaur board/card games around. Happy little dinosaurs would be good for her age.

I absolutely adore Dinosaur Island but that's for in a few years for you I think as it is quite complicated!

Yes this is a great book

There is also paloe vet which is a lovely little card game

Thank you for this. Just bought my 14 year old one of the necklaces, currently planning to be a palentologist - fortunately their school does geology GCSE

If you have megabucks to spend, these are absolutely incredible toys! I know it’s a pet, but it has such lifelike movements, and you train it using a click trainer. Discontinued and only really available on eBay now but my dino mad son was absolutely in love with his.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/276293437003?_nkw=alpha+training+blue.+Velociraptor+Jurassic+Park&itmmeta=01J6MVXYMBGX7DDCN3SYJVJ922&hash=item40545f464b:g:-lAAAOSwB6llquwF&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAA8HoV3kP08IDx%2BKZ9MfhVJKkEy9oxAqHbcYgOGkvlyCAfuVpJICZiPuYSP1i%2FbAqjMQKIyG2RxWB33Lx9t1X%2B%2BiYJzKD%2FKDZezGO%2BV7haMBs0I4IYD%2BHfD2ahlzkwjlkASubyIbRywxbbWvlIZEZq3eqkz6%2BlyQ%2BMsvp35aP2%2FkZ278sJ%2BojrUrAAM7d2FVk4hAWqzBZ2Q%2FDIg9mEicxfkuI7jhvayJjLQhwMstwyJ4%2Fj3ZrjO98cbY5V8jxgqF9%2FwW7HLQhk9o66huUIXchZiI6k8G6sb9%2B%2BJ7sGYy1r3RGzBctmwOW--bHtEQmnfSV1Mg%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR57q95u1ZA

+1 for the genuine fossils, DS loves those and also a genuine meteorite we got him last Xmas.

If you’re doing an Edinburgh trip for the museum - we love it there! - then definitely consider both the exhibitions and the shows at https://www.dynamicearth.org.uk There’s lots about prehistory and the earth’s formation in the exhibition, the planetarium shows are more space oriented usually but there’s a variety on.

We got my Dino mad daughter a mini set of display drawers for her fossil finds at that age, and had a little sign made to go on them saying 'DDs Museum'

She's now going into upper sixth, loving geology a level and hoping to go and 'do dinosaurs' at Bristol next. She's been obsessed since she was 2 :-)

I was going to suggest this.

There are lots of dino options.

I’m also a fan of this book as it teaches you how to build Lego dinosaurs from ordinary Lego pieces, rather than following the step by step instructions in a kit, so it teaches how to create with LEGO. Probably not a main present though.

Lego dino book

Smiggle have a magnetic pop out Jurassic Park pencil case
https://www.smiggle.co.uk/shop/en/smiggleuk/jurassic-park-pop-out-pencil-case

(Other similar products are available elsewhere, this one is ~£13)

Jo

Magnatiles with all the extension kits (not exactly what you asked for but tactile which sounds like she might like). You need at least 100 pieces to really get going so it’s an investment - but we’ll play with ours forever.
Books about fossils, dinosaurs etc (there is a beautiful one with lots of fossils in it). Links below.

https://smallkins.com/products/magna-tiles-dino-world-50-piece-set-stacking-toys?variant=44263204094198&currency=GBP&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAAChfusAhiOLAVljJ-_Y8YWOvvfRRa&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_sq2BhCUARIsAIVqmQtrjbXSSWcF2R1Df8dzGVO9IM_TvlUfuAOn5Ej2bRWmzlKrwEv5b_kaAucpEALw_wcB

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wonders-Nature-Ben-Hoare/dp/0241386217