If You Know Nothing About Kids But Have To Buy One A Gift, Here Are 32 Parent-Approved Ideas

Promising review: "My 6- and 3-year-old are OBSESSED. They play for an hour at least! Played with daily since we got it. When it’s my turn to hide, I make it tricky enough that I can actually be productive until it’s my turn again." — Cara Lentz

The set comes with a storage tin, rolling pin, wee knife, pizza/dough cutter, mixing spoon, three wee spoons, mixing bowl, pizza/pie pan, pie server, sheet pan, silicone cake and cupcake molds, two silicone finger mitts and a 48-page recipe book.

Promising review: "My 9-year-old daughter LOVES this — OK more like is obsessed with this! Everything holds up and is durable. The recipes are so simple to follow. She takes over the kitchen and does everything by herself. Cooks things in the toaster oven. She makes us delicious cinnamon rolls, apple pies, pizzas…everything! Everything is written and geared to have a child be able to do it. We have told all her friends, and now they all have this, too! The kids on the street all come to our house just so they can tiny bake! Every kid needs one of these!" — Summer

Promising review: "A huge hit with my children. We bought them for one child with autism, and he’s obsessed with these. Christmas morning has been pure joy for him playing with these, and all of us joined in on the fun. They are not exploding on us nor are they 'peeling' our ceiling paint or plaster off. Overall, I would absolutely buy these again and recommend them to anyone else. Especially anyone who has a special needs child or child with sensory issues."— SamSurgany

It comes with 10 geodes of varying sizes as well as goggles and a display stand.

Promising review: "My 9-year-old niece gets these every year for Christmas. It is a new gift every time! She loves to put on safety glasses and swing that hammer! The geodes are always beautiful. She also loves the element of surprise! This is a wonderful gift that will engage even kids who are not into the sciences. Every year she takes pieces in to share with her class. She also loves to give pieces away as little gifts or mementos. Nat Geo never disappoints!" — Kristin D.

Promising review: "This game is a hit! My 5-year-old is obsessed, and my teenage sisters were fighting over who got to bring it to camp, so I had to buy two copies! It's such a fun party game, it is guaranteed to bring the laughs." — Jennifer Simms

Promising review: "I gifted this to my son and he thought it was hilarious and delicious. The cotton candy was fluffy and tasted like peppermint." — Christine Rains

You'll need four C batteries.

Promising review: "Easily my 15-month-old grandson's favorite toy. He's learned how to press the buttons to turn the motors on and off and really enjoys pushing this around, just like the big people do with their vacuum :) It's well-made, durable, and survives frequent drops. No small or sharp parts. It really does vacuum, there is a small dirt container to empty lol...but it's not really that powerful. It's a great toy though. Your kids/grandkids will get a lot of enjoyment out of it." — Chuck over in Wisconsin

You'll get four guns, four vests (front and back) and one charging station.

Promising review: "This set was perfect for my grandkids ages 7, 11, 14, and 17. Even we adults played. They had so much fun. We set up obstacles to hide behind, such as: patio furniture, foldable table, ice chest, etc. Very easy to set up and play. Was definitely worth it." — Debbie L.

Promising review: "My 10-year-old son is obsessed with this game. He loves figuring out each maze. It makes him use problem-solving skills and logic. This is a great toy for an only child whose parents can't entertain the child every minute. He chooses this over video games! Now that is saying something." — Amy P.

Promising review: "It works like a charm to me. I like how they change the games in the arcade every day. The explore function allows me to find new meetable characters by pointing the camera to different backgrounds. Cooking and customizing furniture also are new unique features for the Pix. QR code communication is a really good way to connect during this pandemic situation. I really hope there will be new version of Pix in the future" — Fairuz Takumi

Promising review: "We got this for our 5-month-old since he loves to try and hold/catch running water. He LOVES this! In the tub it gets him sooo excited. We have even taken it outside in his small, shallow splash pad, and it still works. He loves catching the water and picking it up. And in the tub likes to try to sneak a sip haha. He is now almost 8-months-old and is still obsessed. There are sensors on the bottom that when it hits water will turn it on, and when it needs to be charged, the water does not go very high or will just shut off. A definite bathtub fave for sure!" — Jo Edith

Promising reviews: "I got this watch for my 8-year-old for her birthday and she loves it! She takes pictures, videos, and plays the games." — YaYa

"Super cute and easy to work for my 5-year-old. He loves that he can match mom now! It has games already installed, can take pictures, exercise, and lots more. Entertainment for HOURS!! And you can even change the watch face like an Apple Watch! So cool!" — Brittany

Promising review: "I bought this for my teen daughters and they loved it! Excellent quality pieces with a fun twist. They loved it so much I bought them a second one by this company. Highly recommend!" — L. Stevens

Promising review: " Love that they are tangle-free! My son is obsessed with playing with them and hasn’t put them down since we received them!" — Laura L.

Promising review: "I purchased this gift for my just turned 2-year-old daughter, and she is obsessed — and so am I! It is mess free, nontoxic, endless coloring fun! She will scribble to her hearts desire, and with one push of a button, she has a clean slate. This clearing function also has a locking feature to prevent erasing, but she hasn’t used it yet! Highly recommend!" — Helen

Promising review: "My kids are obsessed with these things. They can make their own design. Plenty of papers." — Sierra

Promising review: "My kids love these long cats. And now we buy them for gifts for all their firiends. It is unique and fun especially if you struggle with gift ideas. It's perfect." — Ali M.

Promising review: "A friend bought these for my son when he was 2 and he played with them more than anything else for a couple of years solid. We loved them. Perfect thing to take a few to a restaurant or family gathering to help keep the kids entertained. As he’s gotten older we found tons of ideas online for things to build too. I just bought a set for a friend’s daughter’s birthday." — rae malm

Craft-tasticis a woman-owned small business based in Michigan. All their products are focused on teaching kids new skills and limiting screen time.

Each kit comes with six garments, eight accessories, kid-friendly plastic needle, thread, a fox, and easy-to-follow instructions. For ages 5+.

Promising review: "This craft was a hit! The fox was very easy to put together and it turned out so cute! You have to make the tutu by tying a bunch of knots but other than that all of the clothes is ready to go and does not require sewing! The fox came with a little fabric bag to conveniently store it for travel. The materials in the craft are good quality and hopefully will last awhile. My daughter loved this little cute fox!" — Olivia O.

Promising review: "My youngest loves seeing these guys everywhere we go. When we drive around and she sees one outside, she yells, 'Look, it's a (color) guy!' So we got her this little one. She is just obsessed with how she has one of her own! It is so cool. Made of awesome material. The fan is strong, and it waves around just like the larger ones you can put in your yard." — Joe H

Reviewers say this is a great toy for ages 3 to 12.

Promising review: "My kids are getting older and I needed some unique little items to keep them busy on a long trip. This seemed attractive, lightweight, and fine for teens and younger. As it turned out, the three of us had fun challenging each other with it. We played with it in front of Grandma and then she wanted one to keep her mind sharp! There are different challenges you can do (like timing yourself to finish it) and I love the artsiness of the wood. At $10, definitely a good buy and nice little gift." — C-Reader

My colleague Emma Lord bought these and loves them. In her own words:

"I bought these for myself, and I love them to pieces. TBH, I use them as decor every bit as much as I use them to eat. Sometimes I just keep them in my work area to light them up during the day to feel fancy. They toggle back and forth between a bunch of different colors, like red, blue, yellow, purple, and multicolor, so you can either make them match *or* have a red and blue one together and bring ~balance~ to the Force."

Promising review: "I bought these for my son who likes to eat his ramen with chopsticks. He absolutely loves them. They are well made and the different lights are amazing. I also love that each chopstick has its own button so you can choose the colors for each and it doesn't have to be the same color" — Jackie H.

Promising review: "My son is obsessed with this activity scissor kit! The scissors are perfect for a toddler or even younger! They're not dangerous at all, which gives this mom one less thing to worry about! Many pages to cut, and each page is also an activity to play with over and over again! Love this item!" — Kristina Wells

The stickers feature letters, numbers, vehicles, butterflies, deep-sea life, animals, fish, dinosaurs and more.

Promising reviews: "My 1.5-year-old is obsessed with these. Not sticky enough to do any damage but can also be reused a few times" — Katie Merkatoris

"I love that they are removable. They don’t leave marks on your window. You can even place them back on the plastic sheet and use them again. I have a busy box for my toddler, and these stickers are in there. She peels them off and puts them on the lid of the box and then peels them off again and puts them back. She creates scenes with them. She puts them on windows at home. I peel them off and put them back. They really are fantastic stickers." — Elizabeth A. Zapf

Promising review: "My 4-year-old is so obsessed with this particular product that she has made me five or six different things already. She really loves what she's doing. Great product for the price. Especially if your child loves to be creative." — John Bartley

Promising review: "These are my favorite art accessory ever! My girls are obsessed, they work on paper...rocks...anything! We can't get enough." — R. Ras

Mollybee Kids is a family-run small business creating high-quality toys that promote learning, staying active, and most importantly, fun!

Promising review: "A must-have. My 2-year-old son is obsessed. Always asks to play the 'find you' game, LOL. Then we play it, and every option on the game, he actually thinks really hard, then says, 'Come on mommy,' and runs me through the house to find the object. Highly recommended from a mom of four." — Britney Bansley

Promising review: "I got a set for my girls (3.5 and 1.5), and they are obsessed. We use them on hikes and at the zoo. I did end up tying the string together because the anti-choke clasp just kept coming undone too easily, and I was constantly fixing it. Yes, it is only a simple magnifying view, but that’s all they need at this age." — Eliza

Promising review: "Purchased for my daughter and she absolutely loved it! So easy to use! She is such a bookworm and this made it easy for her to read without tiring her eyes so much." — Rachel

It can also connect to their device via cable.

Promising review: "Oh my gosh, I love this! I got mine in the mail yesterday and ended up playing with it for about five hours last night LOL. It connects via Bluetooth so you can connect it to your phone — the music and your singing comes out of the microphone's speaker. It has a volume control for your voice and for the music and also an echo feature. You can put an SD card into the bottom of it and record yourself, or connect it with an audio out to record on one of those karaoke apps on your phone. Between this and being able to find just about any song on karaoke via YouTube, you could easily have your own karaoke parties at home!" — Ferretocious

Promising review: "My baby has been obsessed with this since she got it! I enjoy that she can flip through the pages herself, and she loves to touch the words she knows. It is built tough, especially against a toddler throwing it around." — Kelsey

Promising review: "My first and third grader really love these pieces of fruit. The pieces are nicely weighted and when you 'cut' them the insides are beautiful just like a real fruit would be. The kiwi and orange is particularly pretty, realistic." — robin vaughan parler