Tween Holiday Gift Guide

My kids (who are both 10) have hit the tween years, and I have to say that buying gifts for tweens can be tough! Toys no longer fill their gift wish lists, and they are a lot pickier about what they like. If you are looking to buy a gift for your tween, however, don’t despair! The gifts in this tween holiday gift guide are sure to please just about any tween.

Kindle Fire HD

A Kind Fire HD is an excellent gift for your tween. My tweens each have a Kindle, and they use them constantly!

Kindles can do just about anything an IPad can do (but are far cheaper) and are very versatile—on a Kindle, tweens can listen to music and enjoy watching TV and music videos. Plus, purchasing and downloading content for a Kindle is super easy on Amazon.

Crafts

Your child may like to receive a craft for Christmas, such as pretty clay beads or cute clay charms to make jewelry with or a Wooble Crochet Kit—they can make their own adorable character, such as an adorable penguin, fox or lion.

Percy Jackson & the Olympians Boxed Set

I visited my children’s classrooms last week, and I was astonished to see that nearly every child had a copy of a book from the Percy Jackson & the Olympians book series on their desk. My children have been reading the series, and they love the mix of action-adventure and tween romance (rated G) in these books.

The books follow the saga of demigod Percy (son of Poseidon) and his adventures with Greek gods and monsters, and his romance with Annabeth. My kids can’t put these books down!

Clothes

Many tweens LOVE clothes. I wouldn’t attempt to pick out something on your own, though — if your tween is like mine, the clothing won’t fly if it isn’t something they haven’t selected on their own. If you do try to choose something on your own for them, I’d go with kids’ Nike apparel—popular with this age—or cute PJs or fuzzy slippers that she can wear to her next sleepover. 

Or you could gift your tween some cash or a gift card to use at their favorite store —for example, my kids love the local thrift shop!

Fun Daily Planner

As kids approach middle school, their school and homework schedules get more complicated. For example, in my kids’ school, the students need to keep track of a rotating six-day fine arts schedule—they have to remember which day in the rotation they are in, so they know whether they need to bring their sneakers in that day for gym, etc.

One of my twins very carefully tracks her fine arts schedule, homework assignments and school holidays on a whiteboard calendar that she has hanging over her bed. I bet that my kids or any tween would love to have a daily planner in which they can mark important school dates, track school assignments and keep information like their pals’ email addresses in.

Planners are available in lots of styles and designs, so it wouldn’t be tough to find one that suits your tween.

Journal

If your tween likes to write, then they no doubt would love receiving a new journal for the holidays. One of my tweens is a prolific writer (following in her mom’s shoes, I guess) and has asked for two journals for Christmas! My other tween enjoys writing and likes to note in a journal her daily thoughts and activities. If you browse your local book store or Amazon.com, you are sure to find a journal that your tween would like. You could pair a fun pen or bookmark with the journal for a little something extra.

Nintendo Switch

Most kids love to game, and Nintendo Switch is a popular hybrid video game console—it can be played both on a TV and as a handheld device, making it ultra fun and portable. Kids can dock it at home for big-screen multiplayer games or take it on the go for car rides and sleepovers. Tweens love playing family-friendly games on it, like Mario.

Spa Day

Who doesn’t like to be pampered? Why not treat your kids to a day at the hair or nail salon, or gift them items they can use at home to pamper themself with? I know one my tweens would love to go for mani-pedis together at the salon and would also like to get new nail polish or an organizer in which to store her polishes in for Christmas. Scheduling a day of pampering together would be a fun way to show your teen that you care.