Seven is really young. When they turn eight they could decide what they really want is an aquarium. Our advice when asked this question remains a good set of binoculars. It's amazing the cool stuff in the night sky you can see with them. Orion Nebula, Galilean Moons of Jupiter, Hercules Cluster, Andromeda Galaxy, etc. A tour of the summer Milky Way with binoculars is an amazing experience. Binoculars will be useful for a wide variety of purposes for a lifetime. Then get the book "Nightwatch: A Practical Guide to Viewing the Universe" by Terence Dickenson. It's the perfect companion to a good pair of binoculars, and it's also a perfect cloudy night book. When you and the child find yourselves looking through binoculars and you're straining to see Saturn's rings, the crescent shape of Venus, or the Ring Nebula then you'll know you're ready for a telescope. Seth -----Original Message----- From: Utah-Astronomy <utah-astronomy-bounces@mailman.xmission.com> On Behalf Of Joe Bauman via Utah-Astronomy Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2019 1:05 AM To: Utah Astronomy <utah-astronomy@mailman.xmission.com> Subject: [Utah-astronomy] A child's interest Here's a question for the group: a friend has a seven-year-old grandson who wants a telescope and loves birds and stars. What's a good recommendation? Thank you, Joe Bauman _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Send messages to the list to Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com The Utah-Astronomy mailing list is not affiliated with any astronomy club. To unsubscribe go to: http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy Then enter your email address in the space provided and click on "Unsubscribe or edit options".