Solar Powered Playtime – Sunny STEM toys & activities under $20
If my Shih-Tzu curled contentedly below the window is any indication, the sun has finally decided to make an appearance and bring about some well-deserved seasonal warmth. While we’ve still got that winter chill lingering in the air, there’s no doubt that spring is swiftly taking hold.
In celebration of this newfound light, here’s a quick summary of some of the solar-powered STEM toys available here at Legacy Toys!
Solar Balloon – TEDCO Toys - $17.99
This solar balloon is the perfect way to spark curiosity in minds of every age and education level! Using energy and light from the sun to inflate and fly high in the sky, this balloon provides a great basis for entertainment and education alike! Whether you’re entertaining a toddler with miraculous floating objects, teaching young ones about solar power for the very first time, or educating your own nerdy self about the basics of thermo- and fluid dynamics, TEDCO has really hit the mark with this product!
With so many informational and exciting applications, we think this solar balloon is an absolute classic in its simplicity and diversity alike. So go ahead, my friend, and wrangle up a bit of that sunshine!
Aqua Robot – 4M Green Science - $19.99
Here, fishy fishy.
Wonderful for emerging engineers of every sort, this kit takes ideas of solar power, buoyancy, and energy transfer, and presents them in the most adorable and exciting way imaginable. This kit has all the tools needed to assemble a solar-powered fish that propels itself in water with two simple water wheel attachments. Whether you’re letting this fish roam in waters as small as the bathtub or as large as one of the Midwest’s many lakes, it is an accessible, entertaining, and affordable way to continue your young one’s scientific education outside of the classroom.
In addition to being an excellent example of solar power at work, this STEM toy continues to function even after the sun has set and clouded over for a few days’ time, using battery power as a back-up form of energy in a pinch. While it may take merely an afternoon of assembly time, this fish is sure to provide continued enjoyment and education as long as it ‘lives.’
Weather Science Station – 4M Green Science - $14.99
A real-life example of the greenhouse effect in action, this kit covers all the basics of climate warming and cooling, providing a basic education for every climatologist-to-be. We especially recommend this for young ones with green thumbs, since this kit gives them a chance to take their gardening habits and apply them in a scientific setting, allowing them to understand their plants’ impacts on the environment and vice versa. From water cycles to acid rain, this kit provides a wide range of information suitable for hours of studying and experimentation!
With so many factors in play, this kit is essentially a $15 climatology classroom in a box, built to entertain and educate alike. Easily used as a homeschooling tool or supplemental education experience, this kit is a great tool for nearly any name in the book!
Light Crystal Prism 2.5” – TEDCO - $8.99
This classic toy brings every color of the rainbow to your fingertips!
For such a simple product, this crystal makes excellent room for the discussion of light. Covering everything from the color spectrum to the ins and outs of wavelengths and frequency, this classic toy sparks the intellectual imagination of kids anywhere from 99 days to 99 years. Simply place it in front of a targeted ray of sunshine and watch the magic commence!
While this product may be nothing new to the layman, it is a wealth of information in its own right, and a true bargain of a product with everything considered!
For something we see so often, it is easy to forget just how important the sun is to our lives! With these toys and activities, our hope is that kids will come to learn from it, and from all of the energy that it provides. And what better time than spring is there to remember this?
