The 7 Super Duper Kickstarter Inventions to Innovate Kids’ Minds

In a world of consumerism, mass marketing and excessive consumption we are overwhelmed with meaningless, meritless products.

Though not intentionally uninspired these items add noise rather than value to the lives of the customer. It is a sad story constantly told as incremental ideas are proliferated with ever increasing speed in our era of easy access, online shopping.

As we stand upon the shores watching the rising tides of Amazon-esque products of perfectly manufactured mundane some startups still manage to shine through the abyss. Entrepreneurs everywhere are looking to change the world and today let’s honor the best and brightest innovators looking to the future to dynamically alter the humanity as a whole.

I speak of course of the under-appreciated yet extremely influential creators of kids toys.

These innovators looking to empower the following generations are amazingly powerful contributors to society. And of course with the death rate hovering around 100% it is critical to continue to teach and train our youth in the important areas of science, engineering and creativity to create potential change in the future.

With ever increasing engagement via social media, video games and unproductive platforms the arenas for learning and attention spans of our children something scary to consider emerges.

Hopefully hope lies in the inventive inventors looking to revolutionize fun, family friendly learning. Here are their stories, strategies and missions to make the world wonderful.

The 7 Super Duper Kickstarter Inventions to Innovate Kids’ Minds

 1. GoldieBlox. Awesome engineering empowerment for girls everywhere.

After an amazingly powerful place on the popular investment program Shark Tank everyone and their sister instantly soared towards GoldieBlox.

Founded by Debbie Sterling, GoldieBlox is a business built out of frustration in the face of the modern manliness of engineering. Everywhere Debbie or any other female figure turns in the world of science and engineering they are greeted by only guys. In spite rapidly rising standards of female education and workforce empowerment in which women make up the majority of college graduates there is still an enormous mountain in the more male dominated science and technology fields to climb.

As an engineering student I easily can attest to the awful ratio frequently found in most all engineering classes where 90% of the students were male. GoldieBlox fights the status quo by bringing engineering fun and fashionability to young girls everywhere. Positioned as a simple girly toy with story books, satin ribbons and of course ballerinas the system is an ingenious working of wildly important engineering principles.

Gender stereotypes are sneakily attacked with this amazing product and girls everywhere learn lessons often unexpected which work to strengthen future innovation. These ladies are learning the arts of engineering at a young age while having fun doing it and hopefully help force females into the scientific fields of study.

2. Primo.io. Future facing programming for all.

Next on our list of amazing innovations of the future we have a soon to be superstar guest of the podcast, Primo.io. These guys have the lofty and inspirational goal of teaching children the treacherous world of programming and somehow making it fun.

And if you check out the Primo.io campaign you instantly realize Filippo and Matteo, this team of UK innovators did just that. By developing a fun, friendly toy in which kids can inconspicuously play they created the secret strategy of fun learning.

Unlike other boring attempts where children sit at computers and slave over hopelessly complex conundrums in an effort to better their futures Primo.io is an entirely different approach. Here kids take a Cubetto toy and try to drive it using a Twister-esque logic board.

The premade pieces and simple, straightforwardness feel like a family friendly approach to innovation if ever I saw one. And in our world where programming skills so desperately desired this popular product will hopefully help inspire other awesome techies.

3. Strawbees. The Lincoln Logs of the future.

Without wasting words Strawbees are awesome. This accidental innovation enables inventors everywhere to create chaos and greatness with little to no messy material.

Suddenly structures, machines and masterpieces which previously emptied entire LEGO boxes or overwhelmed sets of building blocks are easily achievable using every day straws. They invented the future of fun creativity.

This is epically important in our overly technological world where hands on creativity is constantly are pushed aside. Strawbees are surely simple but simply smart in engaging groups everywhere in building. They may not change the world, solve massive issues or overcome hunger but this tiny try at funifying creativity could create something truly great in the minds of many a child.

4. Primo. Menace free math?

It is no small secret that most of us are all too unenthusiastic about school. Math in particular held a hell holeishly hated spot in many a heart and still to this day terrifies adults. But what is it about learning and numerous numbers that is so spectacularly difficult?

A group of mathematicians want to remedy this epidemic issue. Math is the basis and building block upon which our world is built. It enables complex creations and creates systems and substances unexpected by all.

Well in a simply straightforward way our math maniacs managed to make math fun….not just acceptable, but fun. This is a massive win for math nerds(myself included) everywhere.

Our world is progressing at rapidly increasing pace as technology and innovation race forward into the future. Unless I am much mistaken math is the mumbo jumbo by which this magical process pushes forward. Games like Primo and others which actively encourage kids to learn in an unexpectedly enjoyable ways are powerful forces for good.

Busy work belongs in the past as playful learning looms on the horizon.

5. KIBO. Funner programming for kids.

As talked about before coding is creating the future for all of us. Programming is pushing forward and more developers are demanded at an ever increasing rate to satisfy the surge of innovation.

KIBO much like Primo.io is an awesome invention geared towards creating creativity in kids. Its simple logic based system is a method of making robots run at an elementary level.

This simple, easy to use kit instills in kids an understanding of coding and creating logic sequences at a fundamental level.

Programming is the new language of learning and increasingly kids need to learn at younger and younger ages these all important skills to create change in the world. Systems like KIBO simplify starting and take college level creative projects and put them in the hands of kids. What comes of wicked fun and constant coding is anyone’s guess but at least our successors are seeming to soak up smarts.

6. Roominate. Revolutionize dolls by building buildings.

The problem with many children’s toys is that they are too simple. In particular girl’s gifts are great at invoking creativity, fashion and future focus but fall short of challenging children. These inadequacies are evidenced in the woeful lack of women in technical, scientific and hands on fields.

Roominate is looking to change that. The startup understands girls get great fun out of dollhouses and playing but brings an added element to the fun. Instead of mass produced mundane, girls get the opportunity to create their dollhouses themselves.

This simple act of requiring construction, creativity and design delivers building blocks into the brains of girls everywhere. Spacial awareness, strategies for building and simple principles of engineering all come out of unassembled toys. But stopping there is insufficient to inspire change and creativity in the futures of these fantastic ladies.

Roominate also works to push girls everywhere with engineering, electronics and circuits to outfit their dream homes. From fans and lights to other electronics girls greatly benefit from early exposure to complex creations and toys such as these which hopefully peak interest in later learning.

7. MaKey MaKey. Video games are great too.

Not all inventions geared towards transforming children’s minds must take away the TV. In our final future focused invention let’s look at something truly superb.

MaKey MaKey is awesome. There really isn’t much else to it. These two PhD students at MIT knocked it out of the park in creating a comprehensive system to control just about anything. With simple, easy to understand circuitry the innovation turns anything into a joystick or key.

Whether you wish to make a Play-Doh video game controller, play the piano using your stairs or a million other uses this circuitry system pushes the boundaries of imagination.

And imagine the awesome power of a system such as this for kids. Learning rudimentary results of circuits, electricity and how different setups affect outputs are awesome. Whether you build a goofy controller and play video games with your kids or create the next awesome idea you will love learning and playing with MaKey MaKey. At least I would.

Thoughts?

These are some of the most amazing inventions any entrepreneur can create. I for one am in awe of the intellectual ideas innovators are constantly creating and want so badly to contribute to society in such a meaningful way.

Forever must we work to help. Building a business around aiding others in improving the world is my goal. What is yours? I would love to hear what you guys are working on or the amazing Kickstarter creations I left out of our list.

Oh and sharing is caring. Spread the story if you think others could creatively benefit from exposure to our ideas. Maybe together we can do something AMAZING.