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AD: This post on Gift ideas to get boys away from screens this Christmas is brought to you in conjunction with Wicked Uncle. Please see end of post for a full disclaimer.

With Christmas fast approaching and the media full of stories suggesting that we should all buy early this year it’s no wonder that many adults are already trying to work out what to buy for the children in there families. In particular those slightly picky pre-teens who often would happily spend whole days (and nights if you let them!) in front of a screen of some sort. Knowing where to buy presents online is key to solving this particular conundrum and once again Wicked Uncle come up trumps in helping you get them away from screens for at least part of Christmas.

A muted tone photograph showing hands in the foreground holding a game controller whilst in the background is a large computer screen. The pose suggests the player is involved in a game but it is not possible to see clearly what they are playing. Illustrating an article entitled: Gift ideas to get boys away from screens this Christmas

Something familiar, in food form

Start with something familiar to them. Any screen loving child will be familiar with a game controller, so why not break the ice by giving them one in chocolate form? After all, what’s Christmas without chocolate? And once you’ve lured them in with chocolate you could try pushing your luck with some chocolate vegetables too? Perfect for a stocking filler.

A means of calming down

One think I’ve learnt being mum to a screen loving boy is that he also loves time and space to calm down when he’s not on his screen. Often in the dark too. He’s fascinated by mood lights and there are so many different ones you could choose from – a jellyfish tank, an erupting volcano or even a colour changing tornado.

A close up photograph showing a male teen face staring at a mood light.
Illustrating an article entitled: Gift ideas to get boys away from screens this Christmas

Family Fun

As much as many of then deny it, kids actually quite like time with their parents doing something fun, and there are some excellent card and board games on the market now that meet this brief perfectly. Cards Against Maturity is a version of the popular adult Cards Against Humanity game that instead is full of juvenile toilet humour that allows kids to blow off some steam with statements that they might not normally get away with.

All kids love to think that they’re a Smart Ass, and what better way to prove it than by playing the Smart Ass card game. I’ve previously reviewed the board game version of this and it was a huge hit with our then pre-teens.

For sports mad kids A Question of Sport is more than just sports questions – there are also physical and mental tests to complete against the clock to ensure they are in peak mental and physical shape for all that screen time that they plan to have.

Grow their Brain

Not literally our course, but instead through some of the excellent science and tech kits are are available these days. Children are often still learning loads when they are on a screen, but sometimes they just need a bit of help translating what they do on the screen to real life and that’s where these kits come in. Get them building their own Hydraulic Cyborg Arm and not only will they learn loads about hydraulics, but they’ll also have something really cool to show off to their mates when they’re next on a video call with them.

For something a bit tamer there is the 6 in 1 solar recycler that makes use of household bits from your recycling bin, or there’s a simpler solar robot kit that looks like great fun.

If you can’t beat them, join them

This might not be what you expect to read here, but just last week I read an interesting article by fellow blogger John Adams from DadBlogUK about how teens actively want to spend time online with their mum and dad. His article is based on research by Roblox (who you might expect want kids to be online) and Internet Matters (an online safety specialist who provide excellent support for parents when trying to demystify what their kids are doing online and keep them safe). Whilst you might want to try to get your kids away from screens this Christmas, also consider spending time online with them too. Yes it’s unlikely they’ll be happily introducing you to all their online mates straight away, but why not join them in some online games and get them to show you what they spend all that time doing. You might be surprised!

Disclaimer: This post on Gift ideas to get boys away from screens this Christmas was written in conjunction with Wicked Uncle and I received financial compensation for the post. All opinions remain my own and all the products I have linked to are ones that I would happily buy my own pre-teen son this Christmas.

Photo 1 by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash. Photo 2 by Kyle Cleveland on Unsplash.

Disclaimer: This post is brought to you in conjunction with Wicked Uncle. For a full disclaimer please see the end of this post.

There’s a flurry of family birthdays coming up here in the next few months. My daughter turns ten next month, but July also sees my nephew celebrating his first birthday. Add in the fact that my son is also keen to remind me that he’s likely to turn 8 before he actually goes back to school full time. I’m therefore on the look out for gifts for the three of them, and the Wicked Uncle website has become my favourite way to find the perfect gift.

Black and white picture fo a boy about to blow out the candles on his birthday cake. Photo is in an advertising article for Wicked Uncle. Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash.

The thing is that in this post-lockdown world that we’re emerging into, I think gifts need to vary a bit from the standard things that I used to buy for this sort of occasion. All that time spent at home in lockdown has really shown which toys and games in the house keep being brought out again and again, and which one still sit there on the shelf gathering dust.

It’s probably no surprise for regular readers to learn that classic games have been big hits here. Ones that have really stood the test of time. My kids introduced me to Mancala after seeing it at a Roman museum they visited and it’s a perfect example of a game that can be played by people of all ages. It’s also beautiful to look at and incredibly tactile too. A lovely combination.

Photo of someone playing a game similar to Mancala with stones and a wooden tray.

Educational board games, logic puzzles and science kits are also firm favourites, as they manage to combine fun with home schooling. Always a good combination as parents have tried to balance their normal role at home with that of teacher to their kids. My son has been loving anything that he can build, either on his own, or as a joint activity with a grown up, and they’ve done wonders for his STEM knowledge and manual dexterity too.

With the weather having turned beautiful toys and games that can be used outside have also been incredibly popular. Many of these are nature based, adding on to children’s education that way, whilst others easily count towards PE for those kids that aren’t so keen on Joe Wicks.

Picture taken from overhead of a small child playing with a wooden puzzle on the floor.

For the youngest child in the household, toys that fascinate her for ages have been the winners for us parents. Yes she loves her cuddly toys too, but she’s had far more stimulation from things that her little hands can manipulate, whilst her brain tries to work out what is going on with them.

The wonderful thing about the Wicked Uncle website is that you can search based on how old someone is, and the type of gift that you’re wanting to buy. So much easier and better for gift buying inspiration than having to put in an exact search phrase. As well as classics there are some curve ball ideas in there that are often just perfect for when you want something that little bit different.

And if current regulations, or shielding advice mean you can’t deliver a gift to someone in person, Wicked Uncle can deliver directly to them. You even have the choice of twelve different styles of wrapping paper that they can use for you.

Disclaimer: This post was brought to you in conjunction with Wicked Uncle. Despite working with Wicked Uncle on this post I have also been a paying customer of theirs several times in the past, and my kids have also received some excellent gifts that other family members have bought via the Wicked Uncle site. For toy and game reviews on Penny Plays please click here.

All images from Unsplash.

AD: Gift ideas to get boys away from screens this Christmas

Something familiar, in food form

A means of calming down

Family Fun

Grow their Brain

If you can’t beat them, join them

AD: Toy and gift buying in a post-lockdown world