I am looking for a simple digital camera for a 10 yr old that has a viewfinder & uses AA batt-any suggestions?

I would like to limit the camera to one that can use AA batteries (it can also use a rechargeable proprietary battery as an alternative - but not as its only battery option). It also needs to use an SD card rather than an XdCard and I would definitely prefer a viewfinder in addition to the screen (can save on battery and bright sunlight problems)

Canon A530. It uses AA batteries, has a viewfinder, and uses SD cards. It is a very capable camera than can often be bought for around $130 (US dollars). It also has manual mode options if the 10yr old gets really into photography.

Also, whatever camera you get please be sure to also buy a case and insist that he/she keep the camera in the case when it is not in use. I tried and tried to make sure my son did that with his camera (he was nine) but he didn't listen so well and dropped the camera and that was it (it was a Samsung).

I would go to Wal-Mart and look at the pre-packaged cameras.

probably the nikon L4 camera. it uses aa batteries and uses sd memory. price i approx 139.99 cdn. it is easy to use and download to the computer.

I would definitely recommend the Polaroid iZone 300. It is about 3.5 inches by 2.5 inches, has a viewscreen plus an LCD display (you can turn the LCD display off while taking pictures to conserve battery life), and has an SD slot. The only bad thing is that it's only power supply is rechargable, but it's still a good little camera.
I wish I got a camera when I was 10...

Buy a canon "S2 IS" or "S3 IS".
Their capabilities are :
AA batteries.
12 X optical zoom.
5 or 6 mega pixels.
Image stabilizer.
Good price.