Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Christmas

From present ideas to party food, find all your Christmas inspiration here.

Original poster

What to buy an 8 year old thats not...

24 replies

Shinesun09 · 11/07/2017 10:07

Lego or computer games
He's at that age where he still plays with toys but not as much as he used to.
We lego coming out of our ears and although I will buy one game I don't want to encourage more time on consoles.

OP posts:
TheTurnOfTheScrew · 11/07/2017 10:11

theatre tickets or cinema vouchers
season pass to a local zoo/theme park if you're feeling flush

wobblywonderwoman · 11/07/2017 10:15

What about a cheap drone?

bunningsbunny · 11/07/2017 10:19

Camera - especially one that has got an animation mode. Then get some of the stiik robots in an animation set. Lots of fun and the lego starts to be used in the animations and they develop skills on the tablet or computer in putting their movies together. So still some screen time but developing skills rather than just gaming.

thenewaveragebear1983 · 11/07/2017 18:08

National trust membership or merlin pass? (Pricey!)

Original poster
Shinesun09 · 11/07/2017 19:54

Thanks everyone. We already have tickets to the theatre as it's my younger ones birthday near Xmas so we go for that occasion.
A drone is a fab idea.
He already has a camera but the stick bots would be a good stocking filler!
Some type of pass (cinema or theme park) sounds good too so will look into that.
Can't believe im starting so early this year Smile

OP posts:
DownstairsMixUp · 11/07/2017 20:02

I have an 8 year old to, he is starting to get his own music tastes now but I don't want him watching music videos on youtube so im getting an mp3 player with some funky headphones. :) he enjoys figures and stuff now to so I have got him some minecraft display figures as well. Pjs are always a hit with a favourite game or TV show

Confusedandintrigued · 11/07/2017 20:05

Perhaps wait a few months to see if he gets in to something. You certainly have time on your side!

bunningsbunny · 11/07/2017 21:11

Have you checked out the Christmas bargain prequel thread? I think they are already into the second one and it's not long until the actual Christmas bargain threads start - they always have great ideas on - and at bargain prices to make it even better!

I've just tried to do a link to the stikbot sets but my phone is just showing Amazon not the proper URL. But they're called stikbots and there are some sets with at least 2 in along with other bits for £10 and bigger sets for less than £20. And if you have access to Costco last year they had a big set for £11!

llangennith · 11/07/2017 21:18

Looking for ideasSmile DGS age 9 still plays with his millions of playmobil and Lego but I'm not buying any more. Haven't a clue what to get for his 10th birthday.

lorisparkle · 11/07/2017 21:44

Last year my ds2 who was 8 asked for a remote control car and a watch. He also likes top trump cards and books. His favourite is the Tom Gates books.

MrsHathaway · 11/07/2017 21:46

At 8 my DC1 started to be interested in clothes. A hyper trendy hoodie or tracksuit was high on his list.

MrsHathaway · 11/07/2017 21:47

Oh and we got him a book about coding which he's still using now - good for games geeks but more active and creative than sitting slack-jawed in front of a console.

BrieOnAnOatcake · 11/07/2017 21:51

following. .. books good here too.

Original poster
Shinesun09 · 12/07/2017 07:59

MrsHathaway do you have a link to the coding book?

Books are good, we have the king flashy pants and bad guys books which ds loved.

Ooo clothes might be good, he plays football so could get him a new football strip

Thanks for the ideas evertone Smile keep them coming if you have more as it looks like I'm not the only whos a bit stuck this year

OP posts:
MrsHathaway · 12/07/2017 10:00

Coding Book. Don't laugh when you see who's endorsing it Grin

MrsHathaway · 12/07/2017 10:04

It sounds like our sons are very similar!

He also had a Beano subscription for Christmas 2015 which he liked so much it was renewed for Christmas 2016 (six months) and his recent birthday (another six months). That overlapped with a Nat Geo Kids magazine subscription if you were interested in something more cerebral.

We always put a comic in stockings because it makes them a satisfying shape and keeps them busy for half an hour before they insist on waking us up Grin

Anything football - if he has a favourite team then most of the big clubs do stocking tat like keyrings, stationery, water bottles, etc. Kit, yes, but also casual t-shirts, hoodies, jogging bottoms etc I long for the old days when he let me dress him in naice chinos and check shirts because now he can choose his clothes.

Original poster
Shinesun09 · 12/07/2017 18:14

Ah there's our Carol Grin

He saw an advert for Amazing magazine and asked about it so might get a subscription for that

I can do stocking fillers all day, we live in a city so there are so many shops that sell crap rhat goes in a drawer that can never be thrown away good bits but it's the 'big' presents Im struggling with this year. Got some good ideas here though Smile

OP posts:
sunshineunicorn · 12/07/2017 18:40

I have a ds who is 8. He wants Pokémon trading cards, and Pokémon toys, and Pokémon books, and Pokémon clothes and Pokémon ds game (I know you said no games or consoles though)...... can you see where this is going?
Last year he got a video camera so he can make his own YouTube videos. That went down really well

Youranus · 12/07/2017 19:48

Airfix kits,
Raspberry Pi,
Metal detector,
Bat detector,
Hot wires electronics kit,
Toy bow and arrow with target,
Meccano build a robot,
Telescope?

bunningsbunny · 12/07/2017 23:34

Oh yes, ds2 (9) is crazy about the Beano - reads it religiously every week and has done for the last couple of years, since first discovering it.

Coding books are also good. Another comic he is getting into (his big brother gets it) is How It Works which he also likes.

It's worth looking at The Book People if you don't already - they have some great books, at bargainous prices compared to buying them in the shops and even Amazon most of the time, particularly if you hit the sales or their end of the month pay day promotions or other promotions - sign up to get their brochure through the post and promotional emails to get the best deals and see what they are selling...

The Works also worth signing up for the promotional emails - they frequently have good deals on games and books and christmas craft kits, and bits and bobs that are useful for filling stockings or bulking out under the tree when you realise that one younger child has big but cheap presents and the older one has much smaller (albeit costly!) presents and you want a couple of big looking presents that are cheap but will help to ease the transition to little expensive presents!!

RueDeDay · 13/07/2017 06:41

If he's in to Lego and coding, Lego Boost is coming out soon... I know you said no more lego, but it really does look like an amazing step forward from just lego!

Original poster
Shinesun09 · 13/07/2017 10:03

Thanks everyone, writing all these ideas down. I had no ideas before this thread and now I have lots Smile I love MN CakeFlowers

OP posts:
debbiewest0 · 27/07/2017 22:26

Definitely my son liked the magazine How It works at that age and it's good for older kids too and I liked reading it with him so well worth the money.

Roundandroundtheapartment · 27/07/2017 22:47

Not sure if anyone is still looking but I've found a Swiss Army knife that's for children - it's called my first Victorinox and the blade tip is rounded so less chance of injury. My DS loves collecting sticks and is always trying to whittle the ends of so this is perfect

New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Swipe left for the next trending thread