The Best STEM Toys for Kids

When deciding what to get for our kids from their birthday and Christmas lists, the majority of the toys we choose to purchase must have a purpose. Open-ended toys that have a “long play life” and that spark imagination and creativity! We realized quickly they like STEM toys for kids.

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Why STEM Toys Are Beneficial For Kids

What are STEM toys? STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math and the toys that fall under this category include at least one of these areas of learning. You may have also seen STEAM which adds in art and creativity.

The future, our kids’ futures, will encompass innovation, creativity, and technology. 

Beth Holloway, director of the Women in Engineering Program at Purdue says that these kinds of toys help kids take an idea and bring it to reality while using motor skills. Confidence is built allowing kids to really make an impact in the world. 

Because of this, I decided to create a gift guide with STEM toys for kids to help you with the perfect toy for your little maker or creator. 

If you don’t know what a maker is as I didn’t until I had one in my house, it’s a person who uses tools and tells stories by making things!

Toy Types

We are a little more on the cautious side when it comes to technology (especially with our toddler – check out what we give him to play with!). The guide has some of the newest and shiniest tech/coding kits but also a lot of traditional building toys and games that instill critical thinking and motor skills kids need to become innovators. 

Read Next: 30 Fun Strategy and Board Games

Most of these items we own and are tested and approved by my kids and their friends. There are a few others I found that may end up under our tree this year. Hint Hint. 

STEM Toys Your Kids Will Love!

1. 3D Pen

Have you heard of a 3D pen? If your child loves to create, it is a must-have. As they become more popular, there are many tutorials and templates online. 

This is my oldest son’s favorite thing to play with right now. I explain the pen to people by comparing it to a glue gun. Plastic filament is fed into the back end, heated up and comes out melted. It hardens quickly and isn’t too hot making it perfect for kids. The pen itself is rather small which works well to travel with (as long as you have somewhere to plug it in).

My nine year old has created many cars, planes, bridges including the San Francisco bridge and the Tower Bridge in London, a flower for his teacher, a pig and pen (of course!), and a lot of other vehicles. 

2. Straw Builders

The straw builder kit comes with flexible straws and two different types of connector pieces. The creations a kid can make are endless. It seems so simple and yet it stimulates learning in an exciting way. 

For a few years now, our bin of straw builders has been THE most used toy in our house. And the most copied. Every time our boys take their bin to the park or camping, the other kids usually love them so much they beg their parents to go buy some too.

My kids have used the straws to make building structures, vehicles they climb in,  guns and weapons and they even made a pretend toilet once. You know, because having a toilet in the middle of the park is hilarious. 

3. Anki Cosmo

Anki Cosmo is an educational robot that uses code to program it. Kids use a Cosmo app to control the small robot.

4. Goldie Blox & The Dunk Tank

I had seen this but didn’t know what it was until I was looking for STEM toys for this post.

This toy is based around a story of the worlds’ first female engineer. She’s given a problem she needs to solve. The kit comes with 55 pieces including hinges and levers for kids to follow along and help Goldie create a dunk tank for her dog.

5. 4M Water Rocket Kit

Our boys have had a few of the stomp rockets, but this one makes it more into an experiment.

This kit uses the power of water to launch a bottle 90 feet into the air! These kits are perfect STEM toys for kids that make learning fun!

6. Scientific Explorer Crime Catchers Spy Science Kit

Scientific Explorer has some great science kits. This one looks like kids could play with it more than once as it has eight different activities. It’s a great introduction to forensic science!

7. Snap Circuits

Snap circuits are electric circuits inside plastic modules that easily snap together. This is a great way to introduce electronics to kids. The kits contain enough pieces to perform electrical experiments so kids can learn about magnetic fields, electromagnetism, static electricity, and parallel and series circuits. 

Friends and family know my son very well so we have a few different sets he got as birthday and Christmas gifts. All the pieces are interchangeable and he has learned how to build them inside and around his Legos. 

8. Piper Computer Kit (Ages 7-13)

Piper is the Raspberry-Pi computer kit and has everything your child needs to build his or her own computer. It is the Raspberry Pi edition of Minecraft through physical controls, switches, buttons & lights. It teaches critical thinking skills, circuits, engineering, electronics, programming and coding with hands-on learning. 

This computer kit allows kids to learn the basics of coding and computer building. It’s the way of the future, right?!

We don’t have this yet, but my kid has learned a lot about Raspberry Pi from books at the library. This looks like a great way to introduce it to him. 

9. Magnet Building Tiles (Ages 3+)

Other toys that gets so much use year after year are Magnet Tiles or Magformers. I have a friend who purged all of her toys and has basically only kept their Magna-tiles because her kids play with them that much. 

These are plastic colored tiles that fit together using magnets. The shapes make it easy to create structures of all kinds. This kind of toy engages spatial and fine motor skills while sparking a child’s imagination. 

10. Hape Quadrilla Wood Marble Run (Ages 4-15)

Marble runs are loved by our family. This is a classic wooden kinetic run that is easy to put together. I also like that kids can exclude the marbles and used the woodblock to build other towers and structures. 

11. Roller Coaster Challenge (Ages 6+)

Thinkfun has incredible one player strategy games. These are great for kids who have a hard time losing against others (ahem, like our middle kiddo) or for introverts.

I was first introduced to these games by a friend who has a son who prefers to be by himself. He loved being intellectually tested without having to be social. She encourages him to play with others but also respects his personality.

The Roller Coaster Challenge is a logic game and a roller coaster building toy. Two in one! The game cards provide a challenge that needs to be solved by building a roller coaster. Once the track is built, the player places the car on the track to see if it can make it to the bottom. 

Other STEM toys for kids from Thinkfun include Gravity Maze, Rush Hour Traffic Jam, Chocolate Fix, Thinking Putty Puzzle, and Laser Maze.

12. Zoob Builderz

Zoob creates kits with building pieces that have axels and joints that fit together. Once the child has something built, they can move the pieces and continue to play. 

We have both Zoob Builderz RC Mover and Z-Strux Lift Sky Crane. The boys really like the mover since it comes with a “body” and remote to make the pieces move. Living in Arizona, they thought it was fun to make a scorpion. I’m okay with it as long as it’s not real. I hate those things! 

The construction set is great because it comes with so many pieces and two little Zoob people. When my son got this (for Christmas), he really wanted a crane. So instead of just a crane, he got to build his own. 

13. Wonder Workshop Dash Robot (Ages 6+)

Dash is a real robot your child can program using a free coding app. Kids are able to give this adorable robot voice commands and explore many different options using the included challenge cards. 

Both my six and nine-year-old love this learning-to-code robot. This toy was their first experience with coding which made it easy and fun. Dash has a really sweet voice. 

14. Thames & Kosmos Kids First Coding & Robotics

Coding is such a great skill for kids to learn but it can be hard for their autonomic nervous systems to constantly be on electronics. I didn’t think it was possible for my boys to learn how to code without being on a computer or smart device until I found this toy!

Instead of needing a screen, kids learn how to code through model building exercises and other lessons.

15. Melissa and Doug Building Blocks

Building blocks are a must to any toy repertoire. With these blocks, kids can have an endless amount of play. 

This Melissa and Doug set provide plenty of different shapes making it easy to balance and build entire cities. The woodblocks are completely smooth. A lot of wooden toys and puzzles come with boxes that fall apart. We have had this one for over four years and I swear it is indestructible.

16. Kano Harry Potter Coding Wand Kit

The wand in this kit marries coding with everyone’s favorite wizard. Following simple set up instructions, your kid can build a wand that responds to movement. 

This is another STEM toy that should be on every gift guide as it teaches about loops, logic, and variables by using JavaScript. 

Kano has many other coding and building computer kits that are definitely worth looking into. 

17. Invent the Greatest Board Game

There are multiple ways for kids to make their own board game using blank game boards and dice. Instead of searching online for all of those items, this game provides it all for you. 

With the Spark! Lab Invention Guide, kids can brainstorm to come up with their own unique game. Talk about critical thinking skills. This game comes with over 220 pieces from a spinner to a sand timer so a fun game can be invented. 

18. littleBits Rule Your Room Kit

littleBits has really great toys for inspiring creators and inventors. They create electronic prototyping platforms for kids to teach them about how electronics work. 

The bits are like little electronic building blocks that connect with a magnetic snap where each piece does something different.

I like this specific kit because it came with something my son was very excited about called a Makey Makey. That’s really what it is called! Say that a few times and try not laughing.

The Makey Makey turns normal objects into touchpads when connected to the internet. Your child can turn a banana into a piano. Ya, I don’t quite get how, but it works! 

19. Scientific Explorer Young Architect Building Set

Have an aspiring architect on your hands? This kit is reusable allowing kids to design 3D models of homes. The floors are made out of tracing paper and the walls out of acrylic so they can easily see from room to room. 

20. K’NEX Imagine – Power and Play Motorized Building Set 

The Power and Play Motorized Building Set has over 500 pieces so your child can create 50 different models. It is also their only set with a motor that expands the opportunities for your child to get creative. 

Was This Gift Guide Helpful for Your Little Creator?

Comment below what toys you love or what you would add to this list!

Post originally published on December 12, 2018, and updated on November 23, 2019.