PLEASE give me some present ideas for my nearly 5yr old son.

[TinkerbellTrains]

I'm finding it really difficult to find him something.

He doesn't really "play" with toys (between him and his brother we have loads), the only thing he's played with consistently is his tea set. So obviously we already have one.

He loves Arts & Crafts but got a new desk recently and has more craft stuff than even I know what to do with. He loves planting and growing, our garden isn't big but we already have some pots he's planted.

He loves the outdoors, he already has a bike and a scooter, our garden is tiny so no room for a trampoline (which is sad as I know he would LOVE one)

He's already got membership for the zoo.

He likes Tinkerbell so has the dress up & some dvd's.

He isn't very interested in tv so has no idea who Spider-Man, batman, turtles, etc are.

He isn't content just knowing what it does! he wants to know why and how. He'll pull things apart, inspect and put them back together.

Can you think of anything that he might like. Maybe some of you have older children so know what kinds of things went down well.

All he has asked for is a camera so we have one (2nd hand, cheap, it was a specific camera and it's quite difficult to find here) We're not in the UK but can use any ideas to find the same things here.

Thank-you loads for any help.

[Flexiblefriend]

Lego? There are lots of lego models you can get that might appeal to his crafty side, and liking putting things together.

[TinkerbellTrains]

We have a huge tub of Lego, it occasionally comes out but not enough to really justify buying more. He plays with the wooden building blocks loads though. We have a huge creation in his room at the moment that we're banned from touching.

[Eletheomel]

Agree that lego can be great if he likes building stuff (and its great for creativity - our son plays with his lego every day) or some entry level meccano if he likes dismantling and rebuilding, you can get some good kits for ages 4 and up.

You also get 'first scientist' type kits with experiments that he might like (no experience of these, but always wanted one when I was a child so will probably be buying one for DS1 :-)

[Eletheomel]

sorry x posted!

[TinkerbellTrains]

Never thought of meccano. That could work.

We do lots of "science experiments" at home (kitchen ingredients) so he'll probably enjoy a "proper" chemistry set.

Ok so 2 things to get me started.

Thank-you both.

[Artandco]

Story tapes/ iPod with downloads . The roald Dahl books are great at this age

Tennis rackets

Magnify glass/ little microscope set

[TinkerbellTrains]

We're reading James and the Giant Peach to him at the moment and he's really enjoying it.

He already has a microscope but I never thought of tennis rackets. Like I said, our garden isn't big but we can fit a few games of tennis in there.

[Margene]

Did you buy the camera already? Otherwise you could buy a bigshot camera that you build yourself - he would need an adult to do it with him, but still fun and interesting. (My ds got one for xmas).

Lomography offer something similar

If he likes wooden building blocks, how about some Kapla? My eldest started off with the smallest box of it when he was about 5, got the massive one for christmas, it's still a big hit.

My 5yo just got a remote control monster truck for his birthday, good fun at the playground or out on walks.

Does he like board games? Mine (just turned 5) loves to play monopoly with us! At first he had to be on a team with one of us, but he plays by himself now. Very good for maths skills!

[Margene]

Table ping pong?

[SpiderStacy]

Brio builder sets are fab:

www.brio.net/en/ToPlay/Builder/Construciton_Site.aspx

[TinkerbellTrains]

Yes, we already have the camera. It was a specific one he wanted and ias it was/is the only thing he's asked for we got it as soon as the opportunity came up. (They don't come up very often).

That Kapla looks great. He'd love that.

Going to look more into the brio builder sets, they look good but he's not into diggers etc so he might not be all that bothered by it. I'll see if there's any other ones though.

Again thank-you. At least I have some good ideas now.

[TinkerbellTrains]

The brio space set could be a possibility.

[ihearttc]

Childs telescope. Would be something he could do and learn about as well.

[KnitterInTheNW]

Have you seen vtech switch n go dinos? They're kind of like transformers, but perfect for your son's age. If he likes fiddling with things, they might be a go-er.

[Pregnantberry]

Hmmm... No Lego or superhero stuff... We are going to have to think outside of the box for this one...

If he is liking the James and the Giant Peach book, then there are good value box sets like this one of books which can be bought on Amazon. Maybe if there is another author he likes you could find something similar as well.

There are other outdoor things you could get - space hopper, roller skates, smallish paddling pool, water pistols.

I recommend this, it's a pocket microscope thing which is marketed as for bug collecting but my DSS got bought it who is also very inquisitive and it can be used to look at anything, it's really quite good. He was 6 but I'm sure he would have liked it at 5 as well.

Would he like those boxed kids cupcake baking sets to do with you which you see in the supermarket? You can probably get a Tinkerbell set somewhere and he could 'serve' them with his tea set or something.

[RabbitsarenotHares]

Along the tennis lines, what about a swingball set? No way the ball would go flying over the fence, but still lots of fun.

[mummyxtwo]

Hex bugs? You can buy bits of 'tube' and build your own habitat for them, they are little robotic bugs that scuttle about and bump off things and can climb up the tubes to different levels too. You can take the habitat apart and rebuild it. Quite fun. My 5yo ds1 can't get enough of Lego City. He plays with his Lego City museum break-out on a pretty much daily basis - anything to do with police and criminals! He also has a good bug finder kit which includes examination pot, tweezers, bug tongs and scoop etc for looking at minibeasties in the garden. In my son's class they are all into angry birds, so that is always a winner. Outdoor / indoor kitchen or cash register? Kind of goes with his tea set play. Disney Planes dvd? Or go for a wander around Smyths or Toys R Us for some ideas?

[Basketofchocolate]

Marble run.

Job done.

[FossilMum]

Really, I think if he's into making things and exploring how they work he probably would like some Lego kits. Not just a tub of basic bricks, but some of the 3-in-1 or 2-in-1 kits with instructions and moving parts like wheels, cogs, hinges, etc.

e.g:
entry-level Technic model www.amazon.co.uk/LEGO-Technic-8065-Container-Truck/dp/B0042HOU5I/ref=sr_1_5?s=kids&ie=UTF8&qid=1395232550&sr=1-5&keywords=lego%20technic&tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21
one of the Creator sets www.amazon.co.uk/LEGO-Creator-6913-Blue-Roadster/dp/B005KIR3PC/ref=sr_1_1?s=kids&ie=UTF8&qid=1395232720&sr=1-1&keywords=blue%20roadster&tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21
Crazy Contraptions (will probably need adult help with this) www.amazon.co.uk/Tobar-Lego-Crazy-Action-Contraptions/dp/B004LNVY2A/ref=sr_1_1?s=kids&ie=UTF8&qid=1395232756&sr=1-1&keywords=crazy%20contraptions&tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21

[FossilMum]

Sun printing kit?
www.amazon.co.uk/Grasshopper-Toys-Ltd-Print-Paper/dp/B00650PR66/ref=sr_1_1?s=kids&ie=UTF8&qid=1395233664&sr=1-1&keywords=sun%20prints&tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21

[TinkerbellTrains]

Some fab ideas here.

It makes it more difficult as he's not really into cars/planes/trains/dinosaurs etc. And we have plenty for ds2 so they've always been there to play with.

He's more of a rainbows and fairies and butterflies.

We already have a marble run (quadrilla roundabout, awesome by the way )and a wooden kitchen, play food & cash register.

My mum has bought him a proper kids size baking set & apron/chefs hat etc which he's going to love.

I like the swingball idea and that sun printing kit is right up his street.

This morning he saw this playmobil princess castle but it's way too expensive here so unfortunately that's not going to happen.

[TinkerbellTrains]

Just so you know your efforts aren't wasted though, I have bookmarked a lot of these links for ds2's birthday in September.

[NeverQuiteSure]

He sounds similar to my 5 year old DS, who is also into construction ('free' construction only though, not building set models) and not interested in superheroes etc.

Some suggestions:

• K'nex is awesome, cheap (well, compared to Lego) and you can build very large creations very easily
  
• My Little Pony DVDs (great characters and lots of adventure, just make sure you get the modern 'Friendship is Magic' ones and not the 1980s 'let's all have a tea party' type ones!)
  
• Science toys; doesn't have to be the expensive kits, you can pick up things like glass prisms, magnets etc very inexpensively on Amazon. Look for the 'other people bought' links at the bottom of the pages for further inspiration
  
• Bear Factory voucher, or a (much cheaper) home kit from Be My Bear or similar. Bear can have PJs, toothbrush etc
  
• Pillow pet - the one TV gimmic that turned out to be great
  
• Something for his room? DS loves his disco light bulb (about £6 from Amazon) and cheapy Argos lamp. Remote control light switches are also great fun
  

I'm sure I'll think of more...

[TinkerbellTrains]

NeverQuiteSure. Our ds's do sound similar.

He's recently found my little pony and watches some episodes on youtube. He's also got a my little pony that has sparkly hair. He has glass prisms, magnets, microscope, magnifying glasses etc. and he has a disco ball for his room and he has a ladybird pillow pet

I'll look at k'nex. DP usually has all the ideas for birthdays but even he was stumped this year.

Ds1 is currently in his bedroom sticking sparkly things & glitter to pieces of material. Apparently they are samples for how he's going to decorate his "$2 shop" that he will have when he's older.

[NeverQuiteSure]

Goodness, they are similar, aren't they?!

Some more of DS's favourites:

• glitter tattoo kits (some great starter kits on eBay)
  
• paint your own teaset (we Father Christmas bought DS one very cheaply from Tesco Christmas 2012 and it was a huge hit)
  
• rolobox (or possibly rolabox?) kit
  
• pop up books (anything Robert Sabuda is fab)
  
• robofish
  

For his next birthday we will be considering:

• snap circuits
  
• Playmobil pool with slide
  

Also, if you are willing to spend the remainder of his childhood engaged in a 'screen time' battle, introduce him to Minecraft...