Hello, my 7 year old boy is gifted and struggles to do anything that isn't Minecraft. He has a ton of Legos, and Playmobil toys. He's expressed an interest in engineering, physics, coding, etc. We are trying to find toys that teach these concepts. Much of what is out there seems geared toward younger kids, or toward high-school age and we've yet to find something in between. Just wondering what you guys might recommend. Also looking for general toy ideas if you guys have something unique you've come across. Regular toys and board games don't interest him, so he's difficult to shop for.

I am sorry to say this, but the toy stage is probably over for him. Once you can build anything in Minecraft, Lego just seems tedious, don't you think? Although I do feel physically putting something together is very satisfying but Minecraft can do so much more. Even some of the robot toys that are very expensive doesn't really hold someone's interests for too long. They simply don't do as much as an app would do. If he wants to learn coding, he will have to code and no toys can really teach that.

I think board games may still be your best bets if you want him to be off the screen. The games need to be engaging and you also at least several kids and adults. My son was with a social skill group for a while and they use board games as the setting for social interactions. He loved that group.

My 6 year old enjoyed Snap Circuits for a little while. It is pretty basic, but would fall in the age range and topics that you are looking for.

We have the same issue with my DS. He had his 5th birthday party in April and he has not even bothered to get any of the toys he was given out of their packaging (next year we will be doing a "no gifts" party!). The thing he really loves is chess - have you introduced that? Other possibilities are some of the single-player games from ThinkFun (his favorite is Rush Hour), or puzzle/logic magazines/books. That's all we're having success with right now (and by success, I mean he'll do these things once in a while if he can't play chess for some reason).

Take minecraft away for a month or two and he'll find something else to do. The younger age toys are still engaging, when you take the high stimulation stuff out of the environment. Get some LEGO Technic sets and someday he can upgrade to LEGO Mindstorm (robotics) kits. Any building toy is fine, really, those just are likely to hold his attention longer. If you get Mindstorm, prepare to lay out a lot of money. The basic kit barely does anything, and the amount of coding that can be done without more sensors and parts is limited.

Scratch, Tynker, and Hour of Code are great online sources for coding. He may like Minecraft coding classes if you are not willing to follow my advice above about removing Minecraft so he can expand his range of interests.

He might have patience to watch Great Courses and they have great Physics courses. They're expensive, so look for them at your library until you're confident he is ready for them.

How much of his Minecraft interest is social? Is that what his friend group is into? Perhaps expanding his horizons needs to include interests his friends value. My son's peers were interested in Minecraft until about 4th grade when it started transitioning to Harry Potter and in 6th grade Harry Potter is still cool, but Lord of the Rings, Rick Riordian books, and Star Wars are the next things. Be aware of what his friends (or non-friend peers) are interested in when guiding him to shift his hobbies - he might have a lot of identity and social currency going on with Minecraft.

Woodworking and soldering are good basic skills for young builders. If need help finding age-appropriate woodworking instruction, 4H has a woodworking series. You do not have to be a member of 4H to buy their curriculum. The booklets are usually <$5 in their online store. If he's into electronics, the "Make: ___ " series of instructional books is good. A breadboard will allow a person to make circuits without soldering. The "Make: ___ " series has shopping/supply lists inside.

Summer is a good time for exploring new things away from social circles. Try not to limit the options you give him based on preconceived ideas of what he "should" like. Sometimes they surprise us! My son would never admit it to his friends, but his newest hobby is embroidery. Origami is another hands-on creative construction with plenty mathematical background to it - and google Minecraft origami if he needs a bit of motivation to try. When he exhausts the children's origami books, there is a textbook of how to make one's own designs - very cool!

There are tons of fun things to do, but it's unlikely he will be willing to try an low-stimulation activity when he has Minecraft (high stimulation) available. If Minecraft goes on a summer vacation, you may be more encouraged by his interests in other activities. Unstructured time and boredom is good for children and develops their creative thinking and problems solving.

Disclaimer: I am strongly biased towards no or select few toys, no TV, no videogames, restricted/supervised computer - not for the purpose of being restrictive, but to give the gift of a whole new way of thinking, problem solving, and creating.

Our boys have really enjoyed Pokémon cards. Sometimes by themselves, sometimes with each other and sometimes with friends/schoolmates. The interest does come and go, as with most things with our kids, but they've lasted as an interest for as long as 11 years old so far.

Codemaster is a fun solo programming game that he might enjoy. Do you limit his screen time? We found that our kids were more willing to do stuff like this if they had limits on the amount of time they could spend on Minecraft.

Not a toy suggestion, but one more thing that my son really enjoys now is cooking. He's willing to be involved in many cooking projects, but what has really helped us make it a more regular part of our routine is a Raddish Kids subscription. He gets excited to open the kit each month, read the recipes, make the shopping list, and learn to use a new tool.

My 12-year-old and his 10yo brother (they're both Minecraft fans, the younger one likes coding) both still play a lot with their "inventor center", which is a large bin full of assorted junk like boxes, paper towel tubes, 2-liter bottles, string, duck tape, bouncy balls, binder clips, etc. They've made games, buildings for toys, forts, vehicles, weapons, helmets and other armor, Rube Goldberg machines, a rope ladder, balls, etc. It's very messy but I think it kind of scratches the same itch for them that Minecraft does. They're very proud of what they make.

All of the little coding fans I've known have liked strategy games, like Machi Koro, Dominion, Carcasonne, etc. In Roborally you have to "program" your little robot. If he doesn't like to compete, there are cooperative games like Forbidden Island, Pandemic, Castle Panic.

Do their creations stay around your house for days or weeks? Our problem with stuff like this is that the kids never want to take it apart again to make something else.


Not as easy to find in stores, but everyone in our family enjoys Ricochet Robots, and now its little sister, Micro Robots. It's competitive but extremely quiet - you will see a bunch of people intently studying a board, and then someone will exclaim, "Seven!" and turn over a timer while everyone redoubles their efforts.

We just acquired Dice Forge, and I also expect that to be a hit once I get the family to play it. It's like a toy and a game in one - the dice are very satisfying to take apart and put together. Just be prepared to keep track of many little pieces. (It has an excellent insert that helps with that.)

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.