Christmas Gift Guide: For Children
The disappointments of Christmases past still weigh heavy on the minds of British adults, according to a recent poll revealing the gifts that Brits were sad to miss out on as children.
Game Boy topped the list of longed-for gifts, with Mr Frosty and Sega Mega Drive coming in a close second and third. Those of us now in their 40s are most likely to have put Mr Frosty on our Christmas list, according to the research published by Argos, while those over 50 desperately wanted a Walkman. So in an attempt to ensure the next generation don’t suffer (ahem) like us – Belle About Town has drawn up a gift guide guaranteed to keep small folk of all ages happy. And we would highly recommend topping the holidays off with a trip to Lapland UK to ensure the worries of 2020 fade away as the magic of Christmas appears.
- Buy a Book! Support local book stores and buy a book as a gift this Christmas. Many now offer online and contactless purchase options. We’ve picked the Still Nil Nil series for all football fans, a collection of rhyming and wonderfully illustrated recaps of footballs greatest moments. Loved for his kindness, manners and good intentions, How To Be More Paddington: A Book of Kindness is a compendium of the most inspiring, funny quotes from Michael Bond’s beloved bear from Darkest Peru and a gift that will be treasured forever. And the Happy Confident Me journal helps children of all ages express, understand and regulate their emotions. Research shows that focusing on the positives of their day, just a few minutes of daily journaling can aid a child’s health and wellbeing.
2. The Gruffalo Bamboo Dinner Set is made from eco-friendly bamboo fibre and decorated with a fun Gruffalo design that little ones will love. The five-piece set includes a plate, a bowl, a cup, a fork and a spoon. It makes a perfect, practical gift that can be used and enjoyed day after day. RRP £19.99.
3. The vívofit jr. 3 is a new watch-like fitness tracker for kids. Built in a new style, kids are able to track steps, sleep and activity minutes as well as experiencing new games and adventures on the Garmin Jr. app. The vívofit jr. 3 also acts as valuable tools for parents with compatible devices to give them the chance to manage their child’s activity, assign chores and encourage good behaviour with virtual coins. Available in Disney, Marvel and Garmin designs, the vívofit jr. 3 (£79.99) is an exciting way to keep kids active and keep track of their routines.
4. The LeapFrog Speak & Learn Puppy is perfect for children aged one to three years. As toddlers learn to talk, this interactive dog repeats what they say and asks questions to keep the conversation going. Bailey says what your child says in a fun and interactive way in Babble mode. In Talk mode, the puppy has conversations with children and creates stories from their responses. RRP £20.
5. The Map of the Funniest Things to do in Britain will absorb explorers’ minds and prompt inspiration for future vacations. On this ginormous map (RRP £14.99) you’ll find 1,000 of the funnest things to do and places to go around Britain. And that’s not all – there are great games to play, tick boxes and notes sections to fill in, and even a huge colouring-in map on the back. Let the adventure unfold!
6. Fuel their travel passion with the Discover the World game from the Happy Puzzle Company. An educational and fun board game for the whole family, players try to reach their destination as quickly as possible and collect the most destination cards before the other players. There are loads of facts to learn, but beware of the ‘Journey’ and ‘Arrival’ cards; they could speed up a journey, but could also see lost luggage or stalled flights! £24.99.
7. Sutable from newborn, these organic knitted cotton soft toys from Best Years are a classy, classic and eco-friendly offering. Priced from £12.99 to £24.99 in the Scandi Range on the Best Years website.
8. Quinn the Fox is the cutest character on the block this Christmas and the range of notepads, pens and pencils (made using recycled CDs) are the perfect gift for style conscious teens looking to add to their sophisticated stationery sets. View the full range on the Quinn the Fox website.
9. Robo Wunderkind create robotics kits and coding apps to let kids’ imaginations run wild. The award-winning robotics kits empower children aged 5-14 to learn to code through the joy of play. They’re built to develop kids’ cognitive skills and unlock their creativity, which will help prepare them adequately for STEM subjects in the future and help keep their play productive whilst stuck at home. The three kits line include Explorer Lite, 6 modules in the box, £199.00, Explorer Prime, 8 modules, £249.00, Explorer Pro, 15 modules, £399.00.
10. The hugely successful Rebel Girls Puzzle is an empowering and educational gift for all children, regardless of gender. Every page of each book is adorned with vibrant, imaginative illustrations by talented female artists from around the globe, and this artwork is featured on this bright and colourful jigsaw puzzle. Made in the UK, this empowering 500 piece puzzle features the likes of Elizabeth I, Empress Jingu, Irena Sendlerowa and Ada Lovelace – true heroines who definitely didn’t need rescuing. As with all Gibsons jigsaws, the puzzle is printed on 100% recycled puzzle board. Priced at £10.50 from Gibson Games.
11. The Mulberry Bush Magnetic Maze Craze (£19.99) consists of 29 soft foam magnetic track pieces and four marbles to enable kids to create a marble run anywhere they like – even the fridge door.
12. Myla the Magical Make-Up Unicorn has her own magic make-up brush, for all budding super stylists. Select any colour from her make-up palette and apply it magically to her horn, eyes, and wings and watch in amazement as they magically light up in that colour. For those that love singing Myla’s magic microphone encourages duets and as with all VTech toys, there’s an undercurrent of education to each activity. £52.99 from all VTech stockists.
13. The Top Trumps Cube Games ask players to match five of their favourite characters in a row from brands such as Marvel, Disney Princess, Star Wars, Harry Potter and DC. But if theiropponent turns over their Top Trump Card and it matches their line of five then they win. Great fun for kids of all ages. Priced from £7.99 to £15.99 from Winning Moves.
