Happy Atoms by Thames & Kosmos

At EIO we love promoting STEM skills with the toys we sell as evidenced by our large catalog of educational toys and our work with local schools. Given that this is one of our niches, we are really excited to announce that we now carry the Happy Atoms sets by Thames & Kosmos!

Kids are quite obviously visual and tactile learners, and Happy Atoms are a great way to employ that method of learning. Even with older kids and teens, seeing a three dimensional visual representation and learning about various molecules with the supported app may make cramming for a chemistry final a little easier and a lot more engaging than going through the textbook again.

To get started, the introductory set is the least expensive of the three and contains plenty to learn about with 18 atoms and 73 different activities. Probably a good way to gauge your child’s interest before investing in something larger like the complete set. The complete set boasts more than twice the number of atoms (52) and nearly three times as many activities (216). If the complete set doesn’t teach you some science, I don’t know what will.

Speaking of teaching science, Thames & Kosmos makes an educator’s bundle for use in classrooms or small “club” type groups. The educator’s set includes a whopping 250 pieces and 216 activities. The educator’s bundle would definitely help bring home the complexities of chemistry and atoms to any classroom.

The greatest feature of any of these sets is that they are supported by the app which is available in the Apple and Android stores. With the app, these sets really come to life and bring limitless possibilities to the table. The app can recognize up to 10,000 molecules so it can recognize and give basic information about nearly any random molecule you can come up with. In addition to this, the app provides in depth information on 150 different molecules. Some of what you can learn about a given molecule is information about the molecule’s composition, usage, properties, hazards, formulas and the structure. The app also serves as an “educational Pokemon Go or Pokedex” in that it tracks your progress and keeps track of the molecules you have built. Thames & Kosmos also provides lesson plans for educators for free on their website.

Have you bought, played with or purchased Happy Atoms? Leave us a review at one of the above links or share pics on Instagram.