Gifts guide > Presents for Children, Most Wanted Toys for the holiday
Best Popular Christmas Gifts for Children
Top Toys for Kids 2016, 2017, 2018
Are you finding yourself a bit overwhelmed as to what gift to get for the kids on your Christmas list this year? It can seem a little daunting to some especially if you are the Aunt, Uncle, Grandparent or special family friend that will purchase the gift. You want it to be something the child will like but you just are not sure what the most popular toys are for kids this year.
Let me help you out by suggesting some top Christmas gifts for kids this year that are sure to be a winner in the eyes and hearts of the children you are buying for.
Great gifts for kids of all ages, babies, toddlers, pre-school, kindergarten and elementary school!
Whether you want to give your children, or grandchildren, educational gifts, or simply the latest and greatest... I've found you some great gift ideas for kids. Starting with toys, continuing with books and even fake phones...
From classic toys like blocks to fun nightlights and digital games for their DS, from dolls, to electronic toys like voice changers and snap circuits to 3D puzzle games and pretend-play food.
Whether your baby needs a rattle or a teether, your toddler is ready for their first puzzle or your schoolgoing child would love a walky talky - I have gift ideas for all of them.
Make Your Christmas Gifts For Kids Age Appropriate
Just about all toys and games are clearly marked with recommended age levels which does make our shopping easier. When shopping online the ages are usually included in the product description portion of the page.
Why is it important to stay with the recommended age level? In some cases there may be small pieces that could be swallowed by a very young child. Many toys and games are designed with specific ages in mind and they are usually based on the skill level that a specific age of child will have. Toys that require reading skills will not be much fun for a toddler who has not learned to read yet. An older child will not enjoy a toy or game that is designed for simple developmental skills of a child that is much younger than him or her.
Choosing a toy or game as a gift for a child that is recommended for their age group will provide more fun for the child and will be at a level that might be a little challenging but not too difficult for them to enjoy.
Shown here is the Melissa & Doug Deluxe Standing Easel
And the back is a blackboard: so if you have two, they can each be occupied at the same time.
Best Baby & Toddler Gifts
Baby's First Blocks We've all had a variation on this theme as we grew up. I remember mine was made of wood, but the material doesn't really matter. What counts is the puzzle of getting those blocks in there. I can still remember the fascination... Can you?
Did you know you were training not just your math skills but also fine motor control (aka: how to use those hands)?
Best gifts for Pre-K kids - Christmas Gifts for children of 2, 3, 4 years old
Dora the Explorer: Dora's Cooking Club - Pre-school: age 4 and 5 years old
Nintendo DS video game for boys and girls. As the name suggests, your child will prepare favorite foods such as enchiladas, pizza, yogurt and berry fruit fiestas on the DS. To do so they have to chop, measure, stir and sprinkle in over 30 cooking games.
All this will help them with Pre-K and Kindergarten math: numbers, counting, shapes, patterns and measurement. The game will track the player's progress and allow parents to check what their kid has learned.
Board Games Make Good Gifts For Kids
introduce them around 5 to 7 years of age
Giving a gift of a board game that can be fun and educational is always a good choice for children. They may not realize that there is an educational facet to it but they won't have to. Education should be fun for them especially when they are learning basic skills. A board game can start to give a child experience in problem solving and strategy and also develop social skills by playing with other children and adults.
A very popular game for kids is Qwirkle which does not require reading skills to play but addresses the benefits above.
Teaches children about colors, shapes and matching while also learning the art of strategic moves in order to win. There are no batteries needed but a large table would be wise because there are 108 tiles to the game. Two to four players can play at one setting.
Recommended for 6 years old and older.
Most Kids Love To Build With Lego Building Blocks
Lego is a Must Have - educational as well as fun!
Since the 1950s kids have loved to build with the plastic bricks from LEGO. You probably grew up playing with them and kids are no different today. Unless you have played with these building sets recently you may be unaware that they are not the toys you played with as a kid.
The Lego building sets of today are much more detailed and create buildings and settings are are remarkable in their detailing. Each set comes with easy to read and follow instruction booklets that most non-readers can follow. LEGO has come out with a line that is specifically geared to the interest of little girls, boys and both genders.
 |
LEGO Friends: Heartlake Stables (3189)
This particular set builds a riding stable and is new to the Friends sets of LEGO. Your child will build a barn with two stables for horses along with smaller pieces that will help them take care of the horse figures that are included. Two girl figures come with the set along with several accessory pieces. This set can be played with by itself or added to a collection of sets that belong to building a city with main characters like Stephanie, Emma, Mia and others. The new set introduces Nikki and Bella to the line. recommended age: 6 - 12 years old |
 |
LEGO Ninjago Jay's Storm Fighter (9442)
Young boys are really into the Ninjago television show and the toys that have come out featuring the characters. LEGO has several building sets in the Ninjago line. The one featured here is a storm fighter that Jay uses. Once built the child can pretend that it travels at super speeds and help help him retrieve the golden Fangpyre staff that has an anti-venom power. Set includes the bricks and pieces to build the aircraft along with two figures: Jay ZX (the good guy) and Snappa (the bad guy) along with weapons that work. recommended age: 7 - 14 years old |
Educational toys don't have to be electronic!
In fact, I don't recommend it - definitely not exclusively.
Let your child find out about the real world first, through construction toys for instance. Yes, boys AND girls.
Electronic toys are great for keeping your child quiet during long car rides.
But do remember to limit their time with them.
Your child needs to learn how to self-sooth, keep themselves occupied, explore etc.
Baby Gets Their Own Remote Control Device
Must have top baby gift
Babies observe that the adults in the household use what looks like a toy to make things work. Magical things happen when the buttons are pushed like that big thing in the room comes on and there are fun things to watch. They might not understand that the toy is a remote control and it turns the television on. To them it looks like a toy and they want to play with it, too.
Most adults have to explain that baby is not allowed to play with the remote and most times baby does not like that rule. How about we give them their very own remote?
It does not work your television but it does work some magic for baby. They hear phrases and songs that will begin to teach them about numbers, colors, shapes, opposites and other concepts of cause and effect.
Realistic design built for little hands. Requires 2 AAA batteries that are included in your purchase.
Recommended for babies and toddlers.
Given 4+ stars by 68 out of 77 people who have given this toy remote to a child.
Toys For Babies And Toddlers
The littlest kids on our gift list are not vocal enough to tell us what toy they want as a gift. So, typically Moms will start a list of things that Grandparents and other family members can consider to give as a gift. The current most asked for toy for a baby or toddler is this cute little walker. It is recommended for children 9 months to 3 years which seems like a rather large span when it comes to this age group.
I can explain why, though. At 9 months baby is not quite ready for the walking part of the toy. There is still plenty of things that he or she can do with it, though. The toy can be laid flat on the floor for the youngest child to discover sounds, animals, colors and shapes. As baby grows you can stand the walker up and let them walk around with it, holding on for steady walking in the beginning and then with confidence pushing it around. This is truly a toy that grows with the child.
Activity Tables
Kids love these activity tables that allow them to play with water and sometimes sand! From a one year old to a child of five, these tables can and do provide a fun playtime. They can pour water or sand into containers. They can float items like little boats in the water. They can pretend to let items swim. If the activity table has a sand area they can even build little sand castles or other items with wet sand. They can be played with indoors or outdoors and help with coordination and imagination.
A Play House
Another toy that kids love is a play house that they can actually play inside. This little cottage is great for either gender but you can also find ones that are more enticing for a little girl and ones that look like forts or castles for little boys. Kids like to pretend while playing and a structure that is sized for them is a perfect toy. These little houses and structures usually have to be assembled by an adult and some will require a few batteries if there are sounds and lights that are a part of the design. You can add additional accessories to enhance the play, too.
A Toy Tablet for Kids to Learn With
An electronic toy by LeapFrog: LeapPad
Kids like to emulate the adults around them and in today's society most children see us with devices that we are almost lost without. Many adults have a tablet device like an iPad, an e-reader or smart phone that we use quite often during the day. The kids want to use them, too.
LeapFrog has come out with their second generation tablet geared for children to learn and play with.
Optional cartridges for over 325 applications along with downloadable games, videos and music. Develops education in reading, math, science and other subjects. The skills are level based so that your child can work at his or her own pace. It comes in a green or pink case to fit the gender, if that is important to you.
Requires 4 AA batteries that are not included with your purchase. You can also purchase a charger pack for this LeapPad.
Recommended for ages 3 years to 9 years.
Art gift for kids
I love to do ceramics now that I'm an adult and I'm sure my proficiency at it would have been a lot less if I hadn't done so many arts and crafts, including kids-clay like Play Doh
Kids, especially the girls, are really into crafting. One of the things that they love to make are the fun and funky bracelets that they wear themselves or make and give to their friends. There is a "thing" about how many bracelets you have, sort of a bit of a status symbol, I think. Those rubber band bracelets that were all the rage a few years back have taken on a new life. This loom allows the girls or boys to do some pretty creative weaving using the bands to make bracelets.
Children need to be allowed to be creative, use their imaginations and use a little of that brain matter in stimulating ways. Crafts are a good choice because there are so many different avenues that you can go with them.
It might be a kit that they will create something like a bracelet or other items they have an interest in. They can follow directions (good practice), see a project through to completion (good self esteem builder) and have some pride in being able to say that they made it themselves.
Shown here: Headbands are a fun way to get creative with hair - making your own is even more fun.
Crafts can also involve drawing or painting if your child likes to do those sorts of crafty things. They may even like to do a combination where they sketch something and then color it or paint it to finish their little piece of art. As they get better at the skill of creating the art they may even start to do comic strips or other creative things with their artistic abilities.
Building a model airplane is not generally called 'crafting' but it's surely the male version.
Best Building Block Sets and Construction Toys
Lego is of course the most famous type of construction toy or building set. However there are others - and some are even better from a developmental perspective.
Magna tiles are top rated
Recommended for 3 years old and up, but parents report smaller kids also love this toy. The reviews are raving: toddlers building not just cubes and pyramids, but entire buildings. Seriously.
Pricey, but if you have several kids this is well worth it.
And if you need me to say it: when a toddler is building a pyramid, they are already developing more spatial awareness than you'd expect. This is HUGE for developing math-related skills.
Building Confidence With Building Toys
Even though playing with the different construction or building style sets that are available out there for kids today is a sedentary activity; they are still good stimulation for a child's brain. The act of building whatever is going to be built causes them to have to think about the entire process, figure out what pieces go where, follow instructions in an orderly way and so much more.
They are also good for improving their dexterity as they are having to pick up different sizes of pieces and place them together as they build. Again, these building toys should be age appropriate. Very small children should not have toys that they could swallow. More group games
Best Kids Gifts Holiday Presents for Children
- More Kids Gifts
- Toddler and Pre-K toys and gifts
- Electronic toys and gadgets for kids
- Boys
- Dolls, Plush and Action Figures
- Girls
- Toddler Gifts
- Halloween Costumes and Gifts
- Religious books for kids
- Dolls, Plush Pets, Stuffed Animals and other Plush Toys
- Children's books
- Religious and spiritual books
Stimulating Toy For The Littlest Kids
I love this little learning walker! (VTech Sit-to-Stand Learning Walker
I know a little two year old girl who can certainly walk on her own, run and even almost skip but she still plays with this walker. She will show visitors that she knows what each thing does on the walker and sometimes she pretends it is a shopping cart as she wheels it around the room, purse on her shoulder having a ball pretending that she is shopping.
Encourage Activity With Toy Gifts
Educators and specialists in child development will tell you that the best toy gifts that you can give a child are the ones that stimulate their senses and the ones that do not do too much of the work for the child.
The best ideas are ones that will help them be a part of some sort of physical activity so that they are not sitting in front of a video game console or the television but are actually up and moving around burning some calories and developing their muscles and strengthening those bones as they grow.
Encourage them to play with balls and things that cause movement. It does not have to be an actual sport (although that is not a bad idea). Just the activity of throwing, rolling and kicking a ball is not only good exercise but enhances hand to eye and foot to eye development.
Outdoor toys and gifts - for the backyard and beyond
Kick Scooters for Kids
I will always remember how I wanted a kick scooter ages ago. Even now that I'm an adult, I still try one when I have a chance. So why hold back? Let your kids enjoy and explore all the fun moments of zipping around with very cool kick scooter for kids.
Razor A Kick Scooter (in various colors)
NERF N-Strike Elite Firestrike
Nerf N Strike Night Finder EX-3 is a cool gun in the Nerf Series by HASBRO. It has a range of 35 feet and includes a light beam to line up the target.
It is economical and fun. Line up the red light beam on your target and indulge in some precision target shooting with the Nerf N Strike Night Finder EX-3. The laserbeam like lightbeam to help you aim makes this a fun shooter.
Learning music: musical toys
Toys or even real instruments that make music are really a good gift to consider for a child. Obviously, they need to be age appropriate because a toddler is not going to be able to play a saxophone or a flute but they will be able to jingle and shake a tambourine. They can shake the maracas and simple things to start to make music.
Older children might enjoy a beginner's guitar, a student flute or other instrument to learn to play. Music is great for the sensory parts of our brains and it also just creates joy as we hear, make it or dance to it.
Top Christmas gifts kids - what's on their Christmas wishlist?
It can be real tough to choose the best gift for the kids. Each Christmas the toy wishlist for kids is different and the most popular items are chosen among tens of thousands of new Toys, Games, and other Gift items are launched in the Market.
Apart from the heavily Marketed Toys and Gifts released by the major Toy Makers - there are lots of other cool alternatives as well. They are well equipped to provide lots of fun and entertainment for the Young Ones. In most cases, they are real good vale for money.
Featured here are some of the coolest Toys and Gifts available for the Kids this Holiday Season. Please take a look and choose the best ones for your Children.
A Toy For Motor Skills
Baseball has been the great American past time since the 18th century. In the 1860s it became a professional sport to be enjoyed as either a player or a spectator. Kids, both boys and girls, seem to be drawn to the game at a very early age. They are fascinated with balls in general and being able to hit the ball becomes something they want to be able to do. It did not surprise me to see a Tee Ball set as one of the most asked for toys by kids.
Having a set like this is an awesome way to work with motor skills and coordination skills like eye to hand coordination for either gender of child. The balls and bat are oversized so that little ones can grasp, throw and bat them easier. Recommended for ages 18 months to 4 years and you do not need to use batteries for this toy. Another feature that I like is that it can hang on a wall to help with storage space in the child's room. We all know how crowded the floor can get with the toys, don't we?
What are the toys that kids ask for the most?
When it comes to giving toys to kids it is helpful to know what toys the children want the most. Smaller kids will tell you that they want just about every toy when they see it on a shelf in the store or advertised on television. If we listen, though, there are some that they show more passion for.
Older kids will have more definite ideas on what they want to play with. If you are not completely certain, I have compiled a short little list for different age groups of the toys that I have found that are on many wanted lists of today's children. Follow along with me as I show you popular toys that vary by the age of the child. Hopefully, it will help you when it is time to purchase a birthday gift or holiday gift for the kids on your list.
  |
LEGO Minecraft The Cave Playset
When it comes to tweens and teens, you can't go wrong with a Lego building set. Currently boys ages 8 to 15 are fond of the Lego Minecraft building brick sets as the real world equivalent of the minecraft game. Lego is educational, Minecraft is educational - so with the kid who loves either, there is no going wrong with this. |
  |
VTech Switch & Go Dinos - Sliver the T-Rex Dinosaur
These dinosaurs turn into race cars. On my pages this green t-rex is the most popular, perhaps because T-Rex is such a cool dinosaur and well known for it's appearances in movies. |
  |
Zing Air Z-Curve Bow
Want your kids to play outside more? Or perhaps try their skills in the garage? A great set for playing cowboy and Indian, I should think. |
  |
LeapFrog Scribble and Write
Fun toy for toddlers who aren't quite ready for the more expensive digital toys yet. |
  |
Battat Take Apart Airplane
Take apart toys are popular with toddlers in general, but I think the reason the airplane is most popular is simple: everybody wants to fly, don't they? |
  |
Furby (Purple)
The most popular digital doll this season. It dances, sings, has it's own language, learns English and switches between personalities. Turning it off is as simple as putting it in a closet. However, I hear some children are scared by it. |
  |
LalaloopsyThe Lalaloopsy dolls have been popular for a while now: they come with their own play pet and they're soft: real rag dolls. This year they have two that your girl can color herself! There is a black and a white version. The Lalaloopsy were once rag dolls who magically came to life, taking on the personalities of the fabrics that were used to make them. These Lalaloopsy have silly hair that bends every which way! Now you can style your Lalaloopsy doll's hair and her pet's tail too. |
  |
LEGO Walkie Talkies
Quality walkie talkies for small kids that aren't quite ready for cell phones yet. Used between adjacent apartment buildings as well as in the woods. |
  |
Elenco Electronic Snap Circuits, Jr. Kit
Learn about electricity and create your own electrical appliances. Fun and educational. |
  |
Stomp Rocket Junior Glow Kit with Extra Jr. Glow Rocket Refills (Blue)
Fun for boys and girls - shoot your own rockets! |
  |
Santa Letter Personalized With Childs' Name Fitted In A 8X10 Matte Frame! Order Today!!!
Imagine the happiness on your child's face, when she/he receives a Personalized Official Letter from Santa this Christmas! These Letters are sent directly from Santa Claus' Head Quarters @ the North Pole and are 100% Genuine! The Letter will mention your child's Name, Name of her/his Best Friend, Home Town, and bear the official Signature of Santa. I am sure your kid will keep this Letter as a Personal Treasure for the entire life-time. Santa Letter Personalized With Childs' Name Fitted In A 8X10 Matte Frame! Order Today!!! |
  |
Cool Christmas fun kids between six and sixty! Sometimes Toys with a simple design can score over those with lots of machinery and complicated controls. Rocket Balloons is a very good example. It requires no batteries or user manuals, yet offers great excitement and hours of enjoyment for the kids, because playing with balloons brings out the kid in us all. I would certainly recommend Rocket Balloons (with Pump) to all Parents who'd like their Kids to exercise their brains and bodies. Rocket Balloons can be enjoyed indoors as well - they have soft rubber tips and leave no marks on the walls. |
The Children's Bible
I grew up being read the children's bible, as well as many other books. My parents regarded it as one of the foundations of our culture, even if they no longer believed.
Whether you're a Christian or not, having heard of these stories will help your child understand references and nuances of our culture. Oh, and some of them make great stories regardless.
New Holiday Gifts: Top Toys for Boys and Girls
Christmas is round the corner and the market is abuzz with new products. Find out which are the Top Holiday Toys this season.
Most of this page is based on the best selling toys. I've added some of my own favorites as well as what sells for readers of this page to complement the selection. Since I think books also make a great gift idea, I've added the best selling kids books.
Home decor gift ideas for Kids this Christmas
Airplane Wall Decals - Room decor with an aviation theme for boys
When a boy loves airplanes he usually wants them everywhere. These colorful decals can be displayed on the walls of his room in any combination that he finds appealing. They are easy to install on any wall with a peel and stick method. The vintage style airplanes give him a connection with the history of flight and the machines that early pilots flew.
Have this sign personalized with your child's name and let him hang it on his door. The vintage style airplane is cool and he will have his own way of announcing to anyone who enters that he hopes to be a pilot someday.
A five piece set of coordinating bedding with an airplane theme perfect for the little aviator in your life. Includes a twin size comforter, fitted sheet, flat sheet, pillow sham and a pillow case. Additional items that follow this theme can be purchased separately: bed skirt, lamp, wall art and hamper.
How long have kids played with toys?
It would be very difficult to pinpoint the first toy but suffice it to say that kids have played with some form of toy since the beginning of time. It could have been nothing more than a rock or stick that the child pretended was something else but we can be sure that they were given something to occupy their time with something to play with.
Types of playthings have been found in ancient graves of children by scientists. Carved figures and actual dolls have been found in the tombs of Egypt, Greece and other cultures across the globe. They might have been made from wood, stone or other resources that were common to the areas of the time but they can not be mistaken for anything else rather than a treasured toy that a child played with during their lifetime.
As many of you know, I make a living as an online publisher. This involves writing about stuff that interests me, like the spiritual path and karma, spiritual book reviews and so on. However, to make ends meet, I also do product recommendations.
That is: I recommend products, and you - the potential customer - get to have less of a chore finding them. It's a win-win, especially since I get a percentage for each sale. The deal is this: follow a link on any of these pages and buy something, and you - without any extra cost to you - are sponsoring me to keep on going.
I've started out of course with spiritual gifts, but there are also calendars, laptops, iPads, Harry Potter gear etc. It's all stuff I have bought or would buy if my house room and pockets were infinite. They're not and that's OK.
As you click through you'll notice that some of the gift pages are on this site, some are on other sites I've set up, and some are on Squidoo - a free platform that donates 5% of all the income they generate to charity (and sometimes more). See also my new gifts blog.