Future Forward Gift Guide 2024
December 6, 2024
The holiday season is the perfect time to spark a love of learning and curiosity for the kids in your life! As always, we have curated a list of STEM toys that are super fun and where they will hardly realize they are learning. From mineral exploration to books that build confidence, these gifts encourage hands-on discovery, critical thinking and endless imagination. We’ve included a list of hot and new toys for 2024, along with toys and books that remain our favourites year after year.
Let’s inspire the next generation of innovators this holiday season!
National Geographic Amazing Worms Chemistry Kit, STEM Science for Kids
Ages: 8+
Skill Building: Chemistry, creativity
Where to Buy: Wamart
The National Geographic Amazing Worms Chemistry Kit helps young scientists create glow-in-the-dark worms, and colour-changing worms and even experiment with worm “eggs,” all while learning about polymer reactions, phosphorescence and pH indicators.
K’Nex STEM
Ages: 8+
Skill Building: Engineering, problem-solving
Where to Buy: Walmart
This set empowers kids to explore engineering as they design their amusement park swing rides. This set encourages hands-on learning and builds creative problem-solving skills in a fun, dynamic way.
Spintrionics Act One
Age: 8+
Skills: Engineering, problem-solving
Where to Buy: Upper Story
This game introduces mechanical circuits, letting players see the current flow and feel the effects of voltage as they solve challenges from beginner to intermediate levels. Spintronics offers a tangible, intuitive way to understand electronic concepts—no screen required!
STEM Explorers Brainometry
Ages: 5+
Skills: Math, creativity, fine motor skills, problem-solving
Where to Buy: Amazon
Unlock your child’s problem-solving skills with this 3D puzzle set. This engaging kit includes 34 colourful shapes and double-sided challenge cards, offering fun activities that enhance shape recognition, critical thinking and fine motor skills. With ten STEM challenges, kids will train their brains through sorting, geometry and spatial puzzles.
Fat Brain Toys Air Toobz
Ages: 3+
Skills: Physics, building, creativity
Where to Buy: Well
Air Toobz is a fun STEM toy that lets kids build a network of tubes and connectors, creating pathways for foam balls to travel. Using a kid-safe, adjustable fan, children can experiment with airflow, making the balls flow through loops, swirls and cycles. As they design their creations, they’ll develop problem-solving skills, spatial reasoning and some understanding of physics.
Battat Education- Bright Explorer
Ages: 3+
Skills: Curiosity, math
Where to Buy: Indigo, Mastermind Toys
Brighten up playtime and learning with Bright Explorer. This light-up sensory box features a surface that changes between five vibrant colours. Kids can explore a variety of shapes, enhance observation skills and have a deeper understanding of size, colour and texture. This gift is perfect for imaginative play and sensory learning.
Elanco Snap Circuits
Ages: 8+
Skills: Engineering, math, problem-solving
Where to Buy: Amazon
Take your child’s creativity and curiosity to the next level with the Snap Circuits Kit. This toy allows kids to build over 300 projects, including an AM radio, alarms and doorbells. Whether building fun gadgets or playing electronic games with friends, this kit offers endless hours of educational fun and hands-on learning.
Magnetic Tiles
Ages: 3+
Skill Building: Creativity, building, mathematics, engineering
Where to Buy: Amazon
The magnetic tiles in this set help children gain foundational knowledge in STEM and related skills. By playing with these educational toys, kids can develop their understanding of geometry, colour and shape recognition, design skills and 3D spatial reasoning at an early age.
Lego Gear Bots
Ages: 9-12+
Skill Building: Engineering, problem-solving, creativity
Where to Buy: Amazon
The Lego Gear Bot kit features eight STEM-related models, including DJ Bubbles, an octopus spinning records. Engaging with this kit offers the whole family a fantastic opportunity to develop fundamental engineering skills in a fun and interactive way.
The Miniscope: Pocket Microscope
Age: 3-12
Skills: Environmental awareness, science, exploration
Where to Buy: Amazon
This mini microscope is the ideal holiday gift that combines the power of a traditional microscope into one convenient and user-friendly portable device. Unlock the inner scientist in your child as they explore the microscopic world around them.
National Geographic Rock and Mineral Kit
Ages: 8+
Skills: Geology, curiosity, science
Where to Buy: Well, Walmart
Ignite a love for geology with this rock and mineral starter kit. Filled with 15 different specimens like tiger’s eye and blue quartz, this kit gives young explorers a hands-on look at the wonders of Earth’s minerals.
Osmo Genius Starter Kit
Ages: 6-10+
Skills: Coding, math, problem- solving
Where to Buy: Amazon
The Osmo Genius game set uses real-life pieces and an iPad to engage kids in fun, interactive learning. Youth can develop skills in math, spelling, physics, drawing and problem-solving through five engaging games: Tangram, Newton, Masterpiece, Numbers and Words. This gift is ideal for young learners.
MathLink Cubes
Ages: 5+
Skills: Counting, comparison, fine motor skills
Where to Buy: Amazon
Math Link Cubes can be nostalgic for parents and caregivers because it’s how many of us learned how to count in school. Math Link Cubes provide an affordable and versatile way for children to practice beginner math skills, colour sorting and much more.
Sphero Mini
Ages: 10+
Skills: Block- based coding, Javascript, creativity
Where to Buy: Amazon
This coding toy is an Actua favourite, used during our outreach camp delivery in northern, remote and Indigenous communities in Canada. With the Sphero Mini, youth can code and program a mini robot that can be taken through multiple circuits and challenges. It is suitable for all ages and coding skill levels and offers collaborative and creative ways for children to build.
Matatastudio Coding Set
Ages: 4-9
Skills: Coding, creativity
Where to Buy: Matata Studio
This hands-on, screen-free kit uses colourful coding blocks and a friendly robot to make programming concepts accessible and fun. With no reading required, kids can simply arrange the coding blocks on a wireless control board, guiding the MatataBot through fun adventures. This educational set is packed with challenges, interactive game booklets and resources created by STEM experts, making it a family-friendly gift that encourages creativity, critical thinking and fun learning.
Explorer & Bug Catcher Kit
Ages: 3+
Skills: Science, curiosity, exploration
Where to Buy: Amazon
Nurture your child’s inner explorer with this kit. Packed with binoculars, a hat and vest and bug-catching tools, this kit is perfect for little explorers in your life. It inspires a love for nature while building curiosity and observation skills. Whether camping, birdwatching or backyard play, this kit turns any day into an adventure!
The STEM Girl Book Series
Ages: 4+
Skill Building: Curiosity, creativity, confidence-building
Where to Buy: The STEM Girl
Jennifer Ladipo, Actua’s National Program Manager, is also the author of four STEM books for kids. With beautiful illustrations and diverse characters, these books have stories that help children explore, solve problems and have fun with STEM.
Berry Picking at Four Mile Bay
Ages: 7-9
Skill Building: Curiosity, land-based learning, science
Where to Buy: Inhabit Education Books
Perfect for young readers, this book captures the joy of family traditions on the land and berry picking. Actua’s 2024 summer STEM camps in the Canadian North brought this story to life with hands-on activities. Youth explored cloudberries through chemistry, mapping cloudberry locations with pH tests and coding Ozobots to collect berries on their maps.
Wild Eggs: A Tale of Arctic Egg Collection
Age: 6-8
Skills: Science, land-based learning
Where to Buy: Amazon
In this book, Akuluk spends time with her grandfather hunting for wild eggs and discovering the unique Arctic animals and environment. Actua also included this book in the 2024 summer STEM camps in the Canadian North, where campers explored the diversity of egg shapes and colours of the Arctic Murres and then used oil and water paints to create their own designs.
Math Therapy: 5 Steps to Help Your Students Overcome Math Trauma and Build a Better Relationship With Math
Ages: 14+ and educators
Skills: Math, confidence- building
Where to Buy: Amazon
Math Therapy by Vanessa “The Math Guru” Vakharia offers a unique path for teachers to guide students through math trauma and help them embrace math as an achievable skill. Having overcome her own struggles with math and gone on to be known as “The Lady Gaga of Math,” Vanessa introduces teachers to the five M’s of Math Therapy: Mythbust, Moderate, Motivate, Makeover and Measure. Written with humor and backed by educational research, Math Therapy is a guide to building students’ confidence, changing how they see math, and ultimately empowering them to believe that anything is possible—even a love for math!
Rosie Revere, Engineer: A Picture Book
Ages: 5-7
Skills: Engineering, confidence building, creativity
Where to Buy: Amazon
This book by Andrea Beaty shares the story of Rosie Revere. By day, Rosie is a quiet thinker, but at night, she’s a fearless inventor with big dreams of becoming an engineer. When her great-great-aunt Rose—who once riveted planes in WWII—shares her dream of flying, Rosie sets out to make it happen! This heartwarming story celebrates creativity, resilience and the courage to try again, making it a perfect read for young inventors and dreamers everywhere.
Smitten by Giraffe: My Life as a Citizen Scientist
Ages: 13+
Skills: Science, confidence-building, empowerment
Where to Buy: Anne Innis Dagg Foundations, Amazon
From a childhood fascination with giraffes to pioneering research in Africa, Anne Innis Dagg’s book is one of resilience and discovery. Anne shares her groundbreaking studies in zoology and her fight against sexism in academia. Despite her achievements, she faced constant barriers, ultimately choosing the path of a “citizen scientist” and advocating for women in the sciences. This inspiring memoir explores her love for giraffes, contributions to biological science and bold activism, all while shedding light on the historical challenges women face in STEM.
Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World
Ages: 6+
Skills: STEM, curiosity, empowerment
Where to Buy: Indigo, Amazon
This book seamlessly weaves charming illustrations and educational narratives, spanning from ancient to modern times. Explore insightful infographics on lab equipment, current gender ratios in STEM and a beautifully illustrated scientific glossary. This book is a celebration of the fearless pioneers who have paved the way for the future generation of female scientists, engineers, doctors, astronauts and more. A perfect gift to ignite the curiosity and passion for STEM.