Best Outdoor STEM Toys in 2025

It’s never been more important to keep the children outdoors and away from screens, and for boys and girls obsessed with all things STEM, this shouldn’t be too hard. There are plenty of activities they can do when they have some downtime that will keep their brains active and engaged.

Why not expand their practical know-how with an engineering kit, or make your own imaginative builds from recycled materials! Take an adventure in the great outdoors, visit a museum or bake a cake. You could even get musical or complete a puzzle together. We’ve included some other STEM ideas below for outdoor (and indoor!) play.

Top STEM toys

1. Hydraulic Cyborg Hand Kit
2. Flower Press
3. Salt Water Engine Car
4. World’s Smallest Microscope
5. Windbots – 6-in-1 Kit
6. Through Others Eyes
7. Stars & Planets Science Kit

1 Hydraulic Cyborg Hand – Build Kit ,  £36.99 £36.99

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Build a cool & functional 40cm cyborg hand

Explore engineering with this innovative 40cm robot hand that uses hydraulic power to simulate the movements of the human hand. The 40-page full-colour manual shows you how to assemble the 203 pieces, allowing you to learn how hydraulic power works, with piston tubes filled with water. Have fun challenging yourself to pick up and use a variety of items like bottles, pencils and small items or even shake hands with your friends! An advanced build perfect for any budding engineer – hands-on!

2 Flower Press ,  £16.99 £16.99

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Make art from nature with a traditional wooden press.

Make arts and crafts from nature using this traditional wooden flower press. Simply gather your favourite flowers and leaves, then place them between the cardboard layers. Screw the sturdy 15cm plates together and wait just 3-4 short weeks for your pressed flowers to be ready! Sustainably made from FSC certified wood, this lovely set encourages creativity and an interest in nature too.

3 Salt Water Engine Car ,  £19.95 £19.95

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Build your own engine car – powered by salt water drops!

This innovative car assembly kit has a build time of about one hour and demonstrates a new form of clean energy. The special fuelled cell 4×4 car is powered from a chemical reaction with saline, metal and water. Adding literally just a few drops of salt water will start the engine running and the car will run for around 7-8 minutes before it needs more fuel. Fun gift for car lovers and kit builders!

4 World’s Smallest Microscope ,  £9.99 £9.99

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Explore the world in cool 10X magnification!

At 4.5cm, this battery-powered microscope is mini but mighty! So easy to use, simply flick the switch to turn on the bright LED, then set the lens flush against your subject. Peek through the viewing chamber to see objects in clear 10X magnification! From household items to food and fingerprints, everything looks so fascinating up close.

5 WindBots – 6 in 1 Robot Build Kit ,  £29.99 £29.99

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Build wind-powered robots that can walk, fly & sail.

This fun and educational kit is a fantastic way to learn about alternative wind energy, whilst having fun. Easy to assemble, build robots that can walk, fly and even sail, with comical and functional movements. Follow the detailed instruction manual and build everything from a Tricycle-Bot to a Walking-Bot and Car-Bot, even a Yacht-Bot. All powered by natural wind, the hand cranked fan with the kit or even by simply blowing – just brilliant!

6 Through Others Eyes – Optical Science Kit ,  £25.99 £25.99

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See the world like a dog, a bee, a shark & more with unique glasses!

Do you want to see like a T-rex? How about an eagle? This exciting science kit contains a pair of special plastic glasses and 11 pairs of interchangeable lenses. Using the instruction booklet to guide you, mix and match them to simulate the vision of more than 17 other creatures – blue and yellow to see like a dog, or faceted and wide angled to see like a dragonfly! Also includes a fascinating leaflet all about the science of sight. A real ocular spectacular!

7 Stars & Planets Science Kit – Little Labs ,  £19.95 £19.95

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Learn all about the solar system – for aspiring astronomers!

Do plants grow on other planets? Why does the moon have a face? The answers to these questions and many more can all be found in this inspiring kit with easy hands-on experiments. Great way to learn all about outer space and have fun investigating the solar system. Also useful for NASA job applications.

For more outdoor STEM toys, head over to our Outdoorsy and Engineer categories, where the Elves have plenty more!

What happened when the owl lost their voice? It didn’t give a hoot.