Just about everyone agrees: Toys and activities that promote effort and imagination will truly engage a child’s excitement and curiosity. That is one reason why many parents are taking another look at games, puzzles, construction toys, and after-school programs that spotlight science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

Unfortunately, some STEM offerings are better than others. Some are the real deal, while others are more play-based, and are merely taking advantage of well-intentioned parents and family members.

It’s not hard to see the benefits. When your children are exposed to STEM concepts in their free time, it has a laddering effect on learning. That is, when they walk into the classroom with a familiarity with, say, photosynthesis, ahead of the lesson, their interest and familiarity can speed up their mastery and make them more engaged and interested in their studies.

For more than a decade, those who design toys, games and activities for kids have been becoming more aware of the learning opportunity. Visit your favorite big-box store, and there’s an entire subsection of toys that promote STEM learning on the shelves. What’s more, many toy makers have made an effort to make girls, who have long been overlooked, feel more comfortable and included.

The growth in STEM toys and activities is not about to slow down. According to one marketing report, the STEM toy market is expected to grow 10 percent through 2021. With that insight, the growth potential for extracurricular activities is also there.

Questions every parent should ask when choosing a STEM toy or activity

So how can a parent spot the games and activities with very thin STEM benefits, versus the ones that are high quality and proven to enhance your child’s brain and learning? Here are a few questions to ask.

* Which STEM concept would kids learn?

* Is it designed to teach one smaller concept in a specific, rigid way? Or does it leave room for creativity, design and problem-solving?

* Is the concept presented in an interesting and compelling way that’s age appropriate for your child?

* What is the format of the class? Who is teaching the class? Is it taught in a way that includes and encourages participation from all students? What happens if your child needs extra help with a concept?

Bottom line, if the item or activity gets them into their zone, it’s a win. With that in mind, look for things that “hit the sweet spot between rigor and joy,” writes Andrew B. Raupp for Forbes, “and watch your child’s interest in STEM take flight.”

Adopting the STEM mindset at home

Buying a specific toy or signing up your child for an enrichment class that teaches STEM concepts is certainly a step in the right direction. But don’t stop there.

Here’s what writer Andrea Schwalm had to say in Wired.com: “I don’t for a second believe that toy selection will turn kids into something they are not — but I suspect that toys (in combination with books, movies, teacher expectations and family attitudes) do help foster interests that can turn into hobbies that can turn into careers.”

That brings us to the big takeaway. Fostering a mindset that makes kids comfortable with STEM is not just a single action, it’s a state of mind and it begins at home. Here are just a few tips to get started.

Be mindful of your attitude toward school. Especially so when it comes to traditional gender attitudes toward science, technology and math. Some women realize later in life they held back in STEM subjects during their time in school. Perhaps math and science were considered unfeminine by not only their peers, but by key family members. Be watchful of these attitudes and the effects of peer pressure showing up in your teen or tween daughter and discuss them.

Embrace nonfiction: Next time you watch something on the small screen or choose a new book from the library, explore documentaries or a nonfiction book about something that’s related to science. These often do a great job of presenting complicated concepts in a way that inspires wonder and awe.

Think about daily doses. It’s easy enough to make time for reading and drawing. But think about little ways you can incorporate the lessons and insights into daily life. For example, giving your elementary-aged child pocket change to choose something to buy at a thrift shop or garage sale is a nice low-risk way to help them incorporate real-life math.

Make time for play. So back to the beginning of the blog. Maybe you have a STEM-inspired toy sitting on the shelf, unused. Pull it down one evening and make it a family activity, so you can discover what might be keeping your child from using it. Maybe they need extra help understanding it. Or, it’s possible the item just wasn’t all that well designed. If so, think like an engineer and take a critical look together. Does it actually teach what it promised to teach? What can be done to improve it?

A STEM activity that is always a good bet is one with the name Bricks 4 Kidz. Whether it’s an after-school activity or a camp, you know your child will be having fun learning STEM concepts while building our unique models from LEGO Bricks. Discover a Bricks 4 Kidz class that’s offered in your area today.

Solar energy has always been a part of life on Earth. It all started with plants turning sunlight into food, and humans have also found ways to harness its power for millennia. That makes solar the perfect vehicle for scientific exploration with the kids, and summer is the perfect season to try solar projects for kids at home.

Cool solar power facts your kids should know

* Solar is one of the cheapest sources of renewable energy — as long as the sun shines, we have an energy source.

* There are two kinds of solar energy, passive solar and active solar.

* Active solar uses mechanical and electrical equipment to generate more heat or electricity. A great example of this is the photovoltaic panels you might see on top of someone’s house, or the small panel found in a solar-powered plaything.

* Passive solar uses simple sunshine to boost warmth. Back in the old days, houses were angled to face the sun, so home dwellers could maximize warmth from the sun’s rays as they shone through the windows. Sometimes, you can take passive solar design a step further, such as a trombe wall, which is a wall of dark-colored material designed to soak up the sun’s heat. Then, at night, the trapped heat releases, keeping the room nice and warm.

* Do you live in one of the top solar states in the country? California is ranked as the top state for solar capacity, followed by North Carolina, Arizona, Nevada and New Jersey.

* The International Space Station uses solar panels to generate power.

* Researchers think carbon-free electricity is possible by the year 2050, using technology that already exists, including solar.

4 solar projects you can try at home

Now that you know fun facts about solar energy, here are some fun solar projects for kids that are easy to set up at home.

Sun cooking: Ever have one of those blistering hot days when it felt hot enough to cook an egg on the sidewalk? Instead, build your own sun-powered oven that can cook pizza, a hot dog or nachos with cheese. Spend the morning building this solar cooker based on a teacher’s classroom lesson. (The video really simplifies things.) When lunch time rolls around, you can get cooking. Two birds with one stone! Bonus: Build a DIY solar-powered food dehydrator, and turn those garden tomatoes into sun-dried tomatoes.

Sun painting: After your next nature hike, you can turn found objects like leaves, pine boughs, feathers and flowers into one-of-a-kind, nature-designed apparel, complete with a sun-powered transformation. Paint a T-shirt, tote bag or pillow case with light-sensitive paints, and then lay the garment in the sun and arrange your natural objects right on top. As the paint dries, it reacts with the sun, so it appears to “stamp” a silhouette of the object right on the item.

Water heating: This plays out in backyards across America. Mom and Dad fill up the wading pool, kids run outside to go swimming and … the water is ice cold! This blog has a simple experiment to help you and the kids come up with solutions to raise the water’s temperature with sun power.

Light effects: Here’s a fun project ideal for preschoolers (and older kids can lend a helping hand). Demonstrate how sunlight reflects and refracts light with a few simple things you’ll find around the house: water-filled plastic bottles, food coloring, a cardboard box and some tinfoil. They’ll be fascinated by the homemade light show.

These solar projects are just one way to help kids get interested in their natural world. For more hands-on fun that kids are sure to love, be sure and check out some of our upcoming Bricks 4 Kidz programs taking place right in your community.

Are you looking at fun ways to get your child involved with robot building? Making a simple homemade robot is a fun and easy activity for kids of any age to unleash their creativity, while learning (the fun way) how to make electronic components work for them.

Introducing kids to robotics or any new project has its share of benefits. This is one activity that has its start in consulting a list of instructions or a blueprint, which has its own set of benefits. Structured construction activities help kids develop the ability to visualize three-dimensional objects, according to research cited in the blog Parenting Science.

Keys to a successful home robotics project

When you add a powerful payoff at the end of the project — where the robot creation performs a task of some kind — it comes with a built-in motivator for kids to finish and see the fruits of their efforts.

Still, frustration can get in the way of completion of any homemade bot. Here are some tips to help you guide and encourage your kids to see their robotic toy creations to completion.

* Be patient. The key is to make sure you stick to one step at a time. It’s not a bad idea to remind your child that going back to repeat a step is not a bad thing, and it doesn’t mean they’re failing. It’s all part of the process of learning.

* Like any good maker, it’s always wise to cultivate the habit of going back every now and then to check the work done so far. Not only is this a good habit, it can minimize some majorly frustrating moments down the line.

* Resist the urge to answer and take over. When they struggle, ask open-ended questions. This is especially crucial when they get stuck on a step! Instead of handing out answers and solutions, say, “Well, what do you think we should do next? Why do you think that will work? What do you think will happen?” If they discover they have what it takes to come up with the answer, they’ll feel empowered.

* Take a break. When they get stuck, encourage them to put it away for a while — better yet, know when to stop pushing them to continue, because science makes a good case for stopping. Research suggests that hitting pause on a tricky step can renew their motivation and promote learning. In fact, when they return, they may find the solution magically pops out at them.

5 ways to launch your child’s interest in robotics

Build your own robotics project at home with a few simple supplies, and a little know-how. Once they start building these connections with one another, their horizons start to expand.

Art bot: There are many small and inexpensive starter projects to launch your journey into home robotics. To keep it interesting, choose one that does something you can’t. How about one with marker legs that draw? With the help of a trusty red disposable cup, a small DC motor, a battery pack, electrical tape and a few other supplies, you and your child can piece together a little “bot” with an artistic specialty.

Motorized car with LEGO Bricks: Not a robot per se, but this handy guide gives you and the kids the 101 on making those wheeled creations move without assistance.

Bristlebot: Toothbrushes and scrub brushes get a motorized push with a little battery-operated engine power. These are just two robot projects you can find on the extensive ScienceBuddies website. Even better, its partner website helps you find essential supplies to get your robots moving, and the site has lots of ideas of projects as your child becomes more apt at building their own bots.

Vacuum hacking: The popularity of the remote-controlled vacuum cleaner by iRobot took a fascinating detour. Engineers and tech enthusiasts were pulling apart these little home bots and repurposing them to perform new tasks. That’s why the company came out with the Create, a less expensive “hackable” project that lets you tinker around so you can safely put together some of your own modifications. How about a robot that does things like create live-action Pac-Man, or a rolling bot that measures air quality?

Enroll in an after-school class: Enhance your child’s learning and exposure to the exciting world of robotics by signing them up for an after-school class through Bricks 4 Kidz. We offer two age-appropriate levels of robotics building in a collaborative setting with their friends and peers. Our classes are more than just building to a template. We encourage problem solving, creative thinking and teamwork, while giving kids this valuable hands-on experience with technology.

Discover and register for local robotics programs offered by Bricks 4 Kidz today.

Create A Career You Love
Learn More