Time to Get Kids Hacking: Our 2022 Holiday Gift Guide
Check out our slideshow of 10 fun games and toys that teach programming principles, electronics, and engineering concepts to get kids ready to hack the planet.
November 21, 2022
![typing kid in Santa hat typing kid in Santa hat](https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/blt6d90778a997de1cd/blt92866fe32d21c6a4/64f1565919d3275cff672793/holidaykids-volodymyr-AdobeStock.jpeg?width=700&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale)
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Whether cybersecurity professionals, software developers, hardware tinkerers, or all of the above, hacker parents are some of the best "recruiters" for the future of tomorrow's cyber workforce. If you're one such pro seeking out a gift that's not just fun but also gets your kid thinking like a hacker, we've got the gift guide for you.
The following slideshow offers a guide to toys, games, and gadgets that give kids from preschool on up the opportunity to learn how to think creatively, solve problems, and get prepared for building, breaking, and coding systems. And for those concerned about the screen time issue, many of these are completely off screen to help expand minds without making them nearsighted zombies.
Age Range: 4+
Type of Gift: Robot Coding Game
Price: $54
Teach the little ones coding with a press this little mouse robot's buttons. This fun activity set challenges youngsters to set up obstacle courses, then program the mouse to automatically run through it. The goal? To get the "cheese" at the end of the maze by planning out a sequence of turns.
Age Range: 7+
Type of Gift: Card/Board Game
Price: $19.99
A simple but fun game that's a great way to introduce younger elementary kids to some light coding logic, Potato Pirates is a cute, accessible game that still plays well with older kids and adults. Players use attack command cards like "roast," "mash," or "fry" to sequence an attack and take out or hijack your enemy's Potato King pirate ships. The potato pirate mash-up is adorable, complete with little fuzz ball "potatoes" signifying your pirate ship and crew, which come in a burlap sack.
Age Range: 10+
Type of Gift: Card/Board Game
Price: $29.99
A logic puzzle game, this one is a unique board game in that it doesn't require a crowd to play. It's made to be single-player, potentially offering a good chance for parent-child collaboration to solve the challenges. The game includes 120 different challenges of increasing difficulty to help kids progress through logical reasoning, spatial reasoning, and planning skills.
Age Range: 11+
Type of Gift: Raspberry Pi Programming and Hardware Kit
Price: $370
This is a great big-bang item for the emerging new programmer interested in what the Raspberry Pi has to offer. It's a soup-to-nuts kit that has a built-in screen, tons of buttons, 19 sensors, and a breadboard — all in a compact, closable case. It comes out-of-the-box with a detailed instruction manual with 21 different programming lessons.
Age Range: 8+
Type of Gift: Simple Computer Building Kit
Price: $350
If the Crowpi seems a little too advanced for your eager young learner, the Piper may be just up your kid's alley. This bare-bones computer build kit teaches kids programming and wiring through a story-mode learning game that makes learning the basics really fun. It's made to build and re-build, which is ideal for siblings at different learning stages.
Age Range: 7+
Type of Gift: Programmable Robot
Price: $195
The Sphero Bolt may look tiny, but it's mighty. This rolling little robot can be controlled through an app that teaches kids how to program, with a whole bunch of activities designed for a range of ages. It's got a programable compass, light sensor, gyroscope, accelerometer, motor encoders, and infrared communications. Kids love programming it to drive routes, display messages with its LED matrix lighting, and play games. Programming can be done through drag-and-drop blocks or JavaScript. It's also got a robust app ecosystem that spans across most mobile devices, as well as a very active community supporting new games and activities.
Age Range: 8+
Type of Gift: Marble Run Logic Puzzle Game
Price: $29.99
Gravity Maze brings more logic to the freewheeling classic game of a marble run. Kids are challenged to think spatially by planning out a run that meets various objectives of 60 progressively difficult challenges. It's a great off-screen way for kids to while away the time. It's also great solo, or as a family teamwork activity.
Tinkering Labs Robotics Engineering Kit
Age Range: 8+
Type of Gift: Robotics Kit
Price: $65
Somewhere between TinkerToys and an Erector Set, this whimsical kit challenges kids with 10 fun, electric, robotic projects that use real wood, real hardware, and real motors. It's an awesome modular set designed to get budding engineers thinking about how to make machines move.
Age Range: 4+
Type of Gift: Conductive Rollerball Pen
Price: $75
Forget breadboards — why not learn about circuits by DRAWING them instead? This super cool kit features a pen that draws in conductive heat, and components like a battery and power module, transistor, dial, blinker, buzzer, light sensor, and LED light. It's an elegant and fun way for younger kids to explore the world of connectivity and circuit-building. The only downside is the pen is notoriously tetchy. We recommend picking up an extra just in case.
Age Range: 8+
Type of Gift: Soldering-Free Circuit Builder
Price: $85
Another option for circuit building is Snap Circuits, which sells a number of different beginners' electronics kit that teach concepts in a building blocks fashion. There's no soldering required, as all of the pieces snap into the board, making it easier to teach circuit principles in a physically immediate way at a younger age. This is the full bells and whistles edition — quite literally, as there are more than 750 projects that kids can build, including an electronic kazoo, a photo solar alarm, and, of course, a simple electric light and switch project.
Age Range: 8+
Type of Gift: Soldering-Free Circuit Builder
Price: $85
Another option for circuit building is Snap Circuits, which sells a number of different beginners' electronics kit that teach concepts in a building blocks fashion. There's no soldering required, as all of the pieces snap into the board, making it easier to teach circuit principles in a physically immediate way at a younger age. This is the full bells and whistles edition — quite literally, as there are more than 750 projects that kids can build, including an electronic kazoo, a photo solar alarm, and, of course, a simple electric light and switch project.
Whether cybersecurity professionals, software developers, hardware tinkerers, or all of the above, hacker parents are some of the best "recruiters" for the future of tomorrow's cyber workforce. If you're one such pro seeking out a gift that's not just fun but also gets your kid thinking like a hacker, we've got the gift guide for you.
The following slideshow offers a guide to toys, games, and gadgets that give kids from preschool on up the opportunity to learn how to think creatively, solve problems, and get prepared for building, breaking, and coding systems. And for those concerned about the screen time issue, many of these are completely off screen to help expand minds without making them nearsighted zombies.
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