To make sure that our children are prepared for the future, parents should encourage them to play with toys related to science, technology, engineering and math.
The benefits of having such toys include learning valuable skills and helping kids develop creativity.
It's important for children to start learning as much as they can about science, technology, engineering, and math from an early age so that they can get a good start and find school easier.
STEM subjects are very important and can give your child the best start in life. There are many different STEM toys available on the market to help learning about these difficult subject areas easier and more fun for the whole family.
This article takes a look at the pros and cons of various educational toys beginning with the letter V, specifically ones that promote STEM skills.
Use vehicle STEM toys to learn how objects move. Encourage your child to use the toy to create different vehicles. You can then take it outside and let it go down the driveway.
Help your child understand basic concepts like gravity and momentum. Place the toy on a table and watch what happens when he or she pushes one side of the vehicle.
Let your child experiment with the toy's steering wheel. He or she might want to try turning left or right while moving forward.
Vacuum STEM toys are great for encouraging your child to explore his or her environment. Your child will love playing with this type of toy because it allows him or her to vacuum up small items around the house.
Some vacuum STEM toys even allow your child to vacuum up real dust and dirt!
Ventilation STEM toys are perfect for teaching your child about air pressure. If you place two containers next to each other, they will begin to fill with air until they reach equilibrium.
This process is called ventilation. Ventilation STEM toys work in much the same way. When you open the lid, air rushes into the container. As the air leaves the container, it creates a vacuum inside.
This ventilation decompression toy is a great way to learn about ventilation, whilst also being a sensory tool.
Ideas For Playing With Ventilation STEM Toys
Help your child become familiar with the concept of air pressure. Open the lid and see if your child noticed anything unusual.
Visualization STEM toys can be used to help your child learn more about space exploration. A good example of this would be a telescope. Telescopes help people see things that are far away. Space telescopes help us view distant stars and planets.
Virtual reality (VR) STEM toys simulate experiences that could only happen in outer space and other environments. VR STEM toys are similar to video games and can help your child learn lots about the world around them.
View Master boxed sets are a great way to introduce your child to STEM toys. These boxes contain a variety of educational materials that teach kids about science, technology, engineering and math.
Each box contains a set of four cards that feature an image from the View Master universe. The cards have information about the topic covered by the card.
Ideas For Using View Master Boxed Set
Use these STEM toys as a formative assessment tool. Ask your child questions like "What do you think is happening in this picture?" or "How does this card relate to what we know about science?"
The VTech Learning Lab offers a wide range of STEM toys designed to encourage your child’s interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
Many of these STEM toys include apps that allow children to create projects and play games.
Ideas For Using The VTech Learning Lab
Use the VTech Learning Lab to expand your child's knowledge about science. Create experiments and tests to test hypotheses.
Vision STEM toys help children learn about light and color. Some vision STEM toys also offer motion control features. This lets children move images on the screen to make patterns appear.
Help kids become better observers. Show them pictures of animals and ask them to identify which animal is depicted. Ask children questions about colors and how light works.
Volcano STEM toys help children learn more about volcanoes. These STEM toys come in many shapes and sizes. Some volcano STEM toys even let children build their own volcanoes.
Velcro paddle balls are a great way to get your child interested in STEM toys. These balls can be used indoors or outdoors. Your child will enjoy playing with these balls because he or she gets to interact with other people while doing so.
Vision STEM toys help children learn about light and color. Some vision STEM toys also offer motion control features. This lets children move images on the screen to make patterns appear.
Help kids become better observers. Show them pictures of animals and ask them to identify which animal is depicted. Ask children questions about colors and how light works.
Vet clinic STEM toys teach children about medicine. These STEM toys are perfect for helping children develop an understanding of anatomy and physiology.
The B.Critter vet set is a great toy for getting started with vet STEM toys.
Ideas For Understanding Anatomy Through Vet Clinic STEM Toys
Explore animals' bodies and their parts. Look at diagrams of various organs and bones. Talk to your child about what each part does.
Van STEM toys provide children with an opportunity to see things from another perspective. Children can use van STEM toys to look inside vehicles and trucks.
Why not try this Cargo Van set which comes with a drill and cool sounds?
Ideas For Playing With Van STEM Toys
Let your child play with a van toy then ride in a car or truck and explain what happens when they drive.
Video games are a popular form of entertainment for children today. There are many video game STEM toys available, including ones that teach about math, physics, biology, chemistry, and more.
The Game Builder Garage for the Nintendo Switch console is an awesome way to introduce kids to programming.
STEM Video Game Ideas
Teach your child about science concepts such as gravity and magnets using educational video games.
Even if your youngster is unable to speak fluently, they can still have fun pretending to speak for their new acquaintance.
A hand puppet allows your child to engage their creativity and fine motor abilities by encouraging them to use their hands. These puppets also teach shy children that having a sophisticated conversation can be enjoyable.
Ideas For Playing With Ventriloquist Puppet
• Your child can put on a show for their friends and family with a cool ventriloquist puppet!
This set includes a track, cars, ramps, and a driver's seat. It teaches kids about driving and safety. This set encourages children to think about how objects move and how forces affect them.
Ideas For Playing With The VTech Toot-Toot Drivers Track Set
Encourage your child to build models of the tracks and cars.
These magnetic building sticks come in sets of 10 pieces. Each piece contains a magnet on one end and a peg on the other. Kids can create shapes and structures with these blocks and learn about geometry.
Ideas For Creating Artistic Structures Using Veatree Magnetic Building Blocks
Create a tower out of the blocks. Place the blocks together to make a pyramid shape.
Your child can practice fine motor skills as he plays with these puzzles. He'll be able to manipulate the puzzle pieces and put them back together again.
The United States Puzzle for kids will help them learn about U.S Geography!
Ideas For Playing With Vinyl Rubber Puzzles
Use the puzzle pieces to create a picture, then talk about the different parts of the picture.
Show N Tell With STEM Toys Beginning With V
These STEM toys are perfect for Show N Tell! Show N tell is a wonderful method to integrate school and home experiences and help students grasp how they are intimately connected.
It is entirely driven by the child, who is given the opportunity to come in and discuss something meaningful to them.
It also provides a child a meaningful purpose in their speech and allows teachers to examine language and show what a great question looks like to the class.
These toys will help your child showcase and improve their STEM skills, and they get to show off their favorite toy to the whole class!
Conclusion
STEM toys are great ways to encourage creativity and foster curiosity in young children. Whether your child is just starting to explore the world around her or already loves to tinker, there are lots of STEM toys to choose from.
If you want to give your child a head start in life and improve their school performance, pick up some STEM toys and make learning fun!
Hi, my name is Elena Jones, and my full-time job is a teacher. Through teaching, I have discovered that children learn in many different ways, and have seen the positive impact both STEM and Montessori toys have on children.
Through this site I hope to educate parents and adults about these toys, providing them with useful information on how they can be used, and provide some in depth reviews of different toys to consider too.
