Yeah, I thought of that, but I read that they are nocturnal. So not the best for watching/petting
depending on how much they sleep i'm sure there might be some parts of the day they'd be awake (considering one time i was browsing a pet site outta curiosity and it said "ideal for 8 year olds", idk how heartbroken kids that young would be losing one considering they live 1-2 years at most, but at the same time unless 'night time' just includes like 5-6 pm and sunset and stuff, i imagine most kids unless they're homeschooled would be out most of the day and not have time for caretaking while doing homework unless they don't have a super early bedtime, then again lots of ppl get dogs before they're even double digits despite it being more of a life commitment in comparison)
i suppose gerbils/guinea pigs might be an option, if not the hamsters these days have been domesticated enough to where the ones living in cages/being pets would be awake more during the day, tho without disturbing them you could probably pet them gently while they slept