Fun presents for boys who have outgrown toys (7-8 years)

[howardsway]

We have his main present sorted which is very practical but looking for ideas to ensure his day is still fun. He has no interest in sport or lego unfortunately (for present buying!).

He has a great sense of fun and LOVES Christmas but he's quite academic and alot of family have told me about great books they've found. He loves to read and will be grateful for any gifts but he has small siblings who will be showered with fun stuff and I think his morning could be a little flat in comparison.

Any ideas ?

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Hi! This thread is a little out of date. If you're looking for toy recommendations, take a peek at our roundup of the best toys for Christmas - as chosen by Mumsnetters. MNHQ

Three of my most memorable presents from that age were a chemistry set, a microscope and a fishing rod.

My son was the same about toys.

The only toys that captured his fancy were construction toys like Lego and K'Nex.

Successful presents at his sort of age were stunt scooter, bmx, Books (Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield, Tintin, scary books), MP3 player with music and audio books.

He was much more interested in gadgets aimed at grown men - websites like I Want One Of Those had quite a lot of things he liked.

Would your son enjoy a video /digital camera and software?

He also really enjoyed a magic set and some of the Klutz books about drawing and origami. He could make ninja stars in his sleep.

Thanks lljkk for the Minecraft Lego suggestion. I had no idea it existed, and more excitingly, neither does DS (8)!

kingsfold DC keep adapting our Jenga set for the same purpose!

My DS was/is the same. Only needed a football and his bike! At least it means there is less crap floating about

my ds will be 9 christmas eve ,and he doesnt have any toys on his list.
plop trumps
some quiz game in a box ?
new helmet
mgp scooter
mgp wallet
mgp skate daps
pegs /grip tape /tool kit for the scooter
scooter ramp
football
football shirt
bootbag
calender
skylanders giants
new diary of wimpy kid book
ridleys belive it or not book
guiness book of records
sketch pad and pencils
solitare game
draughts game
new bop it
arthur christmas dvd
new fifa game for his psp
red toolbox -make your own tool box and gloves/googles

does he like colouring /geog
i got ds a huge world map to colour from bright minds last year,
it comes in a roll with some felts but we got him finer point stabilos as its very intricate, it has the flags all round the border so they have to look this up before they are coloured/

Wow what a lot of brilliant ideas. Thanks everyone.

Am loving the idea of a den kit - we have a great garden for that and its cheaper than the treehouse he wants! Will save that for his birthday in the spring.

Bop it extreme
Over door basketball ring
Magnetic dartboard
nerf gun
new football
paperjamz guitar
magic trick
telescope
compass

Make your own slime - £3.50 from Play.com (I would link but I can't )

DS received some last year and declared it his best present!

PS If anyone wants to give me an idiots guide to linking then please go ahead..........

Thanks for starting this thread, OP. My 7 1/2 year old DS is the same...apart from Lego he's never shown much interest in toys; far too busy for them . Some great ideas here!

I have just discovered these Makedo kits and will be buying them for various sons and nephews this year. I think they are a fab idea - connectors, wheels, etc to allow you to take bits of rubbish (cardboard boxes, cereal packets, etc) and use them to make something - cars, robots, shops, dens, etc. My brothers would have adored these when we were kids so I am hoping the new generation of little boys feel the same way.

What do you think of JT SplatMaster. This looks like a bump up from Nerf. My nephews play it and seem to have a blast. Just an option.

Nicmom how on earth did you find a 3 year old thread to post on??! I reckon the op may have sorted Christmas circa 2012?!

My stepdd has never shown any interest in toys (she's only 6 now) so present buying has always been a pain so I feel what you are going through. Some kids are just like that.
We've gone down the board game route and have bought her pie-face as something silly and fun. Could a silly game work?

Whoa ok should have read the last post before posting. Wow 3 years old? How random......

I have a younger son who goes through phases of not playing with toys. I think it's quite common.

What about board games?

I'm assuming you sell these things aboudie since you keep on linking to them on random threads...