Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion toys and games for gifted

Personally, I never saw Minecraft as a negative for my sons, but I limited their playtime. I see it as one of the better games out there. My sons preferred the creative mode of play in Minecraft. It was also social for them, they could build structures with friends and like Sanne mentioned above, it was very relevant as social currency. They also liked Pokemon and which was great for them socially. I used Youth Digital to introduce them to the coding aspect of Minecraft, http://www.youthdigital.com/mod-design-1.html

Others have already mentioned Lego Mindstorms, which is really great if he is interested in engineering and physics. One of my sons (the engineering inclined one) loved constructing marble runs and building with Keva planks at that age.

This might sound simplistic, but what about getting him into nature, playing some sports, and making organic connections between the activities and experiments he'd like to conduct?

My DS6, for instance, is interested in parkour gymnastics. It involves a lot of free running and environmental movement, which has been a bridge for him into physics. He'll try out a new move, then sit back and assess how the result aligns with different rules he knows (he's quite into Newtonian physics now). When he sees results from his knowledge, it fuels a strong desire to learn more.

Ditto water sports--it's a natural entry point into fluid dynamics. He went on a tangent yesterday discussing how to react if your car is submerged in water, and had put together a surprisingly elegant discussion of differential pressure.

Another idea--try out a maker space, or make your own at home. Any activity that involves the design process, material sourcing, and planning is rich in teaching both the science substantives and the executive function required to support inquiry.

And...BOOKS! Read together, read separately, discuss interesting/exciting things you've learned. Make a family seminar where you get to present neat concepts and new ideas.

I'm not against virtual learning, but it sounds like you've got those bases covered already and need some branching out.

This brought back memories of years of coaching the MIT Ballroom Dance Team. There is nothing like being able to tell a group of students, "As you swing your leg through here, allow the standing leg to pivot, so that the momentum is converted to rotational energy and to rise as you reach the end of the beat," and having all of them nod and execute a lovely feather step. Obviously this doesn't work for all dancers, but it was a beautiful way to teach a bunch of engineers to dance.

Elizabeth, that is extremely entertaining. I have a dancer who would be tickled by this approach to instruction in dance technique.