I understand! My husband and I have raised four children. We’ve purchased a lot of Christmas gifts for our kids and we’ve received a lot of gifts from loving friends and family. There are some gifts that get pushed aside, and some that get played with for years to come.
Christmas Gifts for Kids
Whenever I cleaned house and threw out or donated toys that didn’t meet our needs as a family, I always kept three categories of items: games, building toys, and pretend toys. While the exact models and toys we had may not still be available, I’ve included the newer (sometimes better) versions.
Thinking Kids covers Christian books for children often, so you’ll want to look at some of our great book lists for gift ideas. If you’re looking for art supplies, check out this great list of creative supplies. In this post, we’ll cover great toys and games.
Christmas Gifts for Kids to Read
We try to give something to read each holiday. Of course, your kids will love these Christian history books — and one book of science and Scripture — all from Danika Cooley. You’ll want to check out Bible Investigators: Creation — a puzzle-based Bible study for 8-12 year olds, the Who What Why series for 7-11 year olds, Wonderfully Made for 5-11 year olds, and When Lightning Struck! — historical fiction for teens which makes a great family read aloud!
Games as Christmas Gifts for Kids
Game night is a great way to connect with your kids, laugh, build good sportsmanship and character, and learn skills like mental math and strategy. We’ve made an effort to purchase a new game for each child every Christmas. Here are some of our favorite games (up to age 12).
Building Toys as Christmas Gifts for Kids
Building helps kids develop a number of important critical thinking skills. As your kids build, they’ll advance in their creativity, hand-eye coordination and spatial reasoning, ability to follow instructions, and their understanding of basic engineering concepts. Our children have all loved working on their building toys. We’ve loved them so much that the sets are carefully packed for our future grandchildren!
Building toys are versatile–they can be used over and over again to create new models. There are some great building books to use with the sets, too.
I’ve always enjoyed building with my children, which is a bonus–it’s another way to bond with our kids and to help them experiment and develop new skills. Below are some of the brands, building books, and toys our kids have loved.
Pretend Toys as Christmas Gifts for Kids
Pretend toys are really important for children. Playing pretend allows them to emulate the people around them, to imagine becoming an adult, to learn new skills, and to develop emotionally and socially. We had several sets of pretend toys when our kids were young that they really loved!
When spending money on Christmas gifts for your kids, you want to choose toys that will benefit your children and keep them occupied for hours. You want toys that will last for years. I hope this list gives you some great ideas!
Your 12-month Bible verse calendar has themed devotions focusing on:
- The Bible
- Love
- The Church
- Resurrection
- Jesus
- Prayer
- The Holy Spirit
- The Fruit of the Spirit
- Salvation
- Our Father
- Thanksgiving
- Advent
Want a sample calendar? Grab your free Christmas Advent calendar here.
Books Make Great Gifts!
Teach the kids about the Bible and Christian history…
…with fun books they’ll love reading!
Introduce your children to engaging stories written in an engaging narrative they’ll want to read. As they learn more about God’s Word and gain real-life heroes, they will learn to apply Scripture to their own lives. And, give yourself the gift of a book that will help your kids learn and love the Bible.
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