Our Favourite STEM toys, games, and tech for families for the holidays

We are coming down to the wire with holiday gifts—especially since we're mostly shopping online these days. To avoid delays and disapointments get hustling! This is not the year to be last minute shopping on Christmas Eve. Over the past few months we've explored some fun items to add to our gift guide. Of course if we can double up learning AND fun? We can make proudly high-five ourselves and claim the title of 'Parent of the Year'. STEM toys (or STEAM) for kids still continue to wow us and of course, our eyes turn to what games are out there. Here are some of our favourite gift ideas this holiday season from STEM toys, games and tech for families.

FOR KIDS:

Blockaroo Magnetic Foam Blocks: For younger kids this is a great introduction to building with imagination. These soft foam magnetic blocks are safe and easy to handle. Each piece can rotate 360 degrees and are attracted to each other. The blocks can float in water so they can also be taken into the bathtub. Limitless building possibilities. Various kits available. 

OSMO Coding Starter Kit: The newest kit is designed to help kids build coding skills block by block. Designed for kids ages 5 to 10, the hands on experience transforms your tablet into a real adventure. Skills progress with three learning games. Kids learn to code as they connect colourful blocks of code in the physical world to chart their adventure on screen.

OSMO Little Genius Starter Kit: this fun early learning tool will inspire little ones with its advance computer vision technology to take creations made with physical objects in the real world, turning it into fun and engaging content on a tablet. The kit encourages children to engage in hands-on play even on their screens offering personalized fun. Comes with four games that help children learn critical skills like problem solving, the alphabet and creativity. Suitable for ages 3 to 5+

OSMO Genius Starter Kit: For kids ages 6 to 10. This kid has an inspiring mix of art tools and cutting edge technology. Great for boosting creativity and problem solving skills. Fun loving Moz the Monster encourages kids to draw images from their imagination on the creative board. Thanks to OSMO’s advanced computer vision technology, they can see their reactions on alive on the screen.

SolarBots 8-in-1 Solar Robot Kit: A great kit that does not require any batteries. Powered by the sun using a compact solar panel helps to generate enough energy to get moving. The 48 page manual offers up instructions on how to assemble the bots as well as fun scientific facts. 

Ooze Labs Colourful Crystal Lab: Grow you own beautiful crystals in many different shapes and sizes easily with this kit. Everything you need is in the kit to experiment in your very own lab base station. Comes with beakers, test tubes, Petri dish, tweezers, centrifuge, display dome and more. Kids can also conduct more than ten experiments in crystal formation using non-toxic crystal salts. Once the crystal salts are done you can continue explore the world of chemistry by using common materials like table salt. 

Chocolate Pen: Kids of all ages will want to experiment and get creative with this Chocolate Pen, yes a pen that writes in chocolate! The kit comes with chocolate pen, drawing tip, warming tray with lid, 4 food colours, stirring stick, 50 mold designs, chocolate (produced in the US) and instructions. Aspiring little bakers will love creating their own DIY chocolate drawings that harden in minutes. Suitable for ages 6+

FOR OLDER KIDS:

Jixelz: Classic puzzle fun becomes an adventure in pixelated creativity. Transform the tiniest pixel puzzle pieces into vibrant designs. Or, invent your own designs. The pieces fit together easily and hold together strong. Several themed kits available.

Lego Technic Jeep Wrangler: the newest LEGO Technic mode is a theJeep Wrangler Rubicon (665 pieces). This is the first collaboration between LEGO and Jeep. The new set in yellow and black takes the iconic look and design of the actual vehicle with  high-performance 4x4 systems, rugged tires, fold down rear seats and the classic seven-slot grille. Lots of details that both LEGO and Jeep fans will love. *Available January 1 in stores and online. 

FujiFilm Instax Square SQ1: Our teens were hooked onto previous models of the instant film camera producing images perfect for sharing. The latest model features the popular square size (image size 6.2 cm x 6.2 cm) offering high picture quality and simple operation. The camera has a collapsible lens, automatic flash, automatic focus. Great for shooting selfies with self mode and selfie mirror. Automatic exposure controls the background as well as the subject in the photo. Also includes a built-in lens. Film sold separately. 

Common Craft Social Media Starter Kit: hands free all-in-one social media starter pack that is perfect for recording and filming. This fits most smartphones, is lightweight and easy to assemble, and has adjustable angles for your ideal framing. With this starter pack, creating content is easy - no need to enlist unwilling siblings to help hold everything. Your unboxing videos and dance moves just got upgraded. 

VIDEO GAMES & CONSOLES:

XBOX SERIES X|S: Considered the most powerful and fasted gaming consoles yet coming out of Xbox and probably really hard to get your hands on either of them now but worth mentioning in case your eagle eyes can nab one in time for the holidays. Richer and more vivid images, more realistic environments, faster loading for existing games and games to come. Games are also being rebuilt specifically for the new consoles. Some of the titles that are already optimized include Forza Horizon 4, Assasin's Creed Valhalla, Fortnite, Gears 5 and more. 

35th Anniversary of Mario: The celebration of one of our most favourite gaming character includes several holiday gift ideas. Super Mario 3D All-Stars is a collection of three Super Mario games of the modern era, Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario Galaxy. In addition to having higher resolutions than their original versions, the games - which are coming to Nintendo Switch in one package - have been optimized for a smooth gameplay experience on the system.

Nintendo also recently launched Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, a new experience that brings the fun of the Mario Kart series to the real world using the Nintendo Switch system to control a real-life, physical kart. The Kart responds to boosts in-game and in the real world, stops when hit with an item and can be affected in different ways depending on the race. Players place gates to create a custom course layout in their home, where the only limit is their imagination.

FOR MOM & DAD's HEALTH:

Fitbit Sense was introduced this year that not only tracks your fitness activity (we love the Active Zone minutes notification), but for those who incorporate, or want to, it also does double duty when it comes to meditation and managing stress levels. Features on this smartwatch includes monitor your skin temperature, blood oxygen saturation and how you respond to stress. A feature that is coming to Canadians on this device is the ability to also monitor heart rhythms. You can even connect it to your smart home devices with Alexa voice-assist. Comes with a 6 months trial Fitbit Premium Subscription with access to hundreds of guided workouts and meditation sessions.

Apple Watch Series 6: For Apple fans, we know it's hard to sway off the brand. The latest in the series bring more attention to monitoring health as well. Measure your blood oxygen level, take ECG, enhanced always on retina display, also monitor sleep trends and check out your fitness metrics to help you work out efficiently and effectively. And yes, you can stay on top of texts, email, calls, and control your playlist on the go. 

PHONES:

Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G: If someone on your list is looking to upgrade their phones and you’re looking for a high quality device that does everything you really need it to do but at a more reasonable price point, check out the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G. The ‘FE’ stands for fan edition and offers many of the popular features of the big sister models including Pro-grade, triple lens camera  on the rear is a stand out feature for richer, crisper photos and with the 3X optical zoom you can capture details really close. Night mode adjusts really well in darker environments. Gamers will also love the speed of this phone playing in real time it offer little, if any, lag time. The All-Day Intelligent Battery will keep up with you but smart enough to save its power for when it’s getting low so you don’t need to worry. This edition with 128GB built in has the ability to store up to 1TB more on a MicroSD card, so you can choose what you a store and more. It’s also water and dust resistant (rated IP68) and can stand up to 1.5 metres of water for up to 30 minutes.