Like a childhood friend, toys are not only a source of laughter during a child’s development, but also an opportunity for children to learn about society and everyday life. Toys play such an important role. With the recent promotion of STEM education in Hong Kong, many toys incorporate STEM elements which allow children to practise thinking across disciplines and break down mental boundaries to develop communication skills in different fields. Here's a guide to help you choose the best toys for your child.

What is STEM or STEAM?

STEM (STEAM) is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, which is a combination of these four professional fields. Some people have since added the concept of A (Art) to this. The core concept is to train logical reasoning and problem-solving skills through a hands-on approach and abandon boring old methods of learning!

What kind of Skills can STEM Toys Develop in Children?

Skills	How
Problem Solving	During play, children are expected to organise strategies, allocate manpower, analyse, and think about the problems they encounter and work out the best solutions to solve them. Children develop an innately positive attitude towards challenges that improves their problem-solving skills.
Concentration	Some STEM toys require children to think hard to solve a problem, so concentration is important. Others require children to take time to assemble parts, a process that allows children to concentrate on the task at hand and complete the mission.
Thinking Power	When faced with a problem, it is not only important to concentrate, but also to think of a solution. Through a brainstorming process, it is important to think outside the box to find new ways to develop your child's ability to critique, deconstruct and challenge frameworks.
Creativity	The best thing about STEM toys is that they don't have a framework. They allow children to develop their potential and stimulate creativity in an infinite number of ways. Through STEM toys, we discover there is more than one method of play as well as stimulating new ways of playing.

How to Choose Toys?

1. Colour

Toys with different bright colours stimulate visual exploration and develop better concentration and attention spans.

2. Challenging

Toys that are fresh and increase the level of difficulty during reassembling, add to a sense of achievement and improve flexibility in hand and muscle control.

3. Size

When buying toys, pay attention to the size of the toy and choose according to the child's age.

4. Quality

Nowadays, many people like to shop online, but there are certain risks associated with online shopping. If you are not careful, buying fake products can pose a threat to your child's health. Buy safe and non-toxic toys from a reliable website.

Types of STEM Toys

Science-based Toy

Toys which introduce scientific concepts such as weather, space, dinosaurs and chemistry can be considered science-based toys. Science experiments, dinosaur series, space and celestial structures are very popular with children. Enjoy safe experiments at home that parents can join in too.

Technology-based Toy

Technology progresses rapidly and so do the amazing developments in technology-related toys. Many STEM toys are integrated with electronic products, that are controlled by an app, and even offer children the opportunity to learn coding.

Engineering-based Toy

Building toys are the origin of engineering toys. They help children to develop their imagination.

Creative-based Toy

Children can express their creativity and put their wildest ideas into practice with creatve-based STEM toys. These toys also help to develop hand and muscles co-ordination to build collages, assemble things and develop artistic skills.