nephew's birthday gift.

kaos16

My awesome, adorable, smart, hysterical little nephew is turning 6 next week.  Apparently he wants a remote control helicopter and science stuff for his birthday.  I refuse to get the helicopter because I fear he will fly it into my niece and she'll lose an eye or something (she is a touch accident prone).

Does anyone with small people in their lives have any recommendations for good science stuff for kids his age.

Thanks!

Unrelated. . . . in our family you get to choose what you want for dinner on your birthday.  He has requested ribs, cheeseburgers, cooked ham, broccoli (which he doesn't even like) and a tomato salad with lettuce on the side for his sister.  For dessert, he asked me to make him a cheesecake flavored with raspberry that has a face made of cookies on it.  I have no idea if he likes cheesecake, but I know that he loves making them with me.

JennyColada

Oooo, science stuff!

Do you want to get him things to do "experiments"? Or maybe something that he can make? Maybe Sea Monkeys or something that he can watch grow? I was a huge fan of Legos as a kid (but, granted, there is SO much more variety in options for kids' things now!). You could make a day out of it and take him to a local Science Center or Exloratoruim or science museum or something like that.

This is what comes up when I search "science stuff for kids" on Amazon.

(Not entirely helpful though.)

kaos16

I love that bacon shaped bandaids are featured in that search

theartistformerlyknownas

http://www.fatbraintoys.com/toy_companies/poof_slinky_inc/scientific_explorer_mind_blowing_science.cfm 

Despite the rage caused by it being recommended for boys more than girls. Come the fuck on.

Or http://www.educationaltoysplanet.com/geosafari-talking-telescope.html

KeptInStitches

Get the Klutz books. Encourage flying of paper airplanes. We spent a whole summer doing that when I was a kid - we tried different papers, different shapes, different weights, etc.

I had a cool mom because she didn't care as long as they didn't land in her water.

kms6169

I did the same thing for my nephew, who also loves science.  Check Groupon, Living Social, etc.  Sometimes they have deals for either Science type magazines or even an experiment kit of the month club.  A few months ago, Living Social had a deal for The Magic School Bus monthly science experiment kits.  It was a win-win  - my nephew loves mail and he loves Science.

Simply Fated

Not a helicopter, but I got my friend's kid (about the same age) a paper airplane kit from Barnes and Noble. He loved spending time with his dad making them.

They also have this Disgusting Science book series for kids. It's kinda cool. Would he like a book or something more hands on?

theartistformerlyknownas

Ooh have you looked into Stomp Rockets? Might fit his desire to watch things fly. And anything that expends energy tends to go over well with 6 year olds (and their parents).