Beginner bait casting reel

Learn them on a spinning reel.

Or buy a digital.

My son didn’t get a bait caster until he was 10 or 11.

I don’t think you’ll find any specifically made for kids. Both Shimano and Daiwa have some reels specifically designed to decrease backlash. Lews has reels that are smaller sized and easy enough to throw called “LFS”.

Spend the next year untangling.

I’ve been thru it 3 times, my 2 boys and my wife! haha

I've got 2 DCs and several others he could pick from.....but he wants his "own"

Do like my Dad and give me an ambassador 5500, a big spool of crappy 15lb line, a rubber coated casting weight, and send him on his way after a couple lessons that I didn’t listen to. I was probably 8-10. It’s a right of passage (both kid and dad) for them to birds nest and you to pick it out. Once they get the hang of it they will throw into every tree within missile range. Great memories I can laugh/joke about now.

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Probably outside your budget but mine learned on Shimano Curado DC

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Shimano makes an SLX DC that's less expensive.

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Are there any bait casters that are made for kids, woth some sort of bird nest prevention built in?

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No.
In fact, part of the right of passage of learning how to throw one is learning how to clear a backlash. There are reels, but you really won’t learn how to use one that way.

I learned on a big old Ambassador 5500 with a bit tied on the end. If you can learn to throw that, you can throw anything. That’s not a knock on equipment, but there’s a certain skill to throwing one that if you learn right you’ll be able to get more use out of it.

Now, the Shimano SLX DC reel will make you lazy. It’s got a digital brake that prevents it from backlashing. The Curado DC is even better. But it’s $250+.

I caught a Shimano SLX (non-DC)on sale for my nephew for Christmas a few years ago. It’s a really great reel at a really nice price point ($99 retail). He’s learned pretty well and is really good at it now.

When it comes to baitcasters, you get what you pay for. I have 2 Curado reels that I can skip weightless worms under docks with without backlashing. It would be very difficult to do that with a $60 reel. I bought a Johnny Morris Carbonlite combo and ended up getting rid of it because it just had a tendency to bind. It was impossible to throw lite weight baits.

Again, as someone that’s fished with baitcasters most of his life, I highly recommend you don’t let him learn on a DC reel. He’s not going to learn how to use one that way.

When I was first learning, I really liked the Diawa TWS. The line guide was a “T” Wing System. Helped my learning curve.

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I really liked the Diawa TWS. The line guide was a “T” Wing System

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I have aDaiwa Coastal with this and the SV spool. Great reel and easy to throw

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Or buy a digital.

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Like a Curado DC?