Would prefer it to not be “hair” 'makeup" girlish oriented, but rather something challenging for her mind. I am her Uncle, and would like something maybe aimed at DIY outside of Lego if you know what I mean. Budget is small, maybe 39.99? Can move either way if needed
Advice, much needed as a 36 y/o male with no kids
I once bought my niece a marble run. I got some shit for it, because I guess some people just don’t get it? But she loved it, and my 6-year-old daughter now loves marble runs too.
My daughter also collects rocks, so a rock tumbler was a big one for her.
Another gift for a niece I got shit for was a drum. She loved it. She was so excited that it was a real instrument. My brother always said he’d get me back, but my daughter got a full-ass drum kit for Christmas, and I think it’s great.
Oh, and make your own slime kits are huge right now. It’s science-y, DIY, and kids love slime.
I had a marble run at about 6. It was awesome.
I was about that age when I was gifted a microscope. No idea if you can still find them that cheap, though
Yes, also had a microscope at around that age, even with some sample plates that you could look at, such as a squeezed fly.
Might be able to build one, could be worth looking into, thanks!
I also got a microscope around this age - now I’m an environmental scientist
Another good one would be an easier STEMmy puzzle. I had one that was a bunch of shapes that had to fit together into its small case. Kinda of Tetris like.
In my area’s thrift stores, $500 microscopes are available for $10, no joke. People buy them for their kids, kids never use them, into the box and off to the donation center!
We gave our 5yo a microscope for his 5th birthday, and he loved it!
My 6 year old son absolutely loves the Snap Circuits kits. We’ve also started teaching him collectable card games (Pokémon, Yu Gi Oh , etc) which challenge his reading and strategy skills. Plus great quality time activity. There are tons of Stem kits out there for less than $40.
Sent me back mentioning those snap circuits lol. Have her build the simple AM radio and watch her mind be blown OP, you won’t be disappointed
Yugioh and snap kits were my faves back then, now over 20y later I’m still playing yugioh and soldering, so I’d say it was a worthy investment of my family and my free time. Problem-solving card text is probably good for understanding programming logic, too.
There are also kits for learning about electricity for kids of that age. For making a light switch or making a doorbell buzzer and simple things like that.
Now that sounds amazing, any kits or companies that sell something she may like
SnapCircuits!
They have a bunch of different kits, there’s like a music one that’ll even let you make a circuit that plays music from a phone.
They are absolutely a WONDERFUL introduction to electricity for a kid.
She needs a sword. It’s educational.
K’NEX. I used to build all kinds of cool stuff out of those when I was a kid.
Is she too young for an Arduino starter kit?
https://store-usa.arduino.cc/products/arduino-starter-kit-multi-language
Edit: the great thing about these is that you can eventually add a raspberry pi to the mix for even more functionality and learning fun!
I have a couple smart nieces. One of them did want LEGO — she wanted a whole LEGO-themed party. I was the only one who bought her an actual LEGO set, not one of the ones aimed specifically at girls (LEGO and Friends, IIRC). Yeah, guess whose she wanted to actually build — and guess who she recruited for help doing it, while all the other sets sat in boxes (dunno if they were ever opened).
Beyond that, I stuck to the “edutainment” aisle. Science-y stuff. Books are another good option, if you can find a fantasy series with light romance (but nothing erotic, obviously). That’s more for older girls though, a six-year-old probably can’t read. That being said, audiobooks are a thing, and if they’re a tablet kid, an Audible/similar gift code might not be a bad idea. They can do a lot worse for themselves with a tablet than having someone read to them.
Also, crafting stuff. Crochet kit, beads, anything that lets her “make” something.
to add to the DIY section of your comment - air dry clay, a set of basic clay working tools, and a set of acrylic paints (+ varnish for the acrylics) could be very fun. cheap air dry clay is cheap (i’ve seen 1kg go for ~$3), a basic set of tools and paints also won’t break the bank, and it’s absolutely amazing fun!
even with 0 skill you can make nifty things - like minature foods (a blob? potato. cylinder? cucumber. ball? so many options here), simple figurines, animals, accessories for other things, candle holders - bascially, the only limit is your imagination.
though if you do think that’d be a good idea one word of warning - air dry clay is not food safe, any cups, plates, or dishes made with it can only ever be decorational. (the only clay you can eat off is the kind that you need to fire, glaze, and fire again at +900°C)
Thinkpad thin client with Gentoo
You gotta make sure there’s that little dot in the middle of the keyboard or else it isn’t worth it.
Board games. Catan junior, Loopin Chewie, Robot turtles, Tsuro, Abracada…What?, camel up.
Regular price
Catan Jr, didn’t know that existed I’ll have to look into what games are around. I know her Dad taught our parents how to play Settlers of Catan a number of years ago before she was born, so that’s something that she may have parents/grandparents to play with. She has a brother that is 2 years younger, so maybe they’ll be able to play that together soon enough.
Ticket to Ride: First Journey and Qwirkle are also good choices for that age range. Qwirkle is great because it’s simple but fun for all ages. My kids loved it when they were young and still play it frequently at 16 and 25.
My niblings have liked the Kiwico and other sciencey kits I’ve sent them
My kids love the Kiwico boxes. They have different ones designed for different ages. You can buy a single one of get a subscription where they get a new one every month.
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Modeling clay and good quality paints.
Artistic, technical, no real “rules”, and a good amount of skill building.
Maybe not in the “smart mind challenging” category but there are plenty of craft kits for your budget: paint canvases by numbers, make your own accessories with clay, bead jewelry, basic engineering kits (build your own robot types), dig your own fossil kits, build-this-or-that-with-LEDlights, gardening kits for kids, etc.
My point is to expand your horizon a bit, it’s perfectly fine that you want to cater to her intelligence and not just go for something girly in a cliche sense. But she can also enjoy crafting stuff.
There are plenty of brain teaser type toys. Maybe something like Rush Hour or Snap Circuits
Books are always good too. When I was her age I was really into the Magic Treehouse series
Both of these are great and another cool one is laser maze!
