Would prefer it to not be “hair” 'makeup" girlish oriented, but rather something challenging for her mind. I am her Uncle, and would like something maybe aimed at DIY outside of Lego if you know what I mean. Budget is small, maybe 39.99? Can move either way if needed
Advice, much needed as a 36 y/o male with no kids
Microscopes are definitely available in OP’s price range.
I had one as a kid, and LOVED it. It came with a bunch of sample slides, but I always took some small bottles with me on my daily summer bike trips (we were free range back then), and collected samples from swamps, puddles, drainage ditches, etc.
By the time I got to high school, I sailed through science classes, because I already knew how to make slides, and had already seen much of the stuff we were discovering.