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When buying gifts for my kids, I don’t want the toys to end up on a shelf or on the bottom of a box one week later.
I don’t want my kids to play with them just a few times and then lose interest completely.
I don’t want to feel like I’ve wasted money on something that created more clutter than joy.
(Because unfortunately, this happened to me more than once.)
The truth is that many of the popular, “fancy” toys we find in stores are not the best options for encouraging creative play. And even if the kids are excited when they first open the gifts, they quickly end up getting bored of them.
That’s why I decided to create a gift guide that focuses on toys and materials that can actually keep kids busy for hours!
If you are looking for gifts that encourage open-ended play, spark your kids’ creativity, or help you connect with your kids, this guide includes plenty of ideas to inspire you!
The ideas are organized into 4 categories and are suitable for kids ages 3-10. To skip to a specific category, click one of the links below:
Many of the gifts have big discounts today for Black Friday. I marked them with a ⭐ on the list, so you can easily find them.
Gift ideas for open-ended play
Open-ended toys are great because kids can use them in multiple ways as they grow up, so they withstand the test of time.
They can be used by kids of multiple ages, so they are perfect for siblings to use together. Also, you can use them in many ways to create play prompts for your kids.
1. Wooden Pretend Play Doctor’s Medical Kit
2. ⭐ Melissa & Doug Wooden Train Cars
4. ⭐ Magna-Tiles 100-Piece Clear Colors Set
5. ⭐ LEGO Classic Large Creative Brick Box
6. ⭐ Brew & Serve Wooden Coffee Maker Set
7. ⭐ Checkout Register Wooden Pretend Play Set
8. ⭐ Melissa & Doug Wooden Construction Site Vehicles
9. ⭐ Take-Along Show-Horse Stable Play Set
10. ⭐ Slice and Bake Wooden Cookie Play Food Set
11. ⭐ 7-Piece Poseable Wooden Doll Family for Dollhouse
12. ⭐ 20-Piece Steep and Serve Wooden Tea Set
13. ⭐ Melissa & Doug Food Groups
14. ⭐ Deluxe Folding Medieval Wooden Castle
(more ideas below)
15. ⭐ Top & Bake Wooden Pizza Counter Play Set
16. Basket of 8″ Plush Diversity Dolls
17. ⭐ Fold and Go Wooden Barn With 7 Animal Play Figures
18. ⭐ Wooden Dollhouse with Furniture
19. ⭐ Wooden Scoop and Serve Ice Cream Counter
20. ⭐ African American Wooden Dollhouse Family
21. ⭐ Examine and Treat Pet Vet Play Set
22. ⭐ 20 Piece Durable Wooden Rocket and Spaceship Toy
23. ⭐ Playmobil Adventure Playground
24. ⭐ Wild Republic Penguin Polybag
25. Schleich Farm World 4-Piece Farm Animals Set
26. ⭐ Wooden Pretend Play Kitchen Set
27. Wooden Play Kitchen Starter Accessories
28. Rainbow Blocks
Gift ideas for school-aged kids
This list includes ideas that are suitable for lower elementary school kids.
1. ⭐ National Geographic Mega Fossil Dig Kit
2. ThinkFun Gravity Maze Marble Run
3. ⭐ LEGO Classic Creative Suitcase
5. Mudpuppy Amazing Insects Glow in The Dark Puzzle
6. ⭐ Learning Resources Botley the Coding Robot
7. ⭐ LEGO Creator 3in1 Safari Wildlife Tree House
8. ⭐ National Geographic Mega Gemstone Dig Kit
9. ⭐ Snap Circuits Electronics Exploration Kit
10. ⭐ Osmo – Coding Starter Kit
11. ⭐ Ticket to Ride – First Journey
12. ⭐ Magna-Tiles Glow In The Dark Set
13. ⭐ Catan Junior
(more ideas below)
Gift ideas: Games and puzzles
This list includes fun games and puzzles that are suitable for elementary school kids.
1 – Shifting Stones – A Visual, Decision-Making Family Strategy Game of Tiles (8+ years)
2 – Mudpuppy Animal Kingdom Double-Sided Puzzle (6+ years)
3 – Carcassonne Board Game (7+ years)
4 – Spot It! Junior Animals Card Game (4+ years)
5 – ⭐ Gamewright Qwixx – A Fast Family Dice Game (8+ years)
6 – Sleeping Queens 2 – The Rescue! (8+ years)
7 – Mudpuppy Space Illuminated – 500 Piece Glow in the Dark Jigsaw Puzzle
8 – ⭐ Azul – Strategy Board Game (8+ years)
9 – ⭐ Dixit – Storytelling Game for Kids (8+ years)
10 – Kingdomino – Award Winning Family Strategy Board Game (8+ years)
11 – ⭐ Ravensburger Labyrinth (7+ years)
Gifts that will bring you closer to your kids
This list includes gifts that you can enjoy with your kids to have fun together, build a closer relationship, and spend more quality family time.
1. Atlas Crate
Bonus idea: ⭐ Bookroo
4. ⭐ Backpack Explorer: On the Nature Trail: What Will You Find?
5. Outdoor Nature Scavenger Hunt Card Game for Families
6. Songbirds Family Jigsaw Puzzle
7. Cats and Dogs Double-Sided Puzzle
8. ⭐ Ticket to Ride – First Journey
10. Kingdomino
11. Sleeping Queens
12. ⭐ Catan Junior
Bonus idea: ⭐ Sequence for Kids
13. Just Between Us: Mother & Daughter: A No-Stress, No-Rules Journal (for girls)
14. Q&A a Day for Kids: A Three-Year Journal
15. Between Mom and Me: Mother Son Journal (for boys)
16. The 3 Minute Gratitude Journal for Kids
17. ⭐ The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs: 100+ Recipes that You’ll Love to Cook and Eat
Bonus ideas:
⭐ You can get more ideas about these gifts and some additional inspiration here: 20+ wonderful gift ideas that will bring you closer to your kids.
Gifts for creative kids
This list includes gifts that are great for sparking your kids’ creativity.
1. ⭐ Kid Made Modern Arts and Crafts Supply Library
2. Faber-Castell Neon Gel Crayon Set
3. Faber-Castell Blendable Oil Pastels
4. Faber-Castell World Colors Ecopencils
6. ⭐ Melissa & Doug Deluxe Wooden Stamp Set: Animals
7. Faber-Castell Beeswax Crayons
8. ⭐ Melissa & Doug Easel Companion Accessory Set
9. DJECO Create Animals Sticker Kit
12. ⭐ Faber-Castell Watercolor Crayons with Brush
13. ⭐ Faber-Castell Learn to Watercolor Set
14. ⭐ Crayola Inspiration Art Case
15. Hape All-in-One Wooden Kid’s Art Easel
I hope that you found some good inspiration on this list and that your kids will love the gifts!
