The Martlet

For those wondering what to put under the tree for the budding young scientist they know, there are many great toys and kits available.

And what’s really great is that a lot of these products are far from one-dimensional. Toy science kits can be relatively simple or very complex. And many companies building these kits make sure to provide a solid educational experience. For kids of any age with a scientific inclination, these toys certainly can provide lots of practical fun. But that same fun factor could also steer those who are less scientifically-inclined towards science.

One of these companies is Thames and Kosmos, who offer a wide variety of great science kits, including their Genetics and DNA kit, which can isolate the DNA from various objects, such as a tomato.

“It’s a surprisingly simple process, and curiously enough, DNA looks an awful lot like snot,” says Brynne Croy at Science Works in Oak Bay. “It’s a really well put-together kit that tells you a lot about the process of discovery of genetics and the structures of DNA, and how it is the building blocks of life.”

Another offering from Thames and Kosmos is their chemistry kits, including the C500, which actually use real chemicals to conduct the variety of experiments included in the provided documentation.

“That is, unfortunately, something of a rarity in the chemistry world these days,” says Croy. “With even some post secondary, you may not get to this level of involvement with chemistry.”

And of course, since the chemicals are real, it’s worth noting that anyone using it should exercise caution. One emerging aspect of science kits is environmental themes, including the Wind Power Renewable Energy Science Kit, which includes about 20 different experiments in generating electricity using wind power.

“They’re walking you through some of the more technical aspects of that,” says Croy. “So how does changing the angle of attack on the [rotor blade] affect generation? So it’s really looking at the actual practical challenges associated with generating power using wind, as opposed to just proving again and gain that you can do it.”

More ecological toys include National Geographic’s Sustainable Earth Lab, which can teach people about both environmental pollution as well as ecologically-sustainable practices. Thames and Kosmos offer a similarly-themed Global Warming kit that offers a wide range of practical experiments demonstrating what contributes to climate change.

“It’s a good analogue,” explains Croy. “We’re not making a world here, but in terms of understanding how these things are affected and what factors are involved, it’s a real physical kit that does that.”

Not all science toys and kits rank as high on the educational aspect, however. Some are more geared towards the purely fun side of science, including the wide variety of glowing, gooey concoctions contained in SmartLab’s Glow in the Dark Lab.

“What they lack in one aspect, they more than make up for in a really fun execution and a really great, engaging approach to getting kids involved in science,” explains Croy.

It’s worth noting that, for many starving students, a lot of these items definitely fall on the unaffordable side. But there are some less expensive gift ideas, including Steve Spangler’s Soda Geyser Car.

“It’s the good old-fashioned Mentos and Diet Coke experiment, but on this guy, we’ve strapped that Diet Coke bottle to a set of wheels, and now we’re using this as a source of propulsion,” says Croy. “A messy source of propulsion, but absolutely chock-full of fun.”

Other cheaper gift ideas include the Penny Norman ScienceWiz Kits. The different kits include a physics kit, invention kit, chemistry kit and an energy kit.

“[The Energy kit] is a great kit that has 22 different projects that involve fleshing out that discussion that energy can’t be created or destroyed, but you can change it from one form to another quite readily, and often let it do quite useful things along the way.”

One key point Croy emphasizes is when picking out a science toy, people should try avoiding gender stereotypes..

“There’s no reason to assume that these kits need to be boy-based and girl-based.”