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Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

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Re: Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

#11

Post by eimrine »

schwartzworld wrote: post #10
eimrine wrote: post #6

How about just talking as much time as possible? Books are always boring, especially ebooks. Games can not be creative, except of maybe sport activities. Just go somewhere outdoors and who knows maybe you will manage to buy some good books or maybe you will manage to find some street games to explore. Walking and talking about the right things is the very source of our culture, Pythagoreans used to educate themselves…

Your comment is so weird and tone-deaf. Someone asks for game recommendations and you tut tut at them for it. If you don't have anything constructive to contribute to the conversation, why comment at all? > How about just talking as much time as possible? If OPs seven year old is anything like mine, this is the default. Getting them to stop talking to you is the trick. Sounds selfish and shitty right? But nobody can…

Consider this as a game advice but not a technological game.

> they know video games exist and want to use them. Because so many of them are low quality, parents may have to seek recommendations like this thread.

But also they know that a not-advised-by-parents games do exists as well and they are pretty easy to reach on the same device which can run every link or ebook from this topic. Tiktok/insta/whatever will magnetize them and this addictive bond has to be considered.

Re: Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

#12

Post by prawn »

We've found that watercolour pencils are great in helping them with detailed art that might be beyond some children straight painting at that age.

Not books or games, and not sure where your child is at with her drawing, but my kids (similar age) have enjoyed following along with this channel: https://www.youtube.com/@artforkidshub

Creative games that we have and like:

  https://www.thinkfun.com/products/gravity-maze/
  https://www.thinkfun.com/products/sweet-logic/
  https://www.thinkfun.com/products/rush-hour/
Clip Circuit: https://www.amazon.com.au/Advanced-Lab-Electronic-Clip-Circu...

We have a lot of GraviTrax also: https://www.ravensburger.us/discover/gravitrax/gravitrax-sta...

Re: Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

#13

Post by everythingabili »

I teach creative coding and maintain a site that has a list of creative tools (graphics, music, coding, writing, game-making) that are mainly free, and web-based. You can filter them by "easiness".

https://digitalcreativitytools.everythingability.com/

I made the site for university students, but I have tested/vetted all of the tools myself, often with my child who is now just 11. There are some activities you could do with her too. The Inspiration section might throw up some useful stuff for you both.

With regards to game-making, Scratch is a great starting point, but recently we have been really enjoying working with gDevelop - a free, no-code game engine. The videos on YouTube are great to get you both started. Twine (Chapbook) has been a fun tool for creating interactive adventure games, and this Zine-maker is ace https://alienmelon.itch.io/electric-zine-maker

Re: Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

#14

Post by prawn »

eimrine wrote: post #11
schwartzworld wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your comment is so weird and tone-deaf. Someone asks for game recommendations and you tut tut at them for it. If you don't have anything constructive to contribute to the conversation, why comment at all? > How about just talking as much time as possible? If OPs seven year old is anything like mine, this is the default. Getting them to stop talking to you is the trick. Sounds selfish and shitty right? But nobody can…

Consider this as a game advice but not a technological game. > they know video games exist and want to use them. Because so many of them are low quality, parents may have to seek recommendations like this thread. But also they know that a not-advised-by-parents games do exists as well and they are pretty easy to reach on the same device which can run every link or ebook from this topic. Tiktok/insta/whatever will mag…

OP didn't necessarily specify digital games. There are physical creative/STEM games that they can buy online from a link.

Re: Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

#15

Post by groffee »

ZeroGravitas wrote: post #3

How to Make Monstrous, Huge, Unbelievably Big Bubbles Book by David Stein > How to blow soap bubbles 20-feet long and more, by architect David Stein, inventor of the Bubble Thing (which comes attached to the book) https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/558727

Well I'm not 7, but I'm definitely interested in that!

Re: Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

#16

Post by prawn »

everythingabili wrote: post #13

I teach creative coding and maintain a site that has a list of creative tools (graphics, music, coding, writing, game-making) that are mainly free, and web-based. You can filter them by "easiness". https://digitalcreativitytools.everythingability.com/ I made the site for university students, but I have tested/vetted all of the tools myself, often with my child who is now just 11. There are some activities you could d…

My son is in the STEM extension program at his school (9-10yo) and they start with Scratch and then move up to Pictoblox (based on Scratch): https://thestempedia.com/product/pictoblox/

Re: Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

#17

Post by spiffytech »

There's an old game from the 90s I loved : The Incredible Machine.

It's all about devising elaborate Rube Goldberg machines to solve puzzles. The cat knocks a ball into the goldfish bowl, which tips over and fills a bucket that operates a pulley that flips a switch that opens a door. That kind of thing.

I remember it being very freeform and exploratory, teaching cause and effect and physics and thinking through complex interaction chains.

I was probably around 7 when I played it. Very age appropriate.

It's available on a web-based DOS emulator!

https://www.myabandonware.com/game/the-incredible-machine-1m...

Probably downloadable somewhere too.

Re: Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

#18

Post by ajonit »

I can relate to you, always looking for activities that are both fun and productive to keep her busy. Every evening I spend time and let speak her mind, her thoughts about school or whatever goes in her mind. She has never ending "Why?" :)

Few things she had liked so far -

  World/Asia/Country specific maps arranged as puzzles.
  Legos/Block games.
  Coloring books.
  Cycling.
Starting scratch this weekend - https://scratch.mit.edu/

Re: Ask HN: Technology/creative books and games for my daughter (7 years)

#19

Post by thetoon »

prawn wrote: post #12

We've found that watercolour pencils are great in helping them with detailed art that might be beyond some children straight painting at that age. Not books or games, and not sure where your child is at with her drawing, but my kids (similar age) have enjoyed following along with this channel: https://www.youtube.com/@artforkidshub Creative games that we have and like: https://www.thinkfun.com/products/gravity-maze/…

For what it's worth, we had much better response from our kids with Gravitrax the Game (https://www.ravensburger.co.uk/en-GB/products/gravitrax/expe...) than the regular one. The material is basically the same (and thus could also work at extending a starter set), but there are cards with puzzle included, difficulty ramps up nicely, and the kids got more involved than with the "freeform" approach.

Turing Tumble has also been a big hit at our place, but it's clearly more for older kids (https://upperstory.com/turingtumble/)

UpperStory also has a new game (Spintronics) which looks awesome, but I haven't had the opportunity to test it.

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