My son's play-date friend is turning 4 next week. He has TONS of toys. I was trying to NOT get him a toy. I wanted to get him an ant farm, but I am reading reviews online and they're not good - anything from "the ants died w/in a week" to "the ants cost extra" to "I had to wait till the spring to order my ants." My 3.5 yr old loves watching the scropions and crickets we collect. I am not sure his mom is a fan of bugs and helping him collect crickets and feed and water them like I do. What other ideas do you have for me? I guess I could get him a shirt, but the teacher in me would rather get him some sort of learning-type of 'not your regular gift' type of activity. Ideas?
Thanks!
Wow. Great answers! Looks like I will either go with either a butterfly habitat, a couple cool books, a museum pass, (we have a bouncy castle place near us. The zoo and museum are about 40 minutes from their house), those Crayola Wonders, or a magazine subscription. I think I like the magazine/museum pass the best. I will look into prices. Although the piggy bank with money inside is super-easy too. They're crammed in their trailer, or the tent idea sounds fun. Thanks for this, ladies!
And as for the comment "...Scorpions? Yikes!" We are very very careful with the scorpions. Our son is allowed to watch, not carry around the bug container they are in. My husband and I grab the scorpions by the tail with pliers and put them in the box. Our son KNOWS that they are dangerous. We live out in the country. We see about 2-3 scorpions each night. Our son has learned that scorpions will eat eachother! It's a great and fun way for him (and me) to learn. We have a lot of fun with it. But it's not for everyone.
We always give books. I love to take my 4 year old to the bookstore and let her pick out a book for her friend and one for her.
I love to give gift certificates or season passes to my local art museum, zoo, or activity center. Kids love these types of places and they are educational. Then there parents don't have to worry about watering or feeding a gift and the child gets more then just another toy.
What about some boy dress up clothes? Capes, masks, etc. Hullabaloo is a great game for that age too.
how about a subscription to a kids magazine like National Wildlife Federation's "Your Big Backyard", or "National Geographic Kids" - fun, educational, and most kids I know *love* getting their own mail :-)
Bubble wrap. My child got something wrapped in bubble wrap when she was 5. She squealed in delight "bubble wrap!!!", then placed it reverently with the other gifts. We had to tell her there was a gift inside! LOL!
I've also given to young children, with great success:
Honey-wheat bread baked into a teddy bear shape.
A smiley-face made of coins taped down to a piece of paper.
You can also give an invite to a special event, such as "a day at the science center with our family".
I'd check with the parents before you give him anything alive (sea monkeys, beta, etc). They are terrific presents and the kids always love them, but sometimes the parents are less enthused. I've seen a lot of parents at the pet store saying intemperate things about the person who gave their child this pet, which now requires food and maintenance.
What about books showing him the different tractors or cars?
A lot of good ideas here. My son got a sleeping bag and really small kids tent once that he loved.
You can never have too many books.
How about a venus flytrap?
I like the idea of the season pass to the local children's museum or zoo.
We had a butterfly house and watched the progress of caterpillars turning into butterflies. The age range of kids in my daycare that were interested were 3-7. They loved it seeing the changes every day and loved letting them go! You do have to order the caterpillars and I think we paid $3 for shipping and handling, but it's great to have the flexibility to order them when you want.
gift certificate to childrens theater or museum?
metal detector? National geographic has some science gear (at Target) or there at science kits we buy at our hobby store (Michael's)
boy-themed puzzle
craft supplies & an art book
Audubon-style nature book
pop-up tball stand
baseball glove & ball
Barnes & Noble has a ton of craft kits for all different ages....
Membership or passes to zoo, children's museum or other fun attraction.
Piggy bank with change in it!
Sea monkeys? Or a garden set for little ones. My mom got my son a Sesame Street set they sold at Lowes. Admittedly, my son had more fun playing with the "tools" than any sort of real gardening, but he is Autistic, so when he has any sort of appropriate play, I'm thrilled.
What about the butterfly habitat? I know they are worms at first, but they turn into butterflies! ;D I've seen them at Walmart, but hurry because I think they are seasonal.
how about the butterfly cacoon things? the children I nanny for got them in the mail a couple weeks ago. they came out of the cacoons and the kids were enthralled with them. they let them go and watched them fly away after a couple days. it was pretty cool.
books are always great, especially a favorite or a classic.
a cool bank
trucks
bug vacuum/kit for him to catch his own bugs
a cool water gun
matchbox cars
art and craft things...paint, paper, crayons, coloring book, stickers.
flash cards
gift card for $5 to local ice cream shop/Mcdonald's, etc to add to gift
DVD of a movie like Scooby Doo or Little Rascals or Tom and Jerry...you can usually find them at Target or Walmart for $5.
I would NOT like an ant farm, I would be afraid they would get loose! :o)
Mabel's Labels makes some great school packs. Okay, maybe more for the parents than for the kid, but the kid can pick out the colors and design and put them on all his stuff. They last a LONG time and don't easily wear out. Mark all those toys Junior wants to bring to school.
Or what about a magazine subscription? National Geographic has a kid's magazine and so does the National Wildlife Federation. If your kid outgrows one level, they will let you switch for the next one up. Highlights is also a good one. Might help him learn about critters without actually having critters.
A book, some art supplies, a magazine subscription (age-appropriate, of course) or a gift card to a hobby store like Michaels.
I agree with the butterfly habitat. You have to send away for the caterpillars after you open the kit (you can do it online, it's $5 even...not bad) and they ship them to you fairly quickly.
It was AMAZING watching them grow. When they came, they were the size of grains of rice...and grew into these huge, disgusting, fat caterpillars. So awesome! My six year old daughter loved it. Watching them crawl around forever...it took about three weeks (maybe even a little more) before they went into their chrysalis stage, and then from there it took maybe 10 days or so for them to hatch as butterflies. All of ours survived (they sent five, we got five butterflies!), and after feeding them for about a week we let them go. Two of them mated in our driveway! :) Whoops...had an interesting time answering that question.
Plus, you can reorder caterpillars at any time and the habitat is reusable.
Of course, I am also a huge fan of books...but because you don't know what books he has (?) maybe get him a doodle book...they have some really awesome ones at B&N. Kind've a start to a picture, and then the child gets to fill in with their imagination...my daughter also loves these. They have all different themes, and the books are huge.
Clothes or books are always appreciated. As a mom of a 4 year old boy, I would have been really happy with either of those. I would NOT want any living creatures.
You could get him a membership somewhere (zoo, aquarium, etc) or buy him a class at a local rec center.
How about something sentimental? I like the make your own plate craft kits that you can buy: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00000JGR3/ref=s9_simh_g...
K.
p.s. If you do decide to get a toy, get something teachers love - Discovery Toys! You can view all of my fun, educational products at http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/karenchao (summer sale thru 8/21)
....scorpions????? Yikes!!!!!!
We are coin collectors and many times I give a proof set of the birthday child's year ( can get pricey, depending on year), Morgan silver dollars (I keep a roll of these in the safe for quick gifts, make sure you have protective cover to keep it nice, we also completed the state quarter collection and started the collection in nice numismatics folders for somerelatives.
We have a couple of mint stores in our area but you can also get this type of thing at a gold and silver exchange.
Crayola Color wonder. My 4yr old neice & 5yr old nephew love the color wonder stuff and my sister loves it because they cant ruin anything.
A beta fish in a glass bowl with some marbles and food.
Cute pajamas are always fun
iTunes gift card or Music CD
DVD with kids songs or phonics depending on the child's needs or likes
Books of their fav character
A tent - Kids love to play in a tent. Something simple that can be easily put together. Think they have animal tents at Target.
My son loved his ant farm. We did have to order the bugs extra, but it was great. He had the kind that lit up and lived in gel. He has also gotten sea monkeys as a gift as well. Those were a big hit until little sister dumped them. My son wants to get everyone a lava lamp, we use his as a night light. It's bright enough to light up the room, but does not disturb his sleep. His grandparents bought him a microscope. It's a fantastic learning toy, I just wish this one was geared towards younger kids (I know they are available). My son loves his Stomp Rocket my friend gave him. We talk about angles quite a bit when it gets used. Magazine subscriptions? HIgh five or National Geographic for kids. My son uses his binoculars for everything from checking out planes to looking at birds to pretending he's Han Solo looking for Luke :).
After living in tiny NYC apartments for a number of years, I learned the value of consumable gifts. Not necessarily ones you eat for kids but some type of experience or even a few lessons of something so they can try out a new activity. However, the downside of that is that if they like it, the parents may have to continue it or deal with telling the kid no if they can't.
When my in-laws sent my son money for his birthday, we asked if they minded if we used it for swimming classes or something fun to do instead of buying a toy. It worked great for us and the in-laws were fine with it. When my mom was visiting this summer, she stated that my children and my nephew had so many toys that she wasn't going to buy toys anymore. She was going to do something else. I mentioned the idea of giving an experience and that's what she will probably do.
Hi! I'm sure by now you've picked a gift, but if not, one of my son's favorite gifts for his 4th birthday was something called I Dig Dinos. It's a kit with a block of what appears to be tiny stones or seeds and sand. It includes a metal chisel and tiny hammer, a brush and safety goggles. You carefully chip away the bits of seeds and sand to reveal dinosaur bones. When all the bones are out you can paint them and assemble them into a dinosaur. It's messy to chip apart but we did it outside and he LOVED it. I've seen them in stores and I think they are in the $20 price range.
When my son was 5, he used the money his grandparents sent to buy the big thick books about insects and then the one about snakes. they're WONDERFUL books, depending on the child's interests - they've got them for butterflies, trees, fish and birds. It includes pictures, and ALL kinds of interesting information about them. If you're interested, write me back and I'll go find them and tell you exactly who puts them out - I want to say the National .......Society (depending on what they are about depends on the society) but I'm not sure anymore. He's 20 and still uses them!!!!
We once got an ant farm as a git and we never even bothered to order the ants. I don't even know where that farm is right now. It was years ago!
I would ask the mom if you can get him a beta fish. They do not take as much care as other fish- don't need a large tank, no air pump or filters, etc. Just a bowl of water that is changed weekly.
I would also consider a gift card to the movies, or some fun kids play place.
Books are always great (books about bugs would be better). But he most likely has a ton of books. What about those bugs in the clear stuff or a framed bug for his wall. Bug posters. Gift certificate to the movies or other kid activity are always great. (zoo, skating rink, jump house, gym, bat cave (if your close). There are also bug buckets where he could capture a bug for the day as long as he promises to let it go back home before bed time...as the bugs mom might get worried and his brothers and sisters would miss him (get creative with the not keeping the bug)
While kids may have TONS of toys, when that happens, they rarely have high quality, inventive or creative toys. I like buying Holtztiger animal figures as gifts. Perhaps this could be tied with a book of the same characters.
I highly recommend a Butterfly Kit. They are available at teacher supply stores and now even at WalMart. They have always been a hit when I give them. Even my 85-year-old mother loved the one we sent to her! It comes with a certificate to send for the caterpillar eggs when ready for them.
Books and more books! I know that isn't original, but that is my go to gift for everyone.
I'm not sure he's old enough for K-nex, but my kids built with them for hours at a time, when they could get them away from the parents!
Does he like music? We've given CDs before. Favorites include Trout Fishing In America's Family Music Party and Barenaked Ladies' Snack Time.
Hobby Lobby has some great craft kits! My kids LOVE them! You can also buy a pre-made bird house from there and buy him some paints and brushes.
I usually will pick out a nice outfit. I know it's not fun, but the moms usually appreciate it. Maybe you can find a t-shirt with a character that he likes on it for him. Another idea would be something to help organize his toys.
