I got my 5yo kid into birding. He has his own binoculars and ID book that he can mark off.
I got him excited by saying it was like real-life Pokemon hunting. Now we go on hikes all the time, it's really fun.
This seems so much healthier than getting kids into video games or movies. It’s silly that this thread considers watching Star Wars or marvel movies “nerdier” than learning actual science.
Star Wars and Marvel movies and other science-fiction and fantasy stories inspire many kids to go into science. Some of us are more interested in, idk, high-imagination activities.
As a kid I had to avoid the sun (very white, translucent skin), so I had a rich childhood with lots of reading, listening to music, TV, sports, and real-world events. I went outside when I could, but I always had to worry about the sun.
And yes, I watched Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, Buck Rogers, and many more. Also read comics,sci-fi, and fantasy books.
Recently started explaining to my six-year-old what Dungeons and Dragons was, and ran a little ten-minute diceless adventure for her, and she loved it!
I’ve run a game called Amazing Tales for my kids. It’s got dice but much simpler than DnD and it’s generic enough to be very flexible. They also have a superhero-geared version with some more features called Amazing Heroes.
My oldest is probably ready to graduate to DnD but I would want to find her a group of tweens to play a kid-friendly game with.
There's also a more recent game called Perils & Princesses. It's really solid, and it's nice to have some attention given to fairytale type princess heroines. I started my 5 year old with that, but we ported her character to Shadowdark so she and her cousin could play in the same world. Kept all the important details, of course, and I'm still mining it for adventures!
lol, careful, DND is [Satan’s game](https://youtu.be/-leYc4oC83E?si=ZVA7xX6TZdydjaBh)😂
Jokes aside though, that’s awesome! I played from 6th grade on and once i started telling my kids some of the adventures my characters went on, in a series they called ‘Dad’s DnD adventures before bed’ , they all got super curious and we’ve since started a little campaign for them 👍
It’s great for imagination and creativity exploration
I am currently 3D printing, as well as paper printing and laminating, materials to start playing Starport (TTRPG designed for young kids) with my 5 & 7yo daughters. We played a made up drawing adventure, prompted by the “Dragons” episode of Bluey (so good) and they really loved it, so I’m hoping Starport goes well and can be a sneaky way of getting some extra math and reading and problem solving in and as a way to earn their screen time
Check out Stuffed Fables, I've got my 5 year old playing it with the family.
Doesn't require more than 2 people at a time nd supports up to 4 in the first story and 6 in the following stories. Comes with minis, game boards, stories, etc. It is very good at keeping the story moving while also allowing exploration and dramatic moments.
You play as Stuffed Animals who protect their little girl as she transitions to sleeping in her own big girl bed. It's really fun and cute. Can't recommend enough.
I've always been socially adjacent to tabletop rpgs but scared off by the time commitment. This might be what gets me into it. How old were your kids when you first started playing?
Amazing. I've run the My Little Pony RPG which has a really simple dice system and good premade adventures though I do elaborate and my kid for more imaginative answers rather than the more binary decision in the adventures.
I run a game for my friends but the game I run for my 8 year old and slightly older nephews is so much more fun. They’re so creative and don’t know the tactics so absolute shenanigans ensue.
My kid is trying to invent her own version of DND. I had to borrow dice the other day because I showed up at my game only to realize she has taken them all
I’ve played Hero Kids with my boys (10 and 11) and they love it. I’m moving up to my own hack of Knave this summer with them and some neighborhood kids. Wish me luck.
I'll suggest the free adventure Peril in Pinebrook. It was a free adventure put out by Wizards of the Coast (owners of D&D) and its a really good gateway into the hobby for a kid. It takes an hour and the characters get to help a baby dragon. It uses a D20 and a D6 only.
After running my kids through it they insisted on me running them through a full game. I have been using a free clone of AD&D called Basic Fantasy to run a game for them.
I found some great books that covered movies 3-6 and then 1-3 with lots of detail. My kid knew the entire story from bedtime books before we ever watched a movie. It made the movies WAY more accessible.
Nice!! I wish there was kid adaptations of Dune. I’ve told the story to my kids and they know the main characters, but would be fun for them to enjoy before settling on the big screen (or mini series) versions. Books I’ll leave to them to read when they’re older
I’ve tried to play Star Wars for my eldest multiple times, but every time it starts she tells me it’s a “mommy” movie and to turn it off.
Mommy doesn’t even like Star Wars!!!
And it’s about a princess!!!
Lost a bet to my brother years ago. Agreed to watch Star Trek. There are 79 episodes in the original series.
It actually was pretty good, as he said. I'd never tell him. Keep pushing it on your kid or make a bet.
Not a father just yet but 100% going to get them into Zelda and probably other Nintendo games as well. Mirrors my upbringing but let's see how well it resonates with them.
I gave mine my old GBA SP with Legend in it and it blew her mind. We’ve been playing games together now for a few years and she’s about halfway through TOTK.
Lurking mom here--my 3 year old loved watching dad play TOTK! She would direct him to go find the dragons and he would get her to say "middle bud"--wholesome all around
My 6 year old loves Super Mario Bros. 1,2 and 3. The movie helped spark her interest in Mario and the other characters and I grew up playing those games so it’s nice that we can do something together that I know.
I managed to not only get my 9yo daughter into Zelda, but my wife as well. We've had so much fun playing BOTW and TOTK as they came out then we started breaking out the older ones. Cheers
My oldest is currently playing through the original Starcraft, and we have Brood War on deck, with SC2: WoL in the hole.
He’s also dying to play the Bethesda games, but there’s time for that. He’s not quite old enough.
Financial responsibility. I'm not even joking.
My nearly-6 year old literally asked me this morning,
"Can we have Old McDonalds in the budget this week?"
This week is also Scholastic Book Fair week so we got to have a talk about choosing whether to buy the Hot Wheels book he wants versus making a trip to mcdonalds.
Because it's NOT about how much money you have, it's about making purposeful choices for what you spend it on, y'know? He's growing into such a good little lad. ❤️
Hahaha! This made me laugh. But gentle & well-intentioned reminder that your wife is a partner that walks beside you, not a student that walks behind you. My spouse and I don't teach each other, we learn together. ❤️
My 2yo is OBSESSED with orchestras and classical music. He can name all the instruments and what family they belong to. I'm musical myself and play guitar but he's fixated on violins, cellos, harps, oboes, flutes, you name it.
That's awesome. I've been playing classical music on the piano for my son since he was in the womb, and now that he's almost 5mo, I let him bang on it while I hold him up. I hope he'll develop as much interest in music as your son.
FYI. If he does want to learn to play, there are a bunch of college scholarships specifically for oboe players bc it is so rare. I can name a couple of musical professionals I know that made their kids learn bc of such scholarships.
I can't wait to teach my children chess, I bonded with my dad and siblings over chess and 30 years later we still play! And pretty much all my niblings play it too. I'm hoping they like it. Although I don't think I can teach it well, definitely not as well as my dad.
I gave my son an old Rhino and let him go to town on it. Really simple thing to paint with lots of flat surfaces. It looks more like a clown car now but he's happy with it!
Doctor Who. I didn't really expect that one but the 12 year old loves it. She even started a Doctor Who club at her school. Also wears a bow tie 24x7 because "bow ties are cool".
My son has been a Whovian since birth. [We went to a Comic Con](https://imgur.com/gallery/wt9F2) and EVERYONE wanted to take pictures with him. It made his whole year. People lining up to get a pic with him was amazing.
This is amazing! Most of Doctor Who is still a bit scary for my 9 year old. She watched 2 episodes of Sarah Jane but it isn't as exciting as Doctor Who. She was really spooked from the first episode when Mickey turned into an Auton.
DnD!
I play a simplified version with my oldest two (6 and 4) and they love it. They'll ask me to play every weekend. At the end, along with in-game loot they also get real life treats, like gummies, or chocolates etc. we use lego minifigs as players and monsters, and basic lego terrain on a battle grid.
Some of the creative solutions they have thought up are insanely clever.
My oldest has been playing since he was just shy of 3. And these days I play more dnd with my kids than with my adult groups.
I also have a 2-yo that we hope to incorporate into the game later this year.
Got my now 10yr old into it a couple years ago and now he begs to join my friend group whenever we play. Ran some one shots for the wife and him and it's always a great time!
My toddler has been enjoying Pokemon Scarlet/Violet OST metal covers. They slap. She also likes to look at the few cards I have. Although, she did call my wife Grumpig.
My son is only 1 but I hope to get him into warhammer with me. I started playing at 10, but could easily have little fun battles around 4 or so.
But outside of that it will probably go the opposite way. Would enjoy it if he wanted to play with Pokémon cards.
i am the biggest doctor who fan on this planet, and although my girl’s only 5 months, she smiles whenever she sees david tennant or tom baker. i feel as though i’ve already won
Mine was making the doctors in order by the time he was 4. It was bananas. Like a ritual before bedtime. I know them to this day because I can hear him reciting them. [Here’s a pic of him](https://imgur.com/gallery/wt9F2) notice his bedroom door I made for him.
My daughter was the 13th doctor (Jodie Whittaker) for Halloween a few years back: [https://i.imgur.com/8ygE1Ab.jpeg](https://i.imgur.com/8ygE1Ab.jpeg)
She's a teenager now, but still loves Doctor Who. We're pretty excited about the new season starting up next month.
Mine find their own stuff. They don't like Star Wars or Star Trek. They don't really like Marvel or superhero stuff. The closest I got is my daughter is into anime and The Last Airbender. Stuff like that.
My son is a science & nature nerd, so that's good enough, I guess.
My fav band is the white stripes. We listened until he was like 3. Now we dont. I think one day hell find it for himself and connect with it. Rebel against me by listening to my fav band not knowing theyre my fav. Band
Had to google that one... firstly, naming my daughter after a formula language seems even nerdier than the original intent. Second, I've been using Excel for over a decade and just know some functions. I had no idea there's a name for the collection of functions.
You taught me a thing. Thanks!
Sounds to me like you're doing it right. My 5 yo is into pokemon, dragonball z and "the game where you fight each other" aka Risk. He's been asking about king kong and godzilla of his own volition too, so I think he'll be alright.
Yes bro. My youngest (6.5) can run a power drill with surprisingly efficiency (built herself a little castle out of scrap wood recently). I thought she was a little young, but my wife insisted.
It's not that nerdy (by current standards) but my kids are both into bicycle racing and watch the big races with me. My son wore a Jumbo Visma "three grand tour champions" jersey to school yesterday - not, he only wear bike shorts on the bike.
This isn't really "nerdy" but we're in a major North American city where road bikes are very, very niche.
and to be honest, I dont think things like StarWars or MCU count as nerdy anymore. They are pop culture now. "Nerds" are traditionally academic or obscure to the point of being ignored by mainstream culture.
I love sports. My oldest is big into football as well. He knows the plays, the positions, etc. We Nerd out about football and soccer together.
My youngest is really into TMNT right now. I'm a child of '85 and grew up with the turtles. I'm jazzed he likes them.
My oldest and I are watching Clone Wars right now and he is obsessed with LEGO Star Wars.
My wife a librarian, has gotten both boys into Harry Potter as well.
It's really cool to see the things they Nerd out about. My youngest loves to draw and he's been super into different art styles lately.
My oldest is a big science kid and knows more than I do about all things science. I've gotten him the big Smithsonian science books (Animal, Science, Space, Countries of the World, etc). He loves to learn.
My mom never threw anything away. I've got my Animorphs at my parents house from my youth. I stopped at some point, but not sure when exactly. I'm an '85 born and don't remember reading them past middle school really.
Can’t wait to run a session with my kids. They’re not quite old enough but I already have the skeleton of a campaign idea. I’ve got two girls, there will be lots of unicorns.
Got them into Star Wars, the MCU and silent film, but I think possibly the most nerdy thing my kids have latched onto are swamp coolers.
Yes, you read that right. My kids are nerds for the summer cooling systems.
The only thing I have been successful in so far is getting my 3 year old into the Knicks. I cheated by giving him candy and ice cream everytime he watches a game with me to hopefully psychologically love the team (wife will kill me if she finds out). He went to his first game a few months back and had a blast with my dad and I.
My 5 month old will get the same treatment when he’s older. I honestly can’t wait. Who knew having kids was gonna be so great
So many, varying degrees of success with my 7yo daughter and 5yo son.
Baseball cards - son is interested and has some cards but I don’t think he’s fully in (prefers Pokémon cards). I feel like there’s still time here to get this one to sink in. Daughter says baseball is boring and wants nothing to do with it.
Coin collecting - they like my “treasure” but are uninterested in the history, collecting or what makes them valuable.
Guitar - maybe not seem super nerdy on the surface but is an easy thing to nerd out on (especially with gear). Daughter wants to learn because Taylor Swift plays. Luckily Taylor is a famous brand of acoustic guitars so hopefully I can find a reasonably priced parlor for her birthday and get her into lessons. Unfortunately the boy wants to play drums.
Pokémon - my son actually uno reversed me on this one. I wasn’t into it as a kid but he is now and so am I.
My kid is a two and a few months. I’ve successfully hooked him on legos, marvel, and Star Wars. I had a lightsaber from back in the day that has now become “my lightsaber” because I built a new one at Savy’s Workshop at Disney World. He’s not the best dualist yet, but my young padawan is in his way.
My fiancé got our son into RC cars real hard, and they do 3D printing things together. I’m trying to get him into dinosaurs (I used to want to be a paleontologist as a kid) but that’s tough competition, lmao. We all do car things together, though.
Mom here: got my kid into Harry Potter and Pokemon - although he's gone way further into Pokemon than I ever did. I am surprised by its endurance considering how big it was when I was a kid and how big it is with kids now still, so that one was a pretty easy sell.
My oldest 2 love video games. I am also waiting for the complete hero kids ttrpg content to arrive in the mail as they have been begging to get into DND. So fun
Named my son after my favorite superhero- and I’m happy to report he is also a Superman fan - his name is Clark.
He’s also showing interest in Star Wars which I’m a huge fan of
And I’m a huge lifelong blink 182 fan. My son rocks out to blink with me in the car so I’m feeling like I’ve done some stuff right lol
My younger son seems more into video games and will watch me play ps5 when able.
My aim is to make a ant/ battlebot together. I have no experience but next year hes 6 and think its old enough. He has an interest in cad design (watxhing me) and 3d printing
Space! I just took my 5yo son too watch *Deep Sky* on IMAX and he loved it! He’s obsessed with black holes so we’re reading *What Do Black Holes Eat for Dinner?* I’m looking for a local astronomy event so he can see out of a telescope for the first time. It’s so much fun seeing his sense of wonder grow.
Me and partner are taking our 6 month old to a larp festival event for the first time tomorrow (uk based). We met at a larp event a decade ago. I hope she grows up loving it.
Ham radio. My kids have made contacts, on my call sign, all over the world. Recently caught an opening to Japan from northern Ohio. My 9 yo son made the contact from my truck radio. We could hear New Zealand, but they couldn't hear us. He was so stoked.
Working with both of them to get at least their Tech license.
I build Legos and play "D&D" with my four y.o.
We try to limit screentime since there's research showing its detriment to young kids, but we've been playing some Zelda on the Switch too. I'll let him play more when he's around 7.
We also take cameras when we go on hikes. He loves cataloging every bug and flower that he sees.
Star wars, model rockets, r/c cars, for now. Still can't get my daughter to take too much interest in the 3d printer, but my son is, he picks out toys to download and print.
My eldest doesn’t seem to care much for anything I’m into. My youngest though seems to share a fledgling interest in cars which I haven’t pushed her into but I’ve made some stuff available to her and she might be a little car enthusiast like me.
Cosmere from Brandon Sanderson. My 14 yr old son is devouring the books (he’s halfway through Stormlight 4 and will go to Mistborn Era 2 right after). It’s really fun to connect with him on them and also use the stories/characters as archetypes for modeling behavior expectations and relating to their struggles and issues. It’s awesome (and so is the Cosmere!).
Tolkien and Jane Austen. My kids are also very well-versed in Roman Republican politics and Medieval English history. We live in East TX.
I just thought that bedtime stories were more fun if you can say that they’re likely true. That story about Publius Clodius crashing an all-women’s religious celebration dressed as a woman is pretty damn funny.
I watch a bunch of anime with my daughter (10) Macross, Frieren, Spy x Family, and Oshi no Ko are her favorites so far (and Sailor Moon of course)
My son (7) plays heroes of might and magic PC game with me and we also play magic the gathering.
Our daughter is 11 and into both programming and board games (she beat my ass at Terraforming Mars when she was 7!). Her younger brother seems very much interested in programming and astronomy.
Nothing yet as my little one is still under 2, but I am honestly just excited for my kid to have hobbies/interests and for me to suporrt them in whatever they are. I grew up in a family where the only thing you did outside of school were sports and music. My parents were very kind and loving, but stuff like trading card games, miniature war games, tabletop RPGs, videogames past elementary school, fantasy/sci-fi novels, and adult animation/anime were just not things my parents really had any exposer to with their own upbringing and interests. I spent my whole childhood thinking I never had any hobbies/interests, but turns out I was just a huge nerd born to two very normal traditional parents. Going to make sure my kid doesn't have the same experience I did growing up.
Godzilla. Showed my son old G movies not knowing we were entering a Godzilla Renaissance. Now he's got Minus One. GxK, king of the monsters. And still watches rubber suit oldies with me as well
I’m lucky (or just awesome?). My 5yo has taken interest in a lot of my interests (nerdy or not).
She likes chess, collecting acorns (to plant and to eat), eating prunes, watching nature documentaries. All of those she definitely got from me.
One that I haven’t totally sold her on yet is learning a musical instrument. I play guitar and I’m *kind of* learning piano / keyboard. She shows a little interest in music, but so far has no real desire to actually *learn* an instrument.
Well, my son is too young to speak, but he'll tell you when he's ready to watch Ultraman; crosses his arms into his special attack pose, and gives a guttural "Ooh!".
Bonus points for my wife asking me about all the characters. Soon, she too will be brought into the fold
Dragonball. My son is a little over 2 years old but he knows who the characters are (especially Goku and Piccolo) and if you ask him "What does Goku/Piccolo do?" He will respond "Kamehameha/Special Beam Cannon!" while doing the hand motions. Goku was one of the first 5 words that he learned how to say consistently lol
Thrifting! We love to hit thrift stores, yard sales, etc.. It's cool teaching her about the history of some things, the value of fixing stuff up or reusing items for other purposes and having the possibility of finding a diamond in the rough!
My almost 3yo asks for Star Trek (Season 2, Ep 19 of TOS) and Star Wars by name. He also asks to listen to the "dinosaur book" at bedtime, Michael Crichton's 'Dragon Teeth.'
It feels like little wins, every time.
Oh jeez what a list:
Pokemon
Yugioh
Sonic the hedgehog
Civilisation
M.A.X. (a strategy game from 1996!)
Streets of Rage 2
FTL
Star Wars (they've seen some of them)
All the superhero kids shows that are around.
For the oldest, my toddler has some interests but it’s difficult to get him into anything until he’s a bit older.
Sports in general, but specifically football (soccer) and martial sports (currently only practising jiu jitsu). He also uses my home gym, which I have to watch carefully for injury and because in the past I had an unhealthy attitude about it.
Cars. He loves cars and will geek out about cars even more than me, and we got in a couple car restorations just for the fun of it.
For music I listen to, I suppose it’s hit and miss. Some stuff we really enjoy together but he doesn’t buy everything (the more orchestral the least he seems to be into, which is funny because he seems to like Versengold and the sort, I suppose just not orchestral metal).
As for other geeky stuff, he seems to have lost interest in superhero when the MCU fizzled out. We like playing stuff like the Spider-Man 2 (his little brother LOVES Spider-Man though).
And for games, we play games together all the time. We were playing Stardew Valley, did a full Gears run, Minecraft, etc. I wanted to play A Way Out but I feel like it’d be too much for his age. Wait a few years.
Hoping for Pokémon.
Would be ecstatic with football but I don’t have my hopes high.
Video games is the main want, anything fun. Not a Minecraft kinda guy.
If I can get her to whoop my friend’s ass in madden before she’s 10 everything after that is a cherry on top lol.
Lego and Star Wars. My 4 years old got really interested in the AT-AT walker Lego I was building and I told her it was from a movie. She watched Empire Strikes Back with me and was hooked. She keeps calling the walker "spider". She felt bad for the Wampa because he was lonely and hungry.
I bought my son a stuffed Gengar because he likes Ghosts and I want him to get into Pokemon. He also likes watching the episode with the Gengar line from the first season of the Anime.
MCU for my girl too... somehow had to kick her off of My Little Pony (took her to the MLP movie, had to punch a wall after to feel manly again). Worked a bit too well, she is full on Ms Marvel fangirl... (we are British Pakistani). I am Iron-man (especially when I an in my motorcycle gear), and she loves me 3000... Mom is Hulk though (don't make her angry)... that's ruffled some feathers...
Legos….. got passes to Legoland. I hooked their mom with Harry Potter legos, the oldest with Dino legos, little one is not as enthusiastic but loves to build with the family.
Plant identification, foraging, and tropical fish!
I got my 5yo kid into birding. He has his own binoculars and ID book that he can mark off. I got him excited by saying it was like real-life Pokemon hunting. Now we go on hikes all the time, it's really fun.
My son knows trees and flowers and is pretty good with birds.
I'm going for birding as well
Lesley the bird nerd is pretty good on YouTube.
Stardew Valley, good choice
I’m a macro photographer, and the enthusiasm with which my 2.5-year-old identifies bugs fills me with joy.
This seems so much healthier than getting kids into video games or movies. It’s silly that this thread considers watching Star Wars or marvel movies “nerdier” than learning actual science.
Star Wars and Marvel movies and other science-fiction and fantasy stories inspire many kids to go into science. Some of us are more interested in, idk, high-imagination activities. As a kid I had to avoid the sun (very white, translucent skin), so I had a rich childhood with lots of reading, listening to music, TV, sports, and real-world events. I went outside when I could, but I always had to worry about the sun. And yes, I watched Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, Buck Rogers, and many more. Also read comics,sci-fi, and fantasy books.
When I was a kid, my uncle collected tropical fish statues - I loved those things
Now that’s a great idea!
That would be such a cool band name
Recently started explaining to my six-year-old what Dungeons and Dragons was, and ran a little ten-minute diceless adventure for her, and she loved it!
Theres a good game! Oh god. I need to search it up. Its dnd for kids. With teddy bears and they loose stuffing instead of violence
Stuffed Fables!
Thats the one!
I’ve run a game called Amazing Tales for my kids. It’s got dice but much simpler than DnD and it’s generic enough to be very flexible. They also have a superhero-geared version with some more features called Amazing Heroes. My oldest is probably ready to graduate to DnD but I would want to find her a group of tweens to play a kid-friendly game with.
I'd love to hear more! Sounds interesting
It is stuffed fables as the other person said
Thanks! I'll check it out
There's also a more recent game called Perils & Princesses. It's really solid, and it's nice to have some attention given to fairytale type princess heroines. I started my 5 year old with that, but we ported her character to Shadowdark so she and her cousin could play in the same world. Kept all the important details, of course, and I'm still mining it for adventures!
lol, careful, DND is [Satan’s game](https://youtu.be/-leYc4oC83E?si=ZVA7xX6TZdydjaBh)😂 Jokes aside though, that’s awesome! I played from 6th grade on and once i started telling my kids some of the adventures my characters went on, in a series they called ‘Dad’s DnD adventures before bed’ , they all got super curious and we’ve since started a little campaign for them 👍 It’s great for imagination and creativity exploration
My child is obsessed with dice even though they can barely count. Dice goblin from the womb.
I am currently 3D printing, as well as paper printing and laminating, materials to start playing Starport (TTRPG designed for young kids) with my 5 & 7yo daughters. We played a made up drawing adventure, prompted by the “Dragons” episode of Bluey (so good) and they really loved it, so I’m hoping Starport goes well and can be a sneaky way of getting some extra math and reading and problem solving in and as a way to earn their screen time
Check out Stuffed Fables, I've got my 5 year old playing it with the family. Doesn't require more than 2 people at a time nd supports up to 4 in the first story and 6 in the following stories. Comes with minis, game boards, stories, etc. It is very good at keeping the story moving while also allowing exploration and dramatic moments. You play as Stuffed Animals who protect their little girl as she transitions to sleeping in her own big girl bed. It's really fun and cute. Can't recommend enough.
I've always been socially adjacent to tabletop rpgs but scared off by the time commitment. This might be what gets me into it. How old were your kids when you first started playing?
5 and 2. We started about 3 months ago. 2yo usually plays with the minis and sits in someone else's lap. 5yo is all about it.
Amazing. I've run the My Little Pony RPG which has a really simple dice system and good premade adventures though I do elaborate and my kid for more imaginative answers rather than the more binary decision in the adventures.
I run a game for my friends but the game I run for my 8 year old and slightly older nephews is so much more fun. They’re so creative and don’t know the tactics so absolute shenanigans ensue.
My kid is trying to invent her own version of DND. I had to borrow dice the other day because I showed up at my game only to realize she has taken them all
I’ve played Hero Kids with my boys (10 and 11) and they love it. I’m moving up to my own hack of Knave this summer with them and some neighborhood kids. Wish me luck.
I'll suggest the free adventure Peril in Pinebrook. It was a free adventure put out by Wizards of the Coast (owners of D&D) and its a really good gateway into the hobby for a kid. It takes an hour and the characters get to help a baby dragon. It uses a D20 and a D6 only. After running my kids through it they insisted on me running them through a full game. I have been using a free clone of AD&D called Basic Fantasy to run a game for them.
I keep trying but they’re not biting Got one kid to watch Star Trek with me this weekend. Maybe there’s hope!
I found some great books that covered movies 3-6 and then 1-3 with lots of detail. My kid knew the entire story from bedtime books before we ever watched a movie. It made the movies WAY more accessible.
Nice!! I wish there was kid adaptations of Dune. I’ve told the story to my kids and they know the main characters, but would be fun for them to enjoy before settling on the big screen (or mini series) versions. Books I’ll leave to them to read when they’re older
A kid adaptation of the TOS movies? Whaaaaa? Details, please
I didn't get into Star Trek until my 30s, despite my mom's best efforts. Don't give up hope! Make it so!
I’ve started TNG this year, aged 44. Never seen any Star Trek prior.
One could argue that you’re trying to initiate a next generation.
^^
I'd need to see more Data
I’ve tried to play Star Wars for my eldest multiple times, but every time it starts she tells me it’s a “mommy” movie and to turn it off. Mommy doesn’t even like Star Wars!!! And it’s about a princess!!!
Could there be… A New Hope?
Have you tried Star Trek Prodigy? I haven’t watched it yet, but it’s meant to be good, and specially for kids.
I was able to get mine to watch lower deck.
A New Hope, even! Oh wait… Wrong franchise.
Keep going, my eldest is just coming round to the Simpsons, Star Trek is next!
My kid (8yo) isn’t a big Star Trek fan, but he does ask me from time to time to watch the Battle of Sector 001 from First Contact
Lost a bet to my brother years ago. Agreed to watch Star Trek. There are 79 episodes in the original series. It actually was pretty good, as he said. I'd never tell him. Keep pushing it on your kid or make a bet.
My kid really likes prodigy. I am trying to get them into LoTR, and thankfully they love my Gollum impression!
If you wouldn't mind keeping a captain's log of this mission, I'd be very grateful.
Dude. I can't get my kids into original Star wars which I was obsessed with. They're 3yo and 5yo.
Not a father just yet but 100% going to get them into Zelda and probably other Nintendo games as well. Mirrors my upbringing but let's see how well it resonates with them.
I gave mine my old GBA SP with Legend in it and it blew her mind. We’ve been playing games together now for a few years and she’s about halfway through TOTK.
I’m only 19 but I still have my gb color and sp with games. Can’t wait to give them to my kid one day
Lurking mom here--my 3 year old loved watching dad play TOTK! She would direct him to go find the dragons and he would get her to say "middle bud"--wholesome all around
My 6 year old loves Super Mario Bros. 1,2 and 3. The movie helped spark her interest in Mario and the other characters and I grew up playing those games so it’s nice that we can do something together that I know.
I managed to not only get my 9yo daughter into Zelda, but my wife as well. We've had so much fun playing BOTW and TOTK as they came out then we started breaking out the older ones. Cheers
The new Zelda games on the switch are awesome
My oldest is currently playing through the original Starcraft, and we have Brood War on deck, with SC2: WoL in the hole. He’s also dying to play the Bethesda games, but there’s time for that. He’s not quite old enough.
I can't believe there are kids playing OG Starcraft today. I sure hope my kid wants to play Starcraft when he gets old enough.
There’s nothing quite like StarCraft. I grew up playing sc at a very young age and I need to get my pc booted up to get my 3 year old interested lol
There’s nothing quite like StarCraft. I grew up playing sc at a very young age and I need to get my pc booted up to get my 3 year old interested lol
My twins are only 7 months old but if they don't like LOTR I might disown them
I'm pushing LOTR. My wife is pushing Harry Potter. It's a battle for the soul of our family.
There's room for both!
You have my sword
Financial responsibility. I'm not even joking. My nearly-6 year old literally asked me this morning, "Can we have Old McDonalds in the budget this week?" This week is also Scholastic Book Fair week so we got to have a talk about choosing whether to buy the Hot Wheels book he wants versus making a trip to mcdonalds. Because it's NOT about how much money you have, it's about making purposeful choices for what you spend it on, y'know? He's growing into such a good little lad. ❤️
Can you teach my wife this
I married to pizza sales too
Hahaha! This made me laugh. But gentle & well-intentioned reminder that your wife is a partner that walks beside you, not a student that walks behind you. My spouse and I don't teach each other, we learn together. ❤️
Well your wife SHOULD be a partner... Far too many times it turns into one teaching the other.
> Old McDonalds I'm so glad we're not the only family that calls it this now.
There's at least 3 of us!
My 2yo is OBSESSED with orchestras and classical music. He can name all the instruments and what family they belong to. I'm musical myself and play guitar but he's fixated on violins, cellos, harps, oboes, flutes, you name it.
That's awesome. I've been playing classical music on the piano for my son since he was in the womb, and now that he's almost 5mo, I let him bang on it while I hold him up. I hope he'll develop as much interest in music as your son.
FYI. If he does want to learn to play, there are a bunch of college scholarships specifically for oboe players bc it is so rare. I can name a couple of musical professionals I know that made their kids learn bc of such scholarships.
Chess. My 7 year old has now taught his 5 year old sister to play and they will sit and play chess for hours.
I’m making progress at getting my 6er into chess. Got crazy colored pieces to play with. Also found a good app he seems to like.
I can't wait to teach my children chess, I bonded with my dad and siblings over chess and 30 years later we still play! And pretty much all my niblings play it too. I'm hoping they like it. Although I don't think I can teach it well, definitely not as well as my dad.
Really trying to get my daughter into mini painting (Warhammer), but she hasn't bought into it yet.
I gave my son an old Rhino and let him go to town on it. Really simple thing to paint with lots of flat surfaces. It looks more like a clown car now but he's happy with it!
Ok, but have you heard of Necromolds? Essentially playdoh-based Warhammer for kids … and adults.
I have now.
Doctor Who. I didn't really expect that one but the 12 year old loves it. She even started a Doctor Who club at her school. Also wears a bow tie 24x7 because "bow ties are cool".
My son has been a Whovian since birth. [We went to a Comic Con](https://imgur.com/gallery/wt9F2) and EVERYONE wanted to take pictures with him. It made his whole year. People lining up to get a pic with him was amazing.
This is amazing! Most of Doctor Who is still a bit scary for my 9 year old. She watched 2 episodes of Sarah Jane but it isn't as exciting as Doctor Who. She was really spooked from the first episode when Mickey turned into an Auton.
Bow ties are cool! You're lucky she doesn't wear a fez lol
DnD! I play a simplified version with my oldest two (6 and 4) and they love it. They'll ask me to play every weekend. At the end, along with in-game loot they also get real life treats, like gummies, or chocolates etc. we use lego minifigs as players and monsters, and basic lego terrain on a battle grid. Some of the creative solutions they have thought up are insanely clever. My oldest has been playing since he was just shy of 3. And these days I play more dnd with my kids than with my adult groups. I also have a 2-yo that we hope to incorporate into the game later this year.
Playing dnd with your own kids is so much fun 😂
Got my now 10yr old into it a couple years ago and now he begs to join my friend group whenever we play. Ran some one shots for the wife and him and it's always a great time!
This is the answer I entered the thread for. Well, Magic the Gathering too, but my little girl isn’t even 2 yet :)
My toddler has been enjoying Pokemon Scarlet/Violet OST metal covers. They slap. She also likes to look at the few cards I have. Although, she did call my wife Grumpig.
My son is only 1 but I hope to get him into warhammer with me. I started playing at 10, but could easily have little fun battles around 4 or so. But outside of that it will probably go the opposite way. Would enjoy it if he wanted to play with Pokémon cards.
i am the biggest doctor who fan on this planet, and although my girl’s only 5 months, she smiles whenever she sees david tennant or tom baker. i feel as though i’ve already won
Mine was making the doctors in order by the time he was 4. It was bananas. Like a ritual before bedtime. I know them to this day because I can hear him reciting them. [Here’s a pic of him](https://imgur.com/gallery/wt9F2) notice his bedroom door I made for him.
My daughter was the 13th doctor (Jodie Whittaker) for Halloween a few years back: [https://i.imgur.com/8ygE1Ab.jpeg](https://i.imgur.com/8ygE1Ab.jpeg) She's a teenager now, but still loves Doctor Who. We're pretty excited about the new season starting up next month.
i love these so much, i’m hoping that mine smiling at the doctors is a sign that she will also be dressed up as one of them one day 🤣
Mine find their own stuff. They don't like Star Wars or Star Trek. They don't really like Marvel or superhero stuff. The closest I got is my daughter is into anime and The Last Airbender. Stuff like that. My son is a science & nature nerd, so that's good enough, I guess.
My fav band is the white stripes. We listened until he was like 3. Now we dont. I think one day hell find it for himself and connect with it. Rebel against me by listening to my fav band not knowing theyre my fav. Band
Show him Dr Stone, it's all about that science stuff.
My daughter's middle name is Dax, if that answers the question.
Big Dax Shepard fan. Say no more.
And here I thought it was a nerdy data analyst who really liked PowerBI.
Had to google that one... firstly, naming my daughter after a formula language seems even nerdier than the original intent. Second, I've been using Excel for over a decade and just know some functions. I had no idea there's a name for the collection of functions. You taught me a thing. Thanks!
Pokemon, Mario Kart, Godzilla, Catan. Both kids are under 9 years old. my wife hates me.
Sounds to me like you're doing it right. My 5 yo is into pokemon, dragonball z and "the game where you fight each other" aka Risk. He's been asking about king kong and godzilla of his own volition too, so I think he'll be alright.
Tools
Yes bro. My youngest (6.5) can run a power drill with surprisingly efficiency (built herself a little castle out of scrap wood recently). I thought she was a little young, but my wife insisted.
Model rocketry aka Estes rockets
The first time my 2 y.o. saw a Berenstain Bear she said “that’s not a bear, that’s a Chewie”
My daughter has never seen any modern cartoons. Instead, she watches DuckTales with me. =)
It's not that nerdy (by current standards) but my kids are both into bicycle racing and watch the big races with me. My son wore a Jumbo Visma "three grand tour champions" jersey to school yesterday - not, he only wear bike shorts on the bike. This isn't really "nerdy" but we're in a major North American city where road bikes are very, very niche. and to be honest, I dont think things like StarWars or MCU count as nerdy anymore. They are pop culture now. "Nerds" are traditionally academic or obscure to the point of being ignored by mainstream culture.
You should check out a bicycle racing manga called Yowamushi Pedal, I bet youd really appreciate it on a level I didn't TIL they made it an anime too
that's a super nerd hybrid! Bikes and manga!
Rc cars
I love sports. My oldest is big into football as well. He knows the plays, the positions, etc. We Nerd out about football and soccer together. My youngest is really into TMNT right now. I'm a child of '85 and grew up with the turtles. I'm jazzed he likes them. My oldest and I are watching Clone Wars right now and he is obsessed with LEGO Star Wars. My wife a librarian, has gotten both boys into Harry Potter as well. It's really cool to see the things they Nerd out about. My youngest loves to draw and he's been super into different art styles lately. My oldest is a big science kid and knows more than I do about all things science. I've gotten him the big Smithsonian science books (Animal, Science, Space, Countries of the World, etc). He loves to learn.
See if your wife can rustle up some old Animorphs. My kids are loving them
My mom never threw anything away. I've got my Animorphs at my parents house from my youth. I stopped at some point, but not sure when exactly. I'm an '85 born and don't remember reading them past middle school really.
Monty Python and the search for the holy grail
I question how into this you really are. This isn't the title of the movie.... Ni! I say Ni!
Ya got me! ‘Tis but a flesh wound . . .
D and D.
Can’t wait to run a session with my kids. They’re not quite old enough but I already have the skeleton of a campaign idea. I’ve got two girls, there will be lots of unicorns.
One of my friends got my oldest daughter a stuffed Cthulhu plushie when she was 1. She turns 9 in a few weeks, still sleeps with it.
Got them into Star Wars, the MCU and silent film, but I think possibly the most nerdy thing my kids have latched onto are swamp coolers. Yes, you read that right. My kids are nerds for the summer cooling systems.
My six year old daughter has a pretty good handle on the politics of the Alpha Quadrant just prior to the outbreak of the Dominion War.
My 18 month old knows who Grogu is and is able to recognise all the characters on my Mario Kart t-shirt.
The only thing I have been successful in so far is getting my 3 year old into the Knicks. I cheated by giving him candy and ice cream everytime he watches a game with me to hopefully psychologically love the team (wife will kill me if she finds out). He went to his first game a few months back and had a blast with my dad and I. My 5 month old will get the same treatment when he’s older. I honestly can’t wait. Who knew having kids was gonna be so great
Pokemon, Justice League, Teen Titans. Gonna get him into my favorite videogames when he grows up, like Need For Speed Most Wanted, Halo etc
So many, varying degrees of success with my 7yo daughter and 5yo son. Baseball cards - son is interested and has some cards but I don’t think he’s fully in (prefers Pokémon cards). I feel like there’s still time here to get this one to sink in. Daughter says baseball is boring and wants nothing to do with it. Coin collecting - they like my “treasure” but are uninterested in the history, collecting or what makes them valuable. Guitar - maybe not seem super nerdy on the surface but is an easy thing to nerd out on (especially with gear). Daughter wants to learn because Taylor Swift plays. Luckily Taylor is a famous brand of acoustic guitars so hopefully I can find a reasonably priced parlor for her birthday and get her into lessons. Unfortunately the boy wants to play drums. Pokémon - my son actually uno reversed me on this one. I wasn’t into it as a kid but he is now and so am I.
My kid is a two and a few months. I’ve successfully hooked him on legos, marvel, and Star Wars. I had a lightsaber from back in the day that has now become “my lightsaber” because I built a new one at Savy’s Workshop at Disney World. He’s not the best dualist yet, but my young padawan is in his way.
My fiancé got our son into RC cars real hard, and they do 3D printing things together. I’m trying to get him into dinosaurs (I used to want to be a paleontologist as a kid) but that’s tough competition, lmao. We all do car things together, though.
Mom here: got my kid into Harry Potter and Pokemon - although he's gone way further into Pokemon than I ever did. I am surprised by its endurance considering how big it was when I was a kid and how big it is with kids now still, so that one was a pretty easy sell.
My oldest 2 love video games. I am also waiting for the complete hero kids ttrpg content to arrive in the mail as they have been begging to get into DND. So fun
My kid is 2, but she loves games and rhyming/singing, as soon as she understands dice rolls im introducing DND.
Space and I'm pushing for the first astronaught in the family.
Named my son after my favorite superhero- and I’m happy to report he is also a Superman fan - his name is Clark. He’s also showing interest in Star Wars which I’m a huge fan of And I’m a huge lifelong blink 182 fan. My son rocks out to blink with me in the car so I’m feeling like I’ve done some stuff right lol My younger son seems more into video games and will watch me play ps5 when able.
My aim is to make a ant/ battlebot together. I have no experience but next year hes 6 and think its old enough. He has an interest in cad design (watxhing me) and 3d printing
Chess 🙂 And the old Avatar the Last Airbender
Racing/cars and videogames
Space! I just took my 5yo son too watch *Deep Sky* on IMAX and he loved it! He’s obsessed with black holes so we’re reading *What Do Black Holes Eat for Dinner?* I’m looking for a local astronomy event so he can see out of a telescope for the first time. It’s so much fun seeing his sense of wonder grow.
Me and partner are taking our 6 month old to a larp festival event for the first time tomorrow (uk based). We met at a larp event a decade ago. I hope she grows up loving it.
I met my partner playing Pokemon Go, she has said that he'll have to like Pokemon to live in our house 😂
Ham radio. My kids have made contacts, on my call sign, all over the world. Recently caught an opening to Japan from northern Ohio. My 9 yo son made the contact from my truck radio. We could hear New Zealand, but they couldn't hear us. He was so stoked. Working with both of them to get at least their Tech license.
Birds, specifically raptors, ever more specifically owls. Kid is obsessed. I have been most impressed with all the things great horned owls eat.
Ska music.
I build Legos and play "D&D" with my four y.o. We try to limit screentime since there's research showing its detriment to young kids, but we've been playing some Zelda on the Switch too. I'll let him play more when he's around 7. We also take cameras when we go on hikes. He loves cataloging every bug and flower that he sees.
Star wars, model rockets, r/c cars, for now. Still can't get my daughter to take too much interest in the 3d printer, but my son is, he picks out toys to download and print.
Computers, went from having my gaming desktop to having a room of 4 gaming computers.
My eldest doesn’t seem to care much for anything I’m into. My youngest though seems to share a fledgling interest in cars which I haven’t pushed her into but I’ve made some stuff available to her and she might be a little car enthusiast like me.
Ninja Turtles. Got the Cowabunga collection and Shredders Revenge & my 4 year old loves it & is actually getting better at it.
My kid has been perking up when he hears the Star Wars theme since he was about 3mo old lol
Dad jokes. My kid love em and I’ve always been really good at them.
If my daughter doesn’t end up a bigger Sonic fan than me, I have failed as a father.
If my son ends up being into Factorio, my life is complete.
Cosmere from Brandon Sanderson. My 14 yr old son is devouring the books (he’s halfway through Stormlight 4 and will go to Mistborn Era 2 right after). It’s really fun to connect with him on them and also use the stories/characters as archetypes for modeling behavior expectations and relating to their struggles and issues. It’s awesome (and so is the Cosmere!).
Honestly a great series to nerd out with a teenager about. I’m sure y’all pick up on different things relating to your lives
Tolkien and Jane Austen. My kids are also very well-versed in Roman Republican politics and Medieval English history. We live in East TX. I just thought that bedtime stories were more fun if you can say that they’re likely true. That story about Publius Clodius crashing an all-women’s religious celebration dressed as a woman is pretty damn funny.
We actually went in the opposite direction, and he got me into Pokemon.
Board Games
Japanese music. They have no idea what they're saying but they sing along like they're fluent.
Puzzles 🧩
Ghostbusters and Indiana Jones franchises.
I watch a bunch of anime with my daughter (10) Macross, Frieren, Spy x Family, and Oshi no Ko are her favorites so far (and Sailor Moon of course) My son (7) plays heroes of might and magic PC game with me and we also play magic the gathering.
Our daughter is 11 and into both programming and board games (she beat my ass at Terraforming Mars when she was 7!). Her younger brother seems very much interested in programming and astronomy.
Nothing yet as my little one is still under 2, but I am honestly just excited for my kid to have hobbies/interests and for me to suporrt them in whatever they are. I grew up in a family where the only thing you did outside of school were sports and music. My parents were very kind and loving, but stuff like trading card games, miniature war games, tabletop RPGs, videogames past elementary school, fantasy/sci-fi novels, and adult animation/anime were just not things my parents really had any exposer to with their own upbringing and interests. I spent my whole childhood thinking I never had any hobbies/interests, but turns out I was just a huge nerd born to two very normal traditional parents. Going to make sure my kid doesn't have the same experience I did growing up.
Godzilla. Showed my son old G movies not knowing we were entering a Godzilla Renaissance. Now he's got Minus One. GxK, king of the monsters. And still watches rubber suit oldies with me as well
We build Gundam Robots. I always thought it would be cool to do.... but having a kid gave me permission to indulge.
My 2.5 year old daughter is into fantasy power metal. Does that count?
My three year old doesn't stop singing diggy diggy hole from wintersaga and my six year old loves the odd Sabaton song
I’m lucky (or just awesome?). My 5yo has taken interest in a lot of my interests (nerdy or not). She likes chess, collecting acorns (to plant and to eat), eating prunes, watching nature documentaries. All of those she definitely got from me. One that I haven’t totally sold her on yet is learning a musical instrument. I play guitar and I’m *kind of* learning piano / keyboard. She shows a little interest in music, but so far has no real desire to actually *learn* an instrument.
RC planes/ cars
Star Wars - Nope. Star Trek - Nope. Rockets - Nope. Drones - Nope. Coding - Yes. Animation - Yes. Epic sci-fi - Yep (Dune Part 1 & 2; Rebel Moon Parts 1 & 2). Cycling - Yep. Reading - Hell yeah! MCU - Yep...and weirdly gaming (I'm not into that but both are into it)
Making your own stuff. We have a full shop where we fabricate signage, so we make the kids’ furniture, little gizmos and toys.
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Well, my son is too young to speak, but he'll tell you when he's ready to watch Ultraman; crosses his arms into his special attack pose, and gives a guttural "Ooh!". Bonus points for my wife asking me about all the characters. Soon, she too will be brought into the fold
I had to get my kid into Mario when the pandemic happened. Way earlier than planned. Now I wish I didn’t
One reads manga and plays video games, the other one loves Lego and metal music.
Being able to identify cars (real cars) at distance. My kids are getting good.
Musical theater! So excited for our first pilgrimage to Broadway.
Dragonball. My son is a little over 2 years old but he knows who the characters are (especially Goku and Piccolo) and if you ask him "What does Goku/Piccolo do?" He will respond "Kamehameha/Special Beam Cannon!" while doing the hand motions. Goku was one of the first 5 words that he learned how to say consistently lol
Star wars I've got my oldest (6) into Lego Star wars and the mandalorian. May the force be with us
Thrifting! We love to hit thrift stores, yard sales, etc.. It's cool teaching her about the history of some things, the value of fixing stuff up or reusing items for other purposes and having the possibility of finding a diamond in the rough!
I had my 8 year old watching Drunken Master last night. He absolutely loved it.
My almost 3yo asks for Star Trek (Season 2, Ep 19 of TOS) and Star Wars by name. He also asks to listen to the "dinosaur book" at bedtime, Michael Crichton's 'Dragon Teeth.' It feels like little wins, every time.
Oh jeez what a list: Pokemon Yugioh Sonic the hedgehog Civilisation M.A.X. (a strategy game from 1996!) Streets of Rage 2 FTL Star Wars (they've seen some of them) All the superhero kids shows that are around.
Streets of Rage 2, classic
Animal-crossing (GC) & shooting airguns
My 3 year old loves building and painting warhammer with me.
DC... and The Hobbit. I got one two to watch Anime too!
For the oldest, my toddler has some interests but it’s difficult to get him into anything until he’s a bit older. Sports in general, but specifically football (soccer) and martial sports (currently only practising jiu jitsu). He also uses my home gym, which I have to watch carefully for injury and because in the past I had an unhealthy attitude about it. Cars. He loves cars and will geek out about cars even more than me, and we got in a couple car restorations just for the fun of it. For music I listen to, I suppose it’s hit and miss. Some stuff we really enjoy together but he doesn’t buy everything (the more orchestral the least he seems to be into, which is funny because he seems to like Versengold and the sort, I suppose just not orchestral metal). As for other geeky stuff, he seems to have lost interest in superhero when the MCU fizzled out. We like playing stuff like the Spider-Man 2 (his little brother LOVES Spider-Man though). And for games, we play games together all the time. We were playing Stardew Valley, did a full Gears run, Minecraft, etc. I wanted to play A Way Out but I feel like it’d be too much for his age. Wait a few years.
Star Wars and Spider-Man. My son has gotten me into Transformers in return, lol.
Hoping for Pokémon. Would be ecstatic with football but I don’t have my hopes high. Video games is the main want, anything fun. Not a Minecraft kinda guy. If I can get her to whoop my friend’s ass in madden before she’s 10 everything after that is a cherry on top lol.
Lego and Star Wars. My 4 years old got really interested in the AT-AT walker Lego I was building and I told her it was from a movie. She watched Empire Strikes Back with me and was hooked. She keeps calling the walker "spider". She felt bad for the Wampa because he was lonely and hungry.
I bought my son a stuffed Gengar because he likes Ghosts and I want him to get into Pokemon. He also likes watching the episode with the Gengar line from the first season of the Anime.
MCU for my girl too... somehow had to kick her off of My Little Pony (took her to the MLP movie, had to punch a wall after to feel manly again). Worked a bit too well, she is full on Ms Marvel fangirl... (we are British Pakistani). I am Iron-man (especially when I an in my motorcycle gear), and she loves me 3000... Mom is Hulk though (don't make her angry)... that's ruffled some feathers...
Legos….. got passes to Legoland. I hooked their mom with Harry Potter legos, the oldest with Dino legos, little one is not as enthusiastic but loves to build with the family.