Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
1–10 of 144 posts
Hello! Can the HN community recommend me a STEM toy (or similar that would educate and entertain him) for my 3 yo boy? He's highly curious but I can't find many things to play with him :( The things that I like bore him and the things that he likes bore me (or are way too messy and dangerous to let him do them)...
Re: Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
#2Three seems a little young for STEM. Maybe something like Playskool Explore 'N Grow Busy Gears? Or the larger size legos (Duplo)?
Re: Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
#3Lego.
Re: Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
#4My kid of this age loves the Brio Builder range: https://www.brio.net/products/all-products/builder
Re: Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
#5Wooden train tracks, such as Thomas the Tank Engine, are usually popular. They also make a smaller set if you don't want the railroad to take up a whole room.
Re: Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
#6"12 Awesome (& Educational) STEM Subscription Boxes for Kids"
https://stemeducationguide.com/subscription-boxes-for-kids/
Tape measure with big numbers, ruler(s)
Measuring cup, water, ice.
"Melissa & Doug Sunny Patch Dilly Dally Tootle Turtle Target Game (Active Play & Outdoor, Two Color Self-Sticking Bean Bags, Great Gift for Girls and Boys - Best for 3, 4, 5, and 6 Year Olds)"
Set of wooden blocks in a wood box; such as "Melissa & Doug Standard Unit Blocks"
...
https://sugarlabs.org/ , GCompris mouse and keyboard games with a trackpad and a mouse, ABCMouse, Khan Academy Kids, Code.org, ScratchJr (5-7), K12 Computer Science Framework https://k12cs.org/
Re: Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
#7I have a 6 yo girl that is very Math oriented, and she always loved playing with magnet building tiles:
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61U4If6YrxL...
Re: Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
#8What about just a wooden horse or a ball? I understand every parent wants the best for their children and every family is different, but I thank my stars my parents did not push to me any "educational" stuff.
Re: Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
#9Pens, paper, boxes, wooden bricks, some backyard junk. Simple things that will spark his imagination and make him design and invent.
Re: Ask HN: STEM toy for a 3 years old?
#10Duplo works well. Get an educational pack to maximize the basic bricks you get with it. Otherwise specialty sets can get old quickly.