Gift guide · 12 ideas
Stocking fillers for kids
Small things that keep them busy past Boxing Day, rather than novelties that are broken by lunchtime.
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Kids’ stockings are easy to fill and hard to fill well, and plenty of what’s sold for them is broken within hours. The best stocking fillers give them something to do: a trick to learn, something to make, or a gadget that becomes part of their adventures.
These suit roughly ages 4 to 10. Always check the age guidance on the packaging, especially for anything with small parts or batteries.
Glow-in-the-dark stars
Turns their bedroom ceiling into a night sky. A lovely little bit of magic at bedtime.
Neasyth Glow-in-the-Dark Stars and Moon
Under £10
A 20cm sky-blue moon with hundreds of stars and tiny dots in different sizes, to stick on a ceiling or a bedroom wall. They soak up light during the day or under a lamp and glow once the lights go off.
What owners say: Owners find them good quality and easy to stick, with a glow that can last for hours, though some say the stars are smaller than expected or the glow is faint, and a few had stars that didn’t glow at all.
A closer look: Wipe the ceiling first, since dust stops the stickers gripping, and place the larger stars before scattering the tiny dots around them for depth. Leave the big light on for a while before bedtime, and the moon will be at its brightest just as they settle down.
- 20cm moon, hundreds of stars
- Sticks to ceiling or wall
- Charges in lamp light
A magic tricks set
Keeps them busy practising all of Christmas Day, then performing for the family once the dinner plates are cleared.
DINORUN Kids Magic Set with Hat and Cape
£10–£20
A magician’s hat and costume with a set of trick props and a fully illustrated guide that gets beginners performing quickly. Nothing needs batteries, and it makes a good first kit for a child who likes putting on a show.
What owners say: Owners find it good quality and good value, with easy instructions and a range of tricks simple enough for children to do by themselves.
A closer look: Encourage them to work through the instruction guide and master a handful of tricks properly before trying the rest, as a short, polished routine goes down far better than a long one. Once they’re ready, clear a spot in the living room, line up some chairs for the audience and let the hat and costume set the scene.
- Hat, costume and trick props
- Illustrated beginner’s guide
- Ages 3 and up
A small building bricks set
A quick build to finish before Christmas dinner, and the bricks join the rest of the LEGO box afterwards.
LEGO Classic Creative Food Friends 11039
Under £10
A 150-piece LEGO Classic set with eyes and mouths, for building a cupcake, an ice cream, an avocado and a taco, each with a funny face. The guide is simple enough for a four-year-old to follow.
What owners say: Owners find it good quality and good value, bright, cute and easy for little ones to build, and say it sparks their creativity.
A closer look: Once the four characters are built, the same bricks rebuild into a cake with sprinkles, bubble tea, a pear and a panini, so the set gets pulled apart and played with rather than left on a shelf. With so many small pieces, a tub or zip bag to keep them in is worth having too.
- 150 pieces
- Ages 4 and up
- 4 builds, 4 rebuilds
A wind-up torch
No batteries to run out, so it’s always ready for dens, camping and under-the-covers reading.
See options on AmazonBath bombs with a surprise inside
Makes bath time exciting for a week or so. The hidden toy inside is the main event.
leoce Kids’ Bath Bombs with Surprise Toys (12 pack)
Under £10
Twelve fizzing bath bombs in six scents, from lavender to peach oolong, each with a small crystal toy such as a crown, shell or angel inside. They colour the water as they dissolve and come in a tin.
What owners say: Owners love the scents, the coloured water and the little toys, though some say the bombs are very small.
A closer look: Warm water gives the best fizz, so drop one in once the bath has run and let them watch until the toy appears. Each ball is wrapped separately, so keep the rest sealed somewhere dry until next time. Twelve to twenty minutes of splashing is about right, followed by a quick rinse.
- 12 bath bombs, 6 scents
- Ages 3 to 10
- Crystal toy in each
Heads up: The toys are small parts, so they’re not for under-3s, and younger children need watching at bath time.
or compare other optionsScratch art pads
Something quiet to do once the presents are open, with nothing to spill on the sofa.
Purple Ladybug Rainbow Scratch Art Notes (150 sheets)
Under £10
A box of 150 thick 9cm scratch cards and two stylus pens, in a rainbow box that doubles as a desk dispenser. The cards are unlined card stock, much sturdier than notepad paper, so finished drawings can be kept or given away.
What owners say: Owners love the bright colours and the number of sheets, say it keeps children busy for hours and find it prettier than they expected.
A closer look: Each card is just right for lunchbox notes, a game of noughts and crosses or a quick thank-you drawing for the grandparents. The box has a holder for the stylus, which helps stop it wandering off, and a wooden cocktail stick works as a spare.
- 150 cards, 2 stylus pens
- Thick 9cm card squares
- Stylus holder on the box
Kinetic sand
A bit of beach play in the middle of winter, and they’ll keep coming back to it long after Boxing Day.
Kinetic Sand Rainbow Mix Set (383g)
Under £10
Three 127g tubs of Kinetic Sand in red, yellow and blue, which mix to make the other colours, plus six tools for layering, squishing and slicing shapes. The sand sticks to itself, and it’s free of wheat, gluten and casein.
What owners say: Owners find it fun for everyday play, good quality and easy to clear up, though some say the colours turn a sludgy brown once mixed and others that it doesn’t last long.
A closer look: Tip it onto a baking tray and most of it stays put. Stray bits lift off the floor more easily if you dab them with a bigger lump of sand rather than reaching for the hoover, then everything goes back into the castle pots.
- Three 127g tubs
- Six shaping tools
- Wheat, gluten and casein free
A family card game
Quick games that the whole family can play on Christmas afternoon. Good for sharp eyes and taking turns too.
Asmodee Dobble (tin)
£13.99 RRP
- Rules give five different games
- Comes in a pocket-sized tin
- Plays up to eight
Fifty-five round cards, each printed with eight symbols, and any two cards share exactly one symbol. Players race to spot and call out the match, and the rules give five different games to play with the same cards, all in a small tin.
What owners say: Owners say it’s hard to put down and quick to set up, that young and old can play together, and that a game lasts 10 to 15 minutes.
A closer look: Start younger players on the simplest of the five games, and stay with it until everyone spots matches quickly before moving on to the faster ones. The tin slips into a coat pocket or a day bag, so it comes along on days out as easily as it sits on a shelf at home.
A fidget toy pack
Lots of little textures and pop-its to share out, and handy for the long drive to see family at Christmas.
V B Fidget Toys Pack (30 pieces)
£10–£20
Thirty fidget toys in one pack, including push-pop bubbles, a simple dimple, a fidget spinner, an infinity cube and stretchy strings. They suit kids and grown-ups who like something to keep their hands busy, and a pouch keeps them together.
What owners say: Owners like the range in the pack and find the toys entertaining, hard-wearing and good value.
A closer look: Hold a few back rather than handing over all thirty at once, and save them for the doctor’s waiting room, where something new to squeeze buys a surprising amount of calm. The pieces are washable, and a wipe with a damp cloth is worth doing once they’ve been passed round several sticky hands.
- 30 fidget toys
- Storage pouch included
- Washable
A kids’ joke book
They’ll read every joke out loud at Christmas dinner, then try them all again on anyone who missed them.
Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Joke Book
£7.99 RRP
Over 400 jokes, limericks and riddles built around Roald Dahl’s characters, from Matilda and Charlie to the BFG, with Quentin Blake’s drawings throughout. It includes some of Dahl’s own knock-knock jokes.
What owners say: Owners find it delightful and easy to read, with humour pitched about right for six-year-olds, and good value.
A closer look: Jokes are one of the easiest ways to get a newly confident reader practising out loud, because each one is short and the payoff comes quickly. Leave it by the bed or in the car door pocket for journeys, with a pencil nearby so they can tick off the ones that got the biggest laugh.
- Over 400 jokes and riddles
- Quentin Blake’s drawings throughout
- Dahl’s own knock-knock jokes
Walkie-talkies
A bigger stocking treat that gets played with for years: in the garden, around the house and on walks.
NXGKET Rechargeable Walkie-Talkies (2-pack)
£10–£20
- 16 channels
- 121 privacy codes
- Rechargeable, no AAAs to buy
A 1200mAh battery and 16 channels make these a good pair for children and grown-ups alike: dog walks, festivals, or guiding someone into a tight parking space. They charge over USB-C like a phone.
What owners say: Owners find the sound clear and dependable over a good distance, the radios simple enough for young children and the battery good for a whole day; adults enjoy them as much as children.
A closer look: A full charge gives about a day of use or three on standby, so charge them the night before a trip. Scan shows which channels are busy, handy at campsites and events where other families are on walkie-talkies too.
Chocolate coins
A stocking tradition for good reason. Tuck them into the toe.
Sweet Treat Gifting Co. Milk Chocolate Gold Coins (50)
Under £10
Fifty large milk chocolate coins, each about 4cm across and wrapped in shiny gold foil, in a 450g bag. That’s enough for several stockings, a round of party bags or a chocolate treasure hunt.
What owners say: Owners find them good quality and tasty, say children love them and think they’re good value.
A closer look: Stockings hung by the fire are no friend to chocolate, so add the coins on Christmas Eve rather than a week ahead, and keep the bag somewhere cool until then. Worth knowing: they’re packed where milk, wheat, gluten, soya, egg, peanuts, tree nuts and sulphites are handled, so check before sharing them round a party.
- 50 milk chocolate coins
- 450g bag
- Gold foil wrapped
Filling a kid’s stocking
- Put the thing they can play with straight away at the top. It buys you a lie-in.
- Mix something to do (tricks, crafts) with something to eat and something silly.
- Batteries not included? Buy them now, not on Christmas morning.
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