gift idea for a 4-year old boy

[alison]

I'm clueless! It's for a birthday party that dd is going to. Price range is around $20-25. My dd loves Legos, but I don't know if all 4-year olds like sets.

TIA!

[Pollyanna]

Two words: action figures

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would be my first choice. Transformers are fun, Star Wars.

Also Hot Wheels are great! Who doesn't love cars?

[alison]

Two words: action figures

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would be my first choice. Transformers are fun, Star Wars.

Also Hot Wheels are great! Who doesn't love cars?

In other words, the boys aisle at Target is a pretty safe bet? I think the little boy said he likes Bob the Builder, but the BtB toys don't look like they're that much fun.

[SuzySunshine]

Yes action figures that is what R is getting for his birthday, he has none and has been playing with them like crazy at our gym. He especially like the Batman ones if that helps.

[HouseofWool]

Yep - the boy aisle is a great start. Legos, action figures, transformers - those where a huge hit and they have some that are designed for smaller kids - get the ones that are for 5 year olds though, the next step down tends to be pretty lame, dress up stuff - superhero costume type things where also big for us.

[MrsK]

Ugh, as the mom of a soon-to-be 4yo boy, I really want him to get craft supplies, mechanical/building toys, books, clothes, kiwi crates (a one-time kit is about $25), tickets to the zoo or children's museum, educational toys and board games . . . as a soon-to-be 4yo boy, K1 is asking for Spiderman, dinosaurs, rockets, race cars. . .

I'm tempted to request "no gifts" for his next birthday. A classmate of his did that. Seemed that a lot of people got him gifts anyway. I sent a donation to Jewish Family Services in honor of his birthday figuring that I'd acknowledge the parents' request to be clutter-free or at least be able to censor his gifts.

[Pollyanna]

I think K1 has good taste!!

[houseelf]

At 4 all of my kids loved those DK sticker books. You can get it in the theme the kid likes: Cars, Star Wars, Dinosaurs, etc. They are about $11 so you could pick up one or two.

[peggyfromwastate]

My 4 year olds were pretty much obsessed with Thomas the tank engine. But they had so many of them you never know what to get.

There's a cute game that dd5 and I have been playing--- it's the sneaky snacky squirrel. It works on motor skills-- I saw it at toys r us for 19$. I got it from amazon. Boys would be interested in that too I think. It is for ages 3+.

[alison]

Thanks! That Sneaky Snacky Squirrel game looks fun.

Kelly, there are two types of Dk sticker books from what I can tell. Are you talking about the "Encyclopedia" version that sells for about $11 on amazon?

[houseelf]

These are the kind that my preschoolers have eaten up:

http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Stick...books+for+kids

We usually do a page before reading our bed time story. It is a nice "pre-reader" activity, besides being fun for geeky adults who still enjoy Harry Potter, Star Wars, Legos, Pixar movies, etc.

[alison]

These are the kind that my preschoolers have eaten up:

http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Stick...books+for+kids

We usually do a page before reading our bed time story. It is a nice "pre-reader" activity, besides being fun for geeky adults who still enjoy Harry Potter, Star Wars, Legos, Pixar movies, etc.

I ended up getting a "things that go" sticker book in that collection, and a small 3 in 1 lego car set.

[ladymoreta]

I'll keep this thread going, since it's similar to what I'm looking for. So DS has started to become really social, and he loves playing with us. So much so that he's almost stopped playing by himself. This is fine a lot of the time, but there are definitely times that I need to get things done without the guilt of "But I want you!" and "Please play with me!" I don't want to not play with him, but I don't want to have to entertain him all the time either. I think a big part of our problem is that we're lacking age appropriate toys for him. March (DS's birthday) through November (DD's birthday) is kind of a dry spell for buying toys, so we've only added a few new things since last spring. What do 4 year olds play with by themselves? About the only thing I can get more than 15 minutes out of is the Leap Pad.

[HouseofWool]

Legos are the go to toy in our house.

[MrsK]

Hmmm, my almost 4yo rarely is without a little brother to play with but K2 is still in the parallel play stage. K1 still plays with his LP toys. Blocks and building toys too. It seems that the real trick is novelty. If I put the toy away for a few weeks and then bring it out, it keeps his attention longer.