Space toys are a popular sector of educational toys and have been since the 1960s, when NASA’s publicized launches brought space travel to public’s attention. Space toys encourage exploration and imaginative play while still providing fundamental knowledge of the universe. They come in a wide variety of forms, from simplified scientific tools to make-believe planet models, yet they all grab the attention of curious kids of all ages. With such a wide variety of educational toys available in today’s toy market, one can’t help but wonder what makes space toys so engaging.

Ultimate Star Planetarium View the night sky with this motorized indoor planetarium.	Moon in My Room Bring the beauty of the moon right into your room with remote control moon.
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Perhaps the fascination with space toys resonates in today’s youth because space is the ultimate untamed and unexplained frontier. There are so many unanswered questions, unexplained phenomena and undiscovered elements in space that inquisitive kids are naturally drawn to the skies and everything beyond them. Because outer space attracts kids’ curiosity, toy makers have a seemingly endless supply for toy inspiration. Although there are an abundance of space toys for children to choose from, they typically fall into one of three different categories: functioning scientific tools, representational space models and representational space projections.

Space toys categorized as functioning scientific tools are just simplified versions of the real deal. For instance, the Discovery Sky & Land Telescope is an excellent example of a space toy that is truly functional. It is strong enough to view craters on the moon, locate planets and comes equipped with red night-vision, all in a kid-friendly form. Clearly, such a toy is educational in terms of helping kids get a better grasp of the size and scope of the universe, but it also indulges their sense of adventure, inspiring them to try to locate some undiscovered element of the universe.

Representational space models are another big portion of the space toys spectrum. They are fun for kids because they are interesting to look at and they make space objects more tangible. A great example of a representational space model is Discovery’s Remote Control Moon in My Room. While skeptics may be tempted to call this space toy a glorified night light, in reality it is a valuable educational toy because it visibly demonstrates the twelve lunar phases on a suspended, true-to life moon model.

Representational space projections are another valuable set of space toys. Although they do not offer tangible representations of outer space objects, they present visually stunning images of everything from meteor showers to constellations. An example of a representational space projection toy would be the Discovery Ultimate Star Planetarium. It projects 88 constellations and 12 different celestial objects in a kid-friendly format. Because of everything that kids stand to gain from learning about the universe and having their curiosity piqued, space toys are among the most beneficial educational tools available today.