But for Linux, the creative software simply isn't there in many cases for a kid to start learning. Unless it's programming, which is not everybody's talent.
A kid tinkering with any kind of creative software learns and absorbs important skills which they can build on later if they want to. These things are much more valuable than system troubleshooting or becoming skilled in a game.
I genuinely mean no offence, but you sound as an old serious man when talking about useful skills. Kids and teens are not doing this for their careers, they're doing this for fun.
Garage Band is free with a Mac...
And Logic Pro is a cheap subscription or very fair price when somebody like her is ready to take the next step. Maybe they even have a nice uncle who'd like to pay for it?
Are these not creative software? Perhaps not industry standard, but what is industry going to look like in a couple of decades anyway?
You can't really compare Audacity to Garage Band or GIMP to Affinity (which is now free).