Choosing the Right Product for Your Kids
Kids of all ages are unique, complex and think in wildly different ways. Choose the kind of gifts that will help your child’s talents shine.
The Science of Gift Giving
When I was eleven, on Christmas morning my little brother got a radio-controlled car. Five minutes after it was out of the box, it lay cracked in half on the kitchen floor. By the time Christmas dinner came around, I had pieced it back together and was driving the gift my brother left for dead. This gave my parents valuable insight into their kids’ personalities. I liked to tinker and figure stuff out, my brother was happier with the paint set that was meant for me. By observing how a child plays and approaches the world, you will figure out what gifts will challenge them to learn and explore.
With more choices than ever, gift buying can take on the logistics of a NASA space mission. To simplify things, try to identify the child’s personality type. Though there are countless traits a kid can possess, here are a few specific archetypes that stand out especially while observing children at play:
- The Tech Wiz: – An expert and library of knowledge and technology.
- The Naturalist: – This one sees and preserves the beauty inherent in nature and rusticity.
- The Artist: – Inspiring, passionate, vivid and empathic.
- The Explorer: – Intrepid and fearless. There is no limit.
- The Hard-To-Please: – Critical, but only because they’re still looking for what they want. Help them out!
Each child may not fall under any one of these categories more than another. Maybe they do not fall under any of the mentioned above, but by using this guide you can start to figure out what makes them tick…
Building & Experimenting
If you feel your child is The Tinkerer, odds are they have fun and learn from taking things apart and hopefully putting them back together. Building sets from K’NEX, Meccano, Capsela and Robotix are ideal for such kids ages 6 to 10 because of their many gears, pulleys and motors. Children can combine them for a near-infinite amount of mechanized creations. For the junior scientist, there are many kits that come with all they will need to learn and conduct experiments with such as with chemistry sets, magnet construction sets or the various electronics kits available at EfstonScience.
High Tech & Digital Magic
Those Tech Wiz types always have their eye on the future and anything to do with technology. They will really love the latest PC-interfaced kits from Lego MindStorms – kits they can reconfigure into pretty much anything their imagination can build and hook up to a computer. They will also get excited over the many robotics kits from OWI and Tamiya which will surely keep them interested for months after the holidays are over.
Arts & Imagineering
Imagination comes to life in the hands The Artist where the world is their canvas. Bring to them the art of fragrance with Perfume Science and watch them enjoy the science of smells. Or experience the beautiful side of biology and chemistry in Creative Cosmetics’ science and history of skin care.
Nature & Exploration
So what if your kids display traits of The Naturalist and enjoys animals, plants and the environment? They will be thrilled to unwrap their gift and discover the world of life sciences and natural history. Or give your future biologist, zoologist or researcher a microscope or magnifier so they can get right up close to the action.
Fun & Discovery
If it’s the stars The Explorer in your house wants to shoot for, there are a plethora of solid beginner telescopes on the market today for kids 10 to 12 and up. Beware of poor-quality department store scopes with wobbly mounts and bad optics. Instead, go for a solid instrument from a reputable dealer who can answer all your questions and offer technical service. Instruments like the NewStar 70mm Refractor Telescope and NewStar 4.5″ Equatorial Reflector offer fantastic views of space at a reasonable price. With these modestly-priced telescopes, children who fit this profile can satisfy their curiosity in the heavens and see hundreds of craters on the moon, features on planets like Mars and Jupiter and even distant galaxies, millions of light-years away.
Too Cool for Society
If your child is the The Hard-To-Please-type and it takes a lot to impress them, you cannot go wrong with the Plantraco Butterfly RTF Airplane. This remote-controlled airplane is the world’s smallest and can even be flown in the living room. If flight does not impress them then perhaps growing prehistoric life will! The creepy and gross Triops are distant cousins of the fabulous Sea-Monkeys, freeze-dried life that will hatch in 24 hours and fascinate even the coolest kid on the block.
Great Gifts for Great Kids
Gifts like these, if they are well thought-out for the child you are buying for, will fire their imagination and bring them a world of excitement and satisfaction. Remember, it is not how big or flashy the gift is, what counts is how well that gift taps into your child’s unique personality and what that special connection lets them get out of it.
EfstonScience – Your source for Smart Science Fun
Our staff are always ready to answer your questions and help you exactly find what you are looking for. Drop by the SuperStore or contact us and we’ll make sure you’ve got the perfect gift.
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