When my boys were younger it was so much easier to buy presents for them. LEGO, dinosaurs and trains were all it took to make their Christmas. Now they’re getting that little bit older, it’s becoming a little bit more tricky.
My eldest is almost 11, while his younger brother is 8. They’re at an age where they’re starting to want to be seen as a bit more grown up, whilst still young enough to enjoy the fun things in life.
My older kids are boys but I didn’t want to create a “boys” gift guide as I certainly don’t think any of the gifts are gender specific. These are some ideas that I know my kids would love this Christmas.
Marvel Avengers Infinity War Mitre Football
If there’s two things my sons love, it’s football and Marvel. And now thanks to Mitre there’s the perfect present that combines their two passions. The Mitre Marvel footballs unite high quality footballs with everyone’s favourite Marvel Heroes. There are three to choose from, Spiderman, Iron Man and Black Panther. I personally love the look of the Black Panther ball as the design is subtle enough to still appeal to older children.
You can find the whole range of Mitre Marvel footballs at mitre.co.uk
Boomtrix Showdown
My boys love watching Youtube videos of people attempting crazy obstacle courses. They particularly love the ones where the creator is attempting to get a ball from one side of the house to another without touching it. Boomtrix Showdown is a condensed version of one of those obstacle courses!
Boomtrix have revolutionised the traditional marble runs and instead of being aimed at young children, this creative game has children aged 8 and over in mind. The set consists of various pieces of equipment to use to get the ball from one side of the course to the other. There’s unlimited possibilities so it’s not a toy that will soon become boring!
I love that it also has an educational aspect without the children realising it. The positioning of the equipment and the height from which the marble drops will all have an impact on the course.
You can buy Boomtrix Showdown from Smyths and other toy retailers.
Frenzy Scooter
The days of rolling around on a cheap little plastic scooter are sadly long gone for my kids. However scooters just never seem to have gone out of fashion. In fact their popularity seems to be increasing. When you see the range of scooters Frenzy offers, it’s easy to see why.
The Frenzy Recreational Scooter with 205mm pneumatic wheels is aimed at older children, teenagers and adults. It’s foldable, robust and just looks like an impressive scooter. It folds down to a really small size and even has a handle to make carrying it easier.
Skates.co.uk offers a whole range of scooters, skateboards and rollerblades.
5 Second Rule Game
5 Second Rule is a fun, fast-paced game that is perfect for Christmas. Players are challenged to name three things on a specific subject in just 5 seconds. Some of the ridiculous answers that come out can be so entertaining and the kids love it. It’s an easy game to play and it’s fab for getting the whole family involved.
You can buy 5 Second Rule from Interplay Games.
David Walliams Books
Despite loving books when he was younger, my eldest son went through a phase of not enjoying reading. I think the focus in school of reading and analysing text diminished his love for stories and as a book lover myself it really saddened me. Then David Walliams books came into our lives! Both of my boys love his stories and his books (along with the Tom Gates series) are one of the few books my eldest will read.
David Walliams’ stories are silly without being patronising and it’s lovely to hear my sons giggling along as they read. The World’s Worst Children stories are perfect for reluctant readers as there’s short stories within each book. It makes it so much easier to put down and pick it back up without forgetting where they are up to.
You can buy the books from most book stores including Amazon.
Fortnite Monopoly
I know very little about Fortnite other than it seemed to be the cause of my son’s sudden weird dance moves. What could initially be described as a weird spasm, can actually be attributed to one of the dances Fortnite has made famous. While I don’t know a lot about Fortnite, other than children my son’s age seem to love it, I do know about Monopoly! Fortnite Monopoly is a modern twist on the classic game and it’s a great way of introducing the game to a newer, modern and more tech savvy audience.
You can buy the game from most toy stores including Amazon.
Activity Books
Traditional colouring books may not appeal as the kids get older but there are activity that can still appeal to the older child. My younger son loves the Horrible Histories book while my ten year old loves anything scientific. He loves finding out new facts about the world around him and the Destroy This Book With Science is written with older children in mind. You can buy all of these on Amazon.
Disclaimer : Some of these items were offered on a complimentary basis but as always opinions are my own.
Looking for more Christmas gift inspiration? Check out our Christmas gift guides for dads, or enter our Christmas hamper giveaway.
These are all great ideas for gifts for children at that age group. My girls would love the books. They have read loads of the David Walliams ones and love them.
This is a great selection of gifts, I love the Marvel football and Fortnite Monopoly, I bet they’ll be really popular this year. The books all look fab too.
I love games so the 5 second rule game sounds great! It is one to concider for when Lily is older 🙂 Great Gift selection!
Some great ideas here. I wouldn’t mind trying Fortnite Monopoly and the 5 Second Rule Game myself!
I am loving these ideas, we love and already have the avengers and David Walliams books too but need to look at the other ideas.
A great gift guide. Jack would love the Fortnite Monopoly, the activity books and especially the Marvel football!
I bet that Fortnite Monopoly will be popular this year! This is a fantastic gift guide, so many fab present ideas.
My youngest would love that boomtrix and my daughter would go for the books. I think she may have already read 2 of those.
The 5 second rule sounds great for my stepson. We could then all play it together as a family! xxx
Fornite monopoly would be right up their streets, kids seem to be so obsessed with that game. We don’t have any kids in our family so don’t have to think about presents like these x
These are great gift ideas , I love all the suggestions. My niece would love the scooter –
You’ve got some great ideas here, my son would love that football
The older they get, the harder it gets to buy for them. Thanks for the tips
We like 5 second rule and David Walliams book. N is after Gravitrax for Christmas, which sounds very similar to the Boomtrix. So much fun for adults and kids setting them up.