I think you could be stuck for things for things to do in IoW, although long time since I've been there.
I know Jersey fairly well, although last time I went there was a good 7 years ago (it's a bit of a static island)
Other than beaches, Jersey has a really nice zoo, a few castles to visit, nice beaches, plus some ok ish overpriced attractions (potteries, strawberry farms, etc). The war tunnels are worth a trip. I'd suggest La Hogue Bie (sp?) if DS has an interest in archeology.
There is also the VAT free shopping as well
Hotels, the better ones are in the main town (St Helier) itself, but there are a few niceish ones outside too. Both me and my parents have used the Morvan hotels group.
I like Jersey but I'm not keen on there "£ per person per night" policy rather than the more usual "£ per room per night" I find elsewhere in Europe. Oh, and apparently they knock down old hotels to reduce capacity to keep prices up!