These gifts will broaden their horizons and keep them fully engaged.

Choosing the best gifts for 8-year-olds can present unique challenges because they’re not kids, but they’re not yet teenagers, either. So, when trying to discern if they would play with toys, complete arts and crafts projects, or read a book instead of leaving them under their bed or in the corner of their room is no easy feat. There are some milestones to look out for when you shop for their gifts, such as becoming more independent, having a longer attention span for hours of entertainment and learning, and starting to develop their identity with a fixed idea of what activities they like or are “good at.” If you don’t know where to start, we’re here to help make your decision a little bit easier with our gift ideas that cover various categories of interest, from board games and STEM sets to things for outdoor physical activity.  

Woom 5 Bicycle It promotes regular physical activity and transportation to school or to run errands.

Klutz LEGO Chain Reactions It provides the tools for a fun experiment of creating a chain reaction machine.

Ridley’s 100 Knock Knock Joke Cards They can get a kick out of these classic corny jokes and punchlines.

Melissa & Doug Decorate-Your-Own Christmas Ornaments

Christmas is the time to gather with the family and spend quality time setting up the tree and dressing it with beautiful decorations — lights, tinsel, garland, and ornaments. You can make the family tradition more meaningful by asking the kids to add their creative flare to the decorations with this craft kit from Melissa & Doug. They can use metallic paints to color the two double-sided resin ornaments in the shape of a tree and ball. Also, the kit includes two ribbons for the kids to hang their unique hand-painted creations.

Guess in 10 Countries of The World Game

If the kids are into world trivia games, this game card set is a great gift option to play with family and friends. They will get six clue cards and 50 game cards with facts, clues, and buzzwords to read to the opponent team. If the opponent can guess what country is on the game card the other team is holding, they can keep the card, and the game continues until one player collects seven game cards to be the winner. Other game card versions include Foods Around The World, World of Sports, and Underwater Animals.

We believe that children are fascinated with the world of magic that they want to learn the tricks behind it. Well, give them this Aspiring Magician Magic Kit as a Christmas gift. This magic kit has many different kinds of tricks the little magician can choose from, instructions, and materials they need to create an amazing magic performance for the family and friends. In addition to mastering intriguing illusions, the kit helps build their confidence, public speaking skill, and imagination.

8-year-olds appreciate a good new backpack for their Christmas gift, and this one has the style and function to bring anything they need for school. The bag has one main compartment large enough to fit their books and stationeries, one front pocket for small necessities, and two side pockets for water bottles and umbrellas. It features wide and padded shoulder straps and breathable mesh for the back panel, providing comfortable support when they carry the backpack. While the nylon oxford fabric makes it water-resistant, anti-scratch, and lightweight.

 Refasy Piggy Bank Cash Coin Can ATM

Get your kids to know the value of money and start saving their allowance with this modern ATM piggy bank. This ATM is password protected, has two slots for kids to deposit their money — the top slot for coins and the front slot for paper money — and can store up to 600 coins and 100 paper money. Kids can withdraw their money by entering the password using the number pad and then turning the knob to open the door. Choose from an array of charming colors that suit your kid’s personality or favorite shade.

National Geographic Earth Science Kit

Satisfy their curious minds and let them explore the wonder of earth science with this extensive kit from National Geographic. This gift features more than 15 high-quality and hands-on thrilling experiments, more than 10 rock and gem specimens, and a detailed learning guide for your kid’s entertainment. With one kit, your kids can have a fun learning experience and grow an interest in science and exploration.

YEEBAY Interactive Whack A Frog Game

This gift takes inspiration from one of the most classic and popular arcade games, Whac-A-Mole. The tabletop game comes in a frog-shaped board with buttons on the feet, a display screen to show the scores, and two hammers to hit the randomly lit-up frogs. Children can choose to play solo or with another player by sliding the switch on the side of the board. Moreover, the adorable plaything helps develop their fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, attention span, and sense of cooperation.

My Arcade Pac-Man Pocket Player

Here’s another legendary arcade game kids can take and enjoy playing while on the road. The Pac-Man pocket player is a portable handheld game that is lightweight and compact for kids to hold and store easily in their bags. It has a full-color display screen with a built-in speaker and a headphone jack to give a delightful nostalgic gaming experience as they play through three types of Pac-Man games. Additionally, the included lanyard prevents loss or damage from dropping the device.

Create Your Own Photo Flashlight

This unique device combines the features of a retro reel viewer, a flashlight, and a projector. The battery-powered photo flashlight comes in three colors — blue, white, and pink — and three starter reels — dinosaurs, space, and safari — that you can customize with your photographs using the redemption code. Just load the interchangeable reel on the slot and turn on the flashlight to project images onto the wall or any surface.

Bitty Boomers Star Wars Mini Bluetooth Speaker

A Bluetooth speaker that is small enough to be an accessory clipped on their backpack or blast their favorite songs in their bedroom or bathroom. The mini speaker features a cute Baby Yoda shape with speaker holes on its head and can wirelessly connect to any Bluetooth device. It can play over four hours of music time and is rechargeable using the included micro USB cable.

Kid’s Hidden Wish Bracelet

The wish bracelet lets your kids wear their wishes, goals, favorite words of affirmation, drawings, or personal information as a pretty wrist accessory and take them anywhere they go. Your little dreamer can write on the included small pieces of paper, roll it up, then put it inside the cylinder compartment hidden within the screw cap clasp. Replace the note as often as they like so that each time they peek at the rainbow bracelet, they will remember what’s inside and feel happy.

Last on our list of unusual gifts for 8-year-olds are these multicolored Neon Tooth Saver. When their teeth fall out, kids often want to store them somewhere safe as a keepsake and serve as a sentimental reminder that they’re growing up or to show them off to the dentist. The tooth container comes in three bright colors — green, yellow, and pink — so it’s easy for kids to spot, and the size is perfect to put under their pillow for when the tooth fairy comes.

ThinkFun Shape by Shape Pattern Game

The Shape By Shape is one of the perfect gifts for 8-year-olds who are into brainy games that test their minds. Inside the box are 14 puzzle pieces, 60 challenge cards, a game tray with a drawer for card storage, and a drawstring pouch. This gift can boost the kid’s conceptual thinking, visual perception, and spatial understanding when they match the red and yellow puzzle pieces to the images on the challenge cards.

This set gives 8-year-olds an entirely new perspective and way of playing with LEGO. Kids can turn their regular LEGO brick collection into a chain reaction machine that rolls, swings, drops, and pivots when combined with the additional components from the set. The instruction book has detailed explanations and instructions that they need to build 10 chain reaction machines with difficulty levels from easy to advanced. Your kids will have endless fun inventing and learning about the physics behind one thing that leads to another.

ThinkFun Gravity Maze Marble Run

Another gift we believe will entertain and educate any 8-year-olds about science and engineering is this Gravity Maze Marble Run. This STEM toy allows kids to build a maze path that carries the marbles from the start position to the target piece by strategically laying down or stacking the towers on the game grid following the drawing on the challenge card. Each challenge card has an indicator of difficulty level, from beginner to expert. Whether children play with the cards or make different maze paths, this gift will immerse them in hours of entertainment.

Educational Insights GeoSafari Motorized Solar System

Surprise your little astronauts on a trip around the solar system with this fascinating GeoSafari Motorized Solar System. The two-in-one set provides an opportunity to learn about planetary orbits, the constellations and introduces space exploration and astronomy at home. It consists of a motorized rotating base, eight rotating planets, a light-up sun dome, and a star dome that can project constellations and turn their bedroom into a personal planetarium. Plus, a full-color guidebook offers the curious little astronauts images of the constellations and information about their origin, planetary fun facts, and riddles.

iPlay, iLearn Kids Golf Toys Set

This gift will appeal to young golfers as golf can be a challenging and fun sport. The golf set is more than just a toy. It’s a great way for kids to be active and exercise their body — upper limb, back, muscles, and joints — to develop their hand-eye coordination and teach them about sportsmanship. It includes three interchangeable club heads, an adjustable club, 15 golf balls, and a ball-to-tee feeder system controlled using their feet. Kids can bring this easy-to-assemble golf set to play anywhere and on any occasion.

Toysmith 4M Magnetic Mini Tile Art

Invite your kids to spend a fun arts and crafts activity time with the Magnetic Mini Tile Art. This gift includes a brush, paints, 10 mini tiles, rubber magnets, and an easy-to-follow instruction book. The little artists can get creative and use colorful paint to draw anything they want, turning ordinary tiles into pretty and unique works of art. Attach the rubber magnets on the other side so you can hang the masterpieces as fridge or locker decorations for a personal touch or a sentimental reminder of your child.

This cooking subscription box from Kidstir is the perfect gift that lets the little chefs cook delicious meals and bake appetizing desserts with easy-to-follow recipes. Although the kit doesn’t have pre-measured ingredients, it provides shopping lists so the kids can experience finding the ingredients and learn about their nutritional value. Also, the cooking kit includes an apron, a chef’s hat, and colorful kid-size utensils.

KiwiCo Kiwi Crate Subscription Box

Kiwi Crate is a monthly subscription line created for 8-year-olds that explores STEAM topics through engaging and hands-on projects. Each box consists of supplies, illustrated step-by-step instructions, and a magazine that caters to a theme, such as fun with flight and trees capillary action. This gift will encourage curiosity, spark creativity, and ensure a fun learning experience.

LittleHippo Mella Ready to Rise Children’s Trainer

This gift is the well-rounded buddy that helps parents train their kids to become used to regular sleep and wake-up time. Not only a clock, but the cute-looking gadget also has different features, such as a night light, sleep sound machine, and nap timer. Its modern design and user-friendly interface give the perfect balance between functionality and quality. Just set the desired sleep and wake-up time, night light, and soothing sleep sound to help your child fall asleep peacefully through the night. Colors are available in Arctic Blue, Blush Pink, Bright Purple, and Tropical Teal.

Bentgo® Kids Bento-Style Kids Lunch Box

Whether preparing a healthy meal for your child’s school lunch, study trips, or weekend picnics, this bento-style lunch box is the ideal gift for your kids to bring and enjoy their favorite food. The lunch box comes in various colors and illustrations and has five portioned compartments to allow more variety and balanced lunch. The rubber-coated edges prevent the lunch box from sliding or slipping, while the contoured inner lid safely seals each tray to stop leaking and keep the food fresh. The removable tray is also microwave and dishwasher-safe. 

The Kindle Paperwhite Kids is the perfect gift for kids who love to read and will earn you some brownie points. This simple e-reader has been made with kids in mind because it’s waterproof, durable, has a glare-free screen with adjustable warm lights, and without the distractions of games, videos, or apps, so kids can focus on what they’re reading. If they want a more appealing and whimsical case than the standard black case, they can opt for the Robot Dreams or Emerald Forest.

Bicycles are some of the most memorable and convenient gifts that will make any 8-year-old jump and squeal with joy. The Woom 5 combines a lightweight frame, adjustable handlebar, striking colors, and other incredible features to create an all-around stylish and practical bike. The bike’s versatility allows the little rider to take it for a casual and fun spin around the neighborhood, the park, or for everyday bike-to-school transportation.

Make breakfast, dinner, or snack time more fun with this gift of amusing face plates. The kid-sized plate serves as an exciting medium for kids to play and learn with their food while allowing them to express their creativity at the same time. The cheeky tableware provides endless possibilities to dress up the faces on it using everyday food for lips, nose, eyes, or accessories. You can always look forward to the little chompers’ original and funny food-forward mealtime masterpieces.

Ridley’s 100 Knock Knock Joke Cards

Does your 8-year-old love to ask questions and tell jokes? Then, these 100 Knock Knock Joke Cards are just the gift that will have them laughing on and on. Even though knock-knock jokes are known to be a little corny, kids still love them because it’s part of the fun and their repetitive format is simple for them to memorize. The box has a door print for the cover, and the joke cards are door hanger-shaped to fit the overall theme. They can bring it to school or family gatherings for a laughter-filled day.

The next gift in this category is the Gas Out Game. An exciting game to play with family and friends, where kids take turns drawing out a card and pressing the gas cloud as many times as the corresponding number. The player who makes the gas cloud fart will be out, and the last player who keeps the gas cloud from farting until the end of the round wins the game. Your 8-year-old will enjoy hours of hilarious tooting entertainment.

This gift will give your 8-year-olds instant fake facial hair to pull off their imaginary play of being an adult or a cowboy in the wild west. There are 10 mustaches of different shapes and colors in the tin that kids can try on. The adhesive allows children to easily put on or take off the fake mustache and help it stay in place throughout their play. It can also be a comical costume accessory for Halloween, parties, or school play.

Kid’s Novelty Crew Socks

Socks are an affordable and delightful article of clothing you can get as a gift for your 8-year-old. These novelty socks are colorful and have fun prints that add a unique touch to the kid’s outfit and pair well with sneakers or other footwear for a pop of personality. Its premium cotton fabric makes the socks soft, lightweight, and breathable, so their feet stay dry and cool.

For an 8-year-old, there is someth ing exciting about going shopping for new school supplies. But, it can be an emotional and expensive trip because you’ll spend a lot of time patiently accompanying them through each aisle and more money when you pay for one of every stationery separately. This kit offers the best bang for your buck with its 45 pieces of basic school supplies, such as notebooks, erasers, pencils, and scissors, in one convenient package. No more fuss and endless store hopping. 

Table Top Mini Bowling Game Set

The Mini Bowling Game Set is a portable tabletop game that can be a great addition to an 8-year-old’s board game collection. This set consists of a small steel bowling ball, a launch ramp, and 10 pins. They only need to place the pins according to the pattern and set the ball on the launch ramp at the other end of the board. The kids can flick their fingers to roll the ball and watch it smash the pins down. The board game trains their hand-eye coordination and develops their motoric skills and sense of control.

Liquid Motion Bubbler is a plaything that can also be a playful decoration element for your 8-year-old’s desk or shelf. It displays the phenomena of liquid dynamics as it moves and separates to the bottom when kids flip the bottle like an hourglass. The floating colorful liquid bubbles also provide a captivating and soothing visual that helps children focus and calm their anxiety.

Happiest Make Your Own Clay Jewelry Kit

The Make Your Own Clay Jewelry Kit allows 8-year-old girls to be a little jeweler who creates beautiful jewelry. This kit includes eight colorful polymer clay, three pendants, three necklaces, 12 charms, 99 beads, cutting tools, instructions, and other supplies to make the trinkets. They can mix the clay to create custom colors or patterns and combine it with beads and pendants for a personal touch. 

If your little princess has a love for selfies and taking pictures of things she finds interesting, this digital camera is the perfect gift to get. Not only can it take a high-quality picture, but the camera can also record high-definition video with 4x zoom, time-lapse, and burst shooting features. The body is shockproof and equipped with a sling for extra drop protection.

Dan&Darci Real Pearl Mining & Bracelet Making Kit

Let the girls know what it feels like to be a pearl harvester by giving them the Pearl Dig & Bracelet Making Kit. Use the chisel and mallet to break down the oyster-shaped digging block, then clean the excess debris from the pearls with the brush. The illustrated learning guide provides exciting information and fun facts about pearls, from their history to how to identify genuine pearls from fake. Once the kids find all the pearls, they can make a pretty pearl bracelet to style up their outfits.  

Journaling is a great way for kids to channel their creative energy and express themselves through words. Instead of giving an ordinary hardcover journal, go for this stylish purple and aqua blue butterfly journal with a reversible sequins cover. The little lady can write or draw as much as they want because it has 160 lined pages with sewing binding that allows the journal to open flat all the time yet keep the pages securely bound together.

Dig A Dozen Dino Egg Dig Kit

Whether they want to become a paleontologist or are just curious about prehistoric animals after watching dinosaur films, this gift will delight any 8-year-old boy with the experience of holding dinosaur eggs and finding miniature dinosaurs inside. There are 12 dinosaur eggs and 12 individual chisels with a brush on the other end, so your little boy can share them with his friends. Also, the kids can learn more about what type of dinosaur they have found by looking it up on the full-color information cards.

The Extreme Rally Racer is a remote-controlled race car that provides hours of outdoor and indoor fun for the little racers. The race car’s body has a sleek aerodynamic design with large front and rear spoilers to ensure stability at high speed. Its sturdy hard-shell case helps withstand collision when it speeds around the track, and the rubber wheels ensure the car grip the ground, preventing it from skidding at every twist and turn. It’s the perfect gift that combines little boys’ love for automobiles and the thrill of remote control car racing.

Get it from Fat Brain Toys .

BOGS Neo Classic Insulated Waterproof Boots

Make a splash on rainy or snowy days and get their fill of stomping in puddles and slush with these Neo Classic Insulated Waterproof Boots. The boots are fashionable and functional because of the full-printed neoprene material with insulation and waterproof properties that keeps the feet warm and dry while still looking stylish. Its rubber and leather sole provides a firm grip and resists mud. Now the little lad can play outside in any weather wearing this comfortable, durable, waterproof, and chic footwear.

The SpringFlower Shooting Game is a surefire gift that will turn any backyard into a shooting range where your kid and their buddies can enjoy hours of this outdoor activity. The set comes with an army-themed target board, two toy guns, and 24 foam balls. Simply load the foam balls into the toy gun, pump it, and shoot at the target on the board. This game also helps develop the child’s hand and eye coordination.

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