National S.T.E.M or S.T.E.A.M Day is celebrated on the 8th of November each year and for those of you who have visited my blog before, you know I enjoy reading STEM books and even have featured a few toys earlier. So here is a STEAM Gift Guide for you to celebrate and promote S.T.E.M. or as it now called S.T.E.A.M (with the inclusion of Arts!!)
Books (fiction and non-fiction) and toys (those that look totally like STEM and those that don’t but are) for boys and girls of all ages!
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STEAM Gift Guide: Books
Non-fiction
How To Think Like An Absolute Genius: A really cool read for the 9 to 14 year old audience that I believe can be a gift for anyone. You can check my full review of the book here.
How We Got to the Moon: This book is a spectacular out-of-the-world read that informs and entertains all at once. Check out my full review of the book here. (for 10 – 17 year-olds, but again, for everyone!)
Fiction
The talented duo of Andrea Beaty and David Roberts have delivered so many wonderful, empowering STEAM books. You can check out my reviews of all the STEAM books here
The Invention of Hugo Cabret: Another fictional read that is so very STEAM oriented. I loved the book and all that it inspired us to do and learn. I talk about the book in this post as well as again here (among various mentions).
Image is of a diorama my son made as part of a book report in elementary school (inset is an image from within the book)
The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate: A spunky heroine who is a naturalist in the making, a story that is endearing to the very end, and a tale that has lots to impart without letting the reader know they are learning!! This charming children’s fictional read is a must-read. Check out my thoughts on this book here.
STEAM Gift Guide: Toys and Games
Educational Insights Kanoodle: This is another favorite item I love to gift. A perfect stocking stuffer, this one is great for taking on road trips or for plane journeys where you have to remain seated for hours.
Math for Love Prime Climb: This is a game I have ordered for myself. It is designed for pre-teens and teens, and is sure to help them grasp tough math concepts through play!
STEAM Gift Guide: And Some More
KLUTZ Lego Make Your Own Movie Kit: I recall my son used this kit to make stop motion movies years ago, when he was still in elementary school. I somehow seem to have lost the couple of videos he made unfortunately and hope they turn up somehow, somewhere in my digital archives. But that said, this is a really cool kit and I highly recommend it for all who love the notion of stop motion, and for all who love Lego.
Elenco’s Snap Circuits Classic Kit: This is one of my favorite gifts to give (starting with one for my own kids to at least a dozen others at last count)! It guarantees hours of fun and learning, and works across so many age groups. You can also look at other Snap Circuits options for those who want something simpler or at an expert level.
Sillbird STEM 12-in-1 Education Solar Robot Toys: I bought this one recently (just this month) as an effort to include it in my annual Navratri doll display which had a science theme. Unfortunately, I ordered it too late and we did not have enough time to build it for the event, but we are going to work on it when my son gets home for Thanksgiving. It sure looks like loads of fun for everyone!!
Learning Resources Gears! Gears! Gears! : I got a gear set from Learning Resources what seems like eons ago now for my kids. They loved it all – the colors, the gears, the endless hours of fun and building. It is definitely super cool and gets everyone involved.
Related Reads
- 5 Ways to Support Women And Girls In Science (this post includes links to many more books!)
- Code Your Own Adventure
- Little Learning Labs: Astronomy for Kids
- 4 Super Cool STEAM Books That You Will Love
- Dream Builder: From Kid Artist to Wonderful Builder of Dreams
- 3 Great STEM Book Series for Young Readers
- A Baker’s Dozen Worth of Interesting Reads
- Celebrate World Space Week with These Out of the World Reads
- 15 Stocking Stuffers for Kids of all Ages Under $15 – Part 2 of Holiday Gift List
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And Now, the End of This Post
Dear reader, do you think any of these items will make it into your gift list for yourself or for loved ones this holiday season? Or for other special celebrations? Which one appeals to you the most? And if you have read/used any of these yourself, what are your thoughts on the same? I would love to hear from you. In addition, I would love to hear your recommendations for something similar so I can check them out for myself. And your suggestions and comments on this post are always welcome.
What a great list of gifts. Any one of these would be a thoughtful and inspiring choice. I love the idea of STEM /STEAM gifts and ill definitely pass these along. Thanks for all the ideas.
What an awesome list! Lia loves the gears and kanoddles! I’m so glad the added the Arts to STEM.
Great list of gifts for children to be educational and enjoyable. I’m a retired middle school language arts/literature teacher, and I appreciate the addition of “Art” to STEM.
There are so many cool science books and toys. When I was Christmas shopping for my niece, I kept stopping in an aisle that had science experiment projects. I can’t wait for her to be old enough to care about that stuff. Right now, she’s 2 years old and too chaotic for projects.
This is an incredible list! Adding some of these to the Christmas list!
How to Think Like and Absolute Genius is going on my list for my oldest!
This was a fabulous detailed list. I can use some of these for my grandson! 👓🏨👜🍕😊
All amazing gift ideas! I’m getting my daughter a few of them too!