We love encouraging the geek in every kid, and the kid in every geek! Here are some of our favorite Young Engineer geared books, games and goodies!
Elly the Elephant – Kinetic Creatures:Elly the Elephant is a walking cardboard animal sculpture that you assemble from pre-cut and scored cardboard pieces, made in the USA by Kinetic Creatures. Elly walks when you turn the included wire handle, or Elly can walk with mechanical and electrical additions, such as Lego motors or the Kinetic Creatures Motor Kit. (read more)
Goldie Blox and the Builder’s Survival Kit:is Goldie’s ultimate builder’s kit for the most adventurous innovator! With more than 190 pieces, GoldieBlox and the Builder’s Survival Kit offers hours of fun and endless possibilities. Goldie’s Diary of Inventions (included), offers kids a wide-eyed perspective of Goldie’s world, her friends and family, and all of her secret inventions. From budding engineers to master architects, GoldieBlox and the Builder’s Survival Kit gives inventors the freedom to choose their own difficulty level. With included prompts, kids can build simple and small or big and bold. Kids develop spatial skills through basic engineering principles while building their reading skills and confidence in problem solving. (read more)
Colorforms Brush with Genius: Made a Drawdio but still want more? This fully-assembled kit contains Drawdio innards as part of a big plastic brush so it acts like a half-theramin/half-paintbrush. When painting, the conductivity of the watercolors changes the sound pitch that comes out of the little speaker in the brush. (read more)
NOTE: 2 AAA Batteries Required (Not Included).
myDazzu – Programmable Wearable Electronic Wristband: Design your own interactive light-up creation! Make a photo album that shines when you flip through it, a photo frame that lights up in the dark, a scrapbooking page that twinkles when you talk (with added sound/tilt/proximity sensors), and so much more. The Dazzu is an easy but inspiring introduction to wearable electronics.
The Dazzu board is a flexible, programmable board, with 3 LEDs that can be slipped into pretty much any project. It has built-in light and temperature sensors, and you can attach others for sound, proximity and motion sensing.
With it, you can make felt kits or paper craft that turn on in the dark, or when you press it. Wrap it around a vase, make a twinkling nightlight, slip it into a holiday album.
No tools or soldering required! Just add the Dazzu board to any project, insert a watch battery (included), and it will start to twinkle. If you make the wristband project, please note its for child-size wrists, not adults! (read more)
Volta Racers Solar Motorcar Kit: Never go looking for some AAA’s again, this solar racer car requires no batteries! The Volta Racer Solar Motorcar Kit contains all of the necessary parts required to successfully assemble your car – including the worlds first flexible polycrystalline silicon solar cell used for powering toys. (read more)
KONSTRUKTOR – DIY Film Camera Kit: Perfect for Do-It-Yourself lovers and those interested in learning, understanding and experiencing how analogue photography works, the Konstruktor is a fully-functional 35mm SLR camera which you can easily build at home.
Through the fantastically fun process of assembling this beautiful machine, you’ll learn the essence of photography and be able to shoot wonderfully sharp and vibrant analogue photos. It’s time to take the next step on your exciting photographic adventure and boost your creativity to the max. With the Konstruktor, you don’t just capture analogue beauty, you Konstruct it! (read more)
CELESTRON FirstScope Telescope:In 1609, world-renowned Italian scientist, Galileo Galilei, introduced an elementary telescope to the growing astronomy community which sparked interest into the mysterious night sky for centuries to come. Four centuries later, Celestron offers the portable FirstScope Telescope. The FirstScope pays tribute to Galileo Galilei and many of history’s most notable astronomers and scientists by displaying their names around the optical tube. We honor the contributions of these men and women, who brought us one step closer to understanding the universe around us.
The FirstScope is a wonderful keepsake for anyone interested in astronomy. This quality Dobsonian style telescope features a 76 mm aperture reflector optical tube. FirstScope is an ideal entry level astronomical telescope. It is very easy to observe with, the user simply navigates the night sky by moving the tube in the direction of their desired object, making the viewing experience a snap! The compact design makes it easy enough to take with you on your next outdoor adventure. FirstScope is also stylish enough to be a decorative fixture on your bookshelf or desk. (read more)
Snap Circuits® Green – Elenco SCG-125: Learn about energy sources and how to “think green”. Build over 125 projects and learning about environmentally friendly energy and how electricity works. Includes full-colored manual with over 100 pages and separate educational manual. (read more)
Thames & Kosmos Electronics Experiment Kit: This lovely little kit from Thames & Kosmos is a nice alternative to ‘snap-circuits’ type learning kits. There’s still no soldering, but there are proper wires and a bread-board-like workspace so the projects are a bit more realistic. This is a basic starter kit, a good companion to learning with an Arduino since it covers more of the essential analog/digital type basics which sometimes get skipped over when using microcontrollers. It’s also great on its own! (read more)
Sew-Your-Own Owl Kit – Cynthia Treen Studio:High above the canopy, with silent wings and much to see, owls observe with their keen eyes, the view below our midnight skies. They are also sooooo adorable and cute, YA RLY!
This sew-your-own owl kit by Cynthia Treen Studio is designed for beginner adults and competent young stitchers, but will delight stitchers of all levels! Materials included are: wool and rayon felt, 100% wool stuffing, embroidery needle, thread, cotton pipe cleaners, directions and step-by-step instructions. (read more)
Bare Flashing Card Set – Celebration Circuit: This is a lovely way to get started with Bare Conductive paint, with three fun electronic greeting cards. Use the included 10 mL pen to draw traces and connect components on the front of the card. All three cards have cute robots with blinkie eyes or hearts. (read more)
Sylvia’s Super Awesome Project Book – Super Simple Arduino!: Sylvia’s Super Awesome Project Book – Super Simple Arduino is a book written and illustrated by young maker superstar Sylvia. Sylvia’s a kid who loves making, tinkering, and art projects. She’s also the star of Sylvia’s Super-Awesome Maker Show – an online series about STEM concepts with millions of views.
In this book, Sylvia sets her sights on the inimitable Arduino microcontroller with fun projects, clever and easy-to-follow instructions, and whimsical graphics. It’s a great book for young makers and an incredible way to introduce makers of all ages to the wonderful world of Arduino. (read more)
And don’t forget about Sylvia’s Super Awesome Project Book Add-On Pack w/ Genuine Arduino!
We’re excited for the Holiday Season here at Adafruit, and we can’t wait to share that excitement with you! Stay tuned into the blog where you will find new, handpicked gift guides five days a week from November 7 through December 23rd, 2016 alongside holiday themed tutorials and builds!
Free Deals
Adafruit offers exciting deals and free items when you shop with us. As of February 23rd, 2016 3:00 PM ET we are currently offering FREE UPS ground (Continental USA) for orders $200 or more.
Adafruit Holiday Shipping Deadlines 2016
Here are your 2016 shipping deadlines for ordering from Adafruit. Please review our shipping section if you have specific questions on how and where we ship worldwide for this holiday season.
The Adafruit Shipping Department works hard to get your orders out as quickly as we can, but once they’re in the hands of our carriers they’re out of our control.
Carriers have been struggling to keep up with the sharp rise in online orders. UPS, FedEX, and USPS all experienced delivery delays over the last few years.
So all the Adafruit Shippers say: Please be sure you get your gifts early! Order as soon as you can! Once you place your order we’ll ship like the wind!
Please note: We do not offer Saturday or Sunday service for UPS or USPS.
Sunday, Dec. 25, 2016, Christmas, no UPS or USPS pickup or delivery service.
Monday, Dec. 26, 2016, no UPS or USPS pickup or delivery service.
Monday, Jan. 2, 2017, no UPS or USPS pickup or delivery service.
Sunday, Jan. 1, 2016, New Year’s Day, no UPS or USPS pickup or delivery service
Gift Certificates are always available at any time.
When in doubt contact us!
Domestic Orders
UPS ground: Place orders by Friday 11am ET – December 9, 2016 – There is no guarantee that UPS Ground packages will arrive by December 23.
UPS 3-day: Place orders by Thursday 11am ET – December 15, 2016 – Arrive by 12/23/2016.
UPS 2-day: Place orders by Friday 11am ET – December 16, 2016 – Arrive by 12/23/2016.
UPS overnight: Place orders by Monday 11am ET – December 19, 2016 – Arrive by 12/23/2016.
United States Postal Service, First Class and Priority: Place orders by Friday– December 9, 2016 – Arrive by 12/23/2016 or sooner.
International Orders
USPS First class mail international: Place orders by Friday – November 18, 2016. Can take up to 30 days or more with worldwide delays and customs. Should arrive by 12/23/2016 or sooner, but not a trackable service and cannot be guaranteed to arrive by 12/23/2016.
USPS Express mail international: Place orders by Friday – December 2, 2016. Can take up to 15 days or more with worldwide delays and customs. Should arrive by 12/23/2016 or sooner.
UPS WORLDWIDE EXPRESS, UPS WORLDWIDE EXPEDITED and UPS EXPRESS SAVER (UPS International orders): Place orders by Friday 11am ET – December 9, 2016 – There is no guarantee that international packages will arrive by December 23 2016.
