I know this is slightly off topic, but have you looked at corn snakes by chance? dont get me wrong I LOVE bp's, but for an 8 year old a corn may be something to look into, they are hardier in their husbandry requirements, stay about the same length but have a slightly thinner body, and have some pretty neat, colorful, cheap morphs. also, they are more active and "user friendly" then balls who curl up/hide most of the time. Again dont get me wrong, im by no means trying to deter you from a ball, or tell you what you should do. but I have a 8 y/o sister and 5 y/o brother, and they like my ball, but they get bored fast because she doesnt do much.
regaurdless, happy hunting I hope you are able to find something your son likes :]
EDIT: reason I bring it up is because you say you are both new to morphs and all, and I didnt see a list of what you own so I wasnt sure what interaction you have had with the various snakes.
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