I cannot think of a better way to spend some quality and motivational time with kids, than standing under a beautiful clear summer sky, with a wondrous view to the moon, the planets, and I into the great beyond.
A telescope can open up a whole new world of imagination to a child. However, not all kids telescopes are built with the same quality and with the same attention to detailed instrumentation. When looking for a telescope for children, you need to be mindful of a range of factors, and here are some of the things you may wish to take into account.
Obviously, you need only look for a relatively inexpensive telescope just in case the interest doesn’t last very long! Now I don’t think this is something you should dwell on, I say go for it, and there will be no going back!
Next, and this is common to all telescopes, you need to consider the magnification you wish to use. Whilst bigger is always better, there is no point buying a behemoth which is never used enough because it is too big and heavy to move. Defeats the purpose entirely.
Similarly, you also need to consider how easy to the telescope is to use. Do you intend to share the hobby intensely with your kids, or do you intend that they become resourceful enough to manage their own navigation across the heavens. Either way, a suitable telescope for children needs to be easy to set up, easy to adjust, easy to aim, and especially easy to focus. Keep it simple.
I have selected a few of the most suitable telescopes for kids and I recommend these economical and versatile telescopes which I hope you will find to be ideal for introducing a child to the wonders of the universe.
Celestron 21036 PowerSeeker 70AZ telescope
The Celestron 21036 PowerSeeker 70AZ telescope is a great entry level telescope in the range of the Celestron PowerSeeker telescopes which are a popular way to open up the wonders of the Universe for children and all aspiring astronomers. The Celestron PowerSeeker range of telescopes are designed for children to give the first-time telescope user a taste for what lies beyond our planet and into the heavens above.
The PowerSeeker 70AZ offers the perfect combination of image clarity and value for money. Astronomy for kids is a truly fun hobby that can be enjoyed any time the sky is clear, and Celestron Telescopes are an excellent choice for an affordable and high power telescope that will provide many hours of enjoyment for children as well as for the rest of the family. PowerSeekers are quick and easy to set up – especially important for a kids telescope. No tools are required for assembly, and the mounting tripod is very stable, which is what you need for accurately tracking objects in the night sky.
The Celestron PowerSeeker 70AZ telescope comes with all the accessories that you will need to get started and even includes a 3 times magnification Barlow lens that provides a triple magnification factor that is sure to impress. The Celestron PowerSeeker range are all designed and built with precision optical components with premium optical coatings for the best view and clarity. This telescope also provides Upright Image Optics which means this children’s telescope can be used for over land viewing as well as astronomical viewing.
The PowerSeeker 70AZ is a great choice of telescope for kids, and you can click here to read more.
Click here to buy the Celestron PowerSeeker 70AZ Telescope at Amazon
My First Lab Stargazer Telescope – an Amazon Exclusive
Don’t just dream about it, now you can explore the stars and planets with My First Lab Stargazer, which is a telescope built especially for children as an introduction to the science of astronomy. So whilst it may be easy to pass this off as a toy instrument – that is not the case, it is built for serious intent!
Ideal for children of all ages, the Stargazer telescope is a must-have for astronomers of all ages. Complete with stand and smart looking blue telescope, this device is easy to assemble, and quick enough even for those with a short attention span.
This ideal telescope for children features high quality glass optics and comes with both 9mm and 20mm eyepieces as well as a 2 x barlow magnifying lens. This means you get a huge range of magnification from 45x, 90x, 100x and all the way up to 150x magnification, which is rather stunning for a telescope in this low price range. Comes with a heavy duty tripod base, with steel tripod legs and great stability, as well as an accessory holder attached to the base. All the adjustment settings come with quick release features so that anyone can learn adjust the telescope easily and with no hassles. Click Here to read our in depth review of the features of My First Lab StarGazer Telescope.
Discovery Exclusive Sky & Land SL70 Telescope
Now the Discovery Sky and Land SL70 Telescope makes an appearance in two of our categories – this telescope is highly recommended for beginners as well as for children. Although this telescope is definitely not a toy, it is simple to use, simple to set up and easy to carry – almost as good as child’s play!
This highly-rated SL70 Telescope is a great tool for those with an inquisitive nature. It is well suited to explore the world around us as well the heavens above. It has been designed for optimum performance, whether you are viewing the moon, the planets or the spectacles of scenery and the animals right here on Earth. The most important feature of this telescope is the high quality precision glass lenses made for day or night viewing. To magnify your viewing image, it comes with 9 mm and 25 mm eyepieces, and will work with at any focal length. To complete the package, the Discovery SL70 telescope comes with a collapsible mounting tripod, easy and compact carrying case.
If you would like to share a love of astronomy with your children, then Click here to read our full review.
TwinStar AstroMark 80mm Portable Refractor Telescope
The TwinStar AstroMark 80mm telescope is an excellent choice for the backyard astronomer, and to introduce children to the wonders of the universe. This telescope is simple for kids to use and is a great introductory telescope if you are serious about learning all about astronomy. With a wonderful wide aperture of 80 mm, this telescope can gather enough light to bring far distant objects into brilliant focus, and provide stunning images of the planets and stars that all children of all ages will find mind boggling. Your kids will be amazed to see close up images of the craters on the moon, and you can extend their learning and understanding further afield to the planets of Saturn and Jupiter, and then blow them away to find moons orbiting around those planets as well.
Better still, the TwinStar AstroMark 80mm telescope is light enough to take with you wherever you choose to go on holidays with your family, so that it can be near to hand whenever you or your kids want to use the telescope. This telescope is easy for children to use, and is very versatile, as you can use it during the day for wildlife spotting and of course at night to share a wonderful astronomy experience with your kids and the whole family.
I recommend you have a closer look at this telescope for kids to use, as it is simple to use and comes with everything you need to introduce astronomy to your children.
Orion GoScope 80mm TableTop Telescope
Impress your children with one of the best telescopes for kids you will ever see! This scope packs big performance in spite of its size and cute aspect. It may be advertised as an entry-level telescope, but it features an 80 mm aperture refractor optics and excels in wide-field stargazing. The Orion GoScope is more than just a suitable telescope for children, but a very handy instrument whenever you are away from home, or space or time are limited.
The Orion 10013 GoScope 80mm TableTop Refractor Telescope is one of the best portable scopes that comes with a tabletop base so it can be mounted in all sorts of places. What’s even more amazing is the fact that you can have one of these little beauties for about $130, which is a very economical pathway to the universe and beyond!
We consider this model to be one of the best telescopes for children to use, but the amazing fact is that, it’s not designed just for newbies. Experienced sky explorers use it as a grab-and-go scope in their journeys as the compact size and performance make it the perfect telescope to have around on a summer night. As the name suggests, you can literally use it on the table top. So turn your table into an observatory whenever you like and help your children to explore the wonders of the sky at night.
Meade NG60 60mm Refractor Telescope review
The Meade NG60 60 mm refractor telescope is an excellent first telescope for all beginners and especially to introduce the wonders of the stars to your inquisitive children. It comes complete with two precision eyepieces, achromatic objective lens, a fully adjustable tripod, and the easy to use Meade NG mounting base. The Meade NG60 is designed to be easy and simple to use but at the same time robust and powerful enough to keep kids interested. The Meade NG 60 mm telescope is not a toy, and will easily outperform all of the commonly available, low quality telescopes that you might find in a kids store.
What will kids be able to see with this telescope?
Would you believe that this telescope provides stunning clear images and high powered magnification of all the planets except Pluto. And until recently, nobody could do any better than that! You can see the craters on the moon, you can not only see Saturn and Jupiter but kids will be able to focus closer in to see the rings of Saturn as well as the moons of those distant worlds. Kids will love to use this telescope and explore the heavens beyond our own small part in the universe.
Click here to read more about the Meade NG60 60 mm refractor telescope.
Twinstar 60mm Compact Kids Refractor Telescope review
Do you have children with a short attention span? Do you want to show them the wonders of the stars, but need to capture their attention before they get distracted? Well then you need a telescope that makes it easy to find early success and simple to use so that children stay focused. The TwinStar 60 mm Compact Kids Telescope is so easy to use that there are no instructions. Yes I recommend this telescope for kids who are hard to please – it is the perfect telescope for young astronomers of all ages.
Where Can I Buy a Quality Kids Telescope?
We live in fortunate times whereby you can now afford a quality telescope, especially a telescope that is suitable for children to use. You can easily find some great introductory telescopes for a child with a cost around the $100 mark, but better still, kids telescopes are easy to use, versatile, and fun – just have a closer look at some of our other reviews here at the Telescope Hub. For a few more ideas, you could even scan through some of our reviews of Telescopes for Beginners, some of which may also be suitable for children to use. The result will be a tool that will introduce kids to the world of astronomy, stimulate their interest in the heavens above and the universe around them, and perhaps spark an interest in astronomy that will last a lifetime. Not only do these children’s telescopes come with the features that make it fun and easy for kids to use but now you can also afford quality optics for stunning clear images, that will make observing the stars and planets fun for the whole family.
Read more about the independent and best telescope reviews, here at Telescopehub.com
