No idea what to get for 9yo son....

[autumnalwishing]

Ds is 9 in early December so double presents to plan for. He autistic and gifted and doesn't really play with toys anymore.

He loves Lego and he will have some HP and Marvel sets on the list but we've got SO. MUCH already and nowhere to put it all. He's got tons of mini figures, board games, knex, books and just general plastic that he doesn't really play with anymore. He's got theatre tickets for his birthday treat (wanted a party but has no friends 😢). Doesn't really do return visits to places that would warrant a membership and hates the cinema and eating out. Has access to PlayStation, Nintendo DS and iPad but plays so much (doesn't have a school to go to) that there's nothing left that he wants for them. Hates bike riding and scooters etc.

Big hits in the past have been things like discovering knex, coding, snap circuits, Jigsaws, magnatiles etc. They were really enjoyed as new experiences but not the sort of thing he'd want more of if that makes sense.

His life is pretty crappy a lot of the time and I just want to put a smile on his face and give him something to enjoy but I'm REALLY struggling this year....help!

Do you have Bloxels? You design computer game levels using a combination of a board and blocks and an app. My 10 year old loves it.
Also BBC micro bit. More coding but well supported with programs and accessories.
There are a lot of other coding toys out there too now, like the Lego Boost.
Amazon Echo or Google home.
A PC/laptop to be able to run Minecraft Java edition with Mods like the you tubers do?
The last two are on my children's xmas lists!

Our ds9 loves Star Wars Lego and will get some sets.

I have been thinking to get a metal detector for ds9 to look for coins at the beach. We gave him a telescope couple of years ago.

Is Nano bugs too young ? iPod ? Posh remote control car ?

There is a show called Marvel universe live, probably ££££, but a few things like that spread out might be nice or a local show like Panto.

On the friends front does your library run any Lego workshops etc or there are some Lego type cafes that run weekend clubs. Worth checking out.

Do you have Bloxels? You design computer game levels using a combination of a board and blocks and an app. My 10 year old loves it.
Also BBC micro bit. More coding but well supported with programs and accessories.
There are a lot of other coding toys out there too now, like the Lego Boost.
Amazon Echo or Google home.
A PC/laptop to be able to run Minecraft Java edition with Mods like the you tubers do?
The last two are on my children's xmas lists!

Some great ideas there!
Never heard of bloxels or BBC micro bits. Coding type toys are definitely a good idea. There's so much 'stuff' like that that sometimes I don't know where to start and what is good so recommendations are really useful.

I have been thinking to get a metal detector for ds9 to look for coins at the beach. We gave him a telescope couple of years ago.

Ds was after a metal detector a while back but has gone off the idea for some reason. Could be a really good present idea though - lots of mileage!

*Is Nano bugs too young ? iPod ? Posh remote control car ?

There is a show called Marvel universe live, probably ££££, but a few things like that spread out might be nice or a local show like Panto.

On the friends front does your library run any Lego workshops etc or there are some Lego type cafes that run weekend clubs. Worth checking out.*

He used to have nano bugs but gone off them a bit now. We took him to Marvel universe last year actually - he loved it, such a good show.
Thanks for the suggestion about Lego clubs - we've avoided things like this for a while as it was so hard for him, he always feel like he gets everything wrong but we need to explore it more I think.

Not really a Christmas or birthday idea but would he be interested in horse riding horses are great for children that have trouble mixing with other children , lack confidence or need a self esteem boost as they are extremely good listeners .

Does he have a Cozmo or Sphero?

My DS sounds a bit like yours and these have been great hits.

His Sphero is BB9e, the black version of BB8, it's really cool.

His Cozmo is great and can talk and play games.

They have videos on YouTube for both.

I don't even know what a Cozmo or sphero is so off to google!!!!!

Oops, they're droid robot thingys.

Does he have an Alexa?

Yes, he has an Alexa - absolute necessity for a child that needs constant timers, reminders and questions answered 😂😂

Gravitrax were really popular with my 9 year old Lego lover last year

Clothes?
We've bought a Harry Potter recipe book, do you think he'd give that a go?
Audio books?

I was going to suggest a Cosmo too! Great fun for any age!

Can I just mention to posters considering buying one that ANKI who made cozmo closed earlier this year. It's probably a good idea to do some research before buying one, to establish what kind of support is available for the cozmo.

I know you have lots of Lego, but the Lego Boost set has been amazing for us. Definitely worth a look if he likes both coding and Lego.

@CantSleepClownsWillEatMe Thanks for the info on Cosmo. Ours has been a bit glitchy lately, that's not good news.

Thinkfun puzzles like Laser Maze and Gravity Maze are fab and really well made.

Has he got Pokemon on his Nintendo DS? My DS is obsessed, learning all the names and special moves and so on really appeals.

@sawyersfishbiscuits they apparently have a "self help" centre which might be worth looking up? We were thinking about the Anki overdrive for ds8 which is how I stumbled across the information.

It's such a pity as they seem to be considered really good products but they're still being sold at the same price ie not cheap! I'm not really willing to take the risk with tech gifts if there's limited support for any problems.

@CantSleepClownsWillEatMe my DS spent a year saving up for his and it's great. But recently our internet has got worse and Cozmo keeps disconnecting. Just hoping that it's the internet rather than Cozmo.

Sorry for derailing thread xxx