Choosing an Educational Gift for a Child Aged 6 to 11

The holidays are around the corner: time to start thinking about gift ideas for your children and those of your loved ones. This is rarely an easy task as they already have a lot of toys! Thankfully, there are many educational (and fun!) toys and games that help children between 6 and 11 years old learn while having fun.

Educational Games to Promote Learning in Children Aged 6 to 11

Did you know that all areas of learning which are part of the elementary curriculum can be worked on with educational games? They’re great sources of inspiration for finding an appropriate gift for kids between 6 and 11 years old. What are those areas of learning?

• Languages: Children develop their reading, writing, and oral communication skills;
• Mathematics, science and technology: Working on reasoning skills, among others;
• Social sciences: Children learn about the world they live in to better understand it;
• Arts: Developing creativity and forming opinions;
• Personal development: Developing “all the different dimensions of human experience, i.e. the motor, affective, social and intellectual dimensions as well as the moral, spiritual or religious dimension.”¹

A Few Ideas of Educational Gifts for Children Aged 6 to 11

Educational gifts are games that incorporate the areas of learning and allow kids to work on various abilities and skills while having fun—they don’t feel like they’re doing homework! Learning through play promotes the development of language and cognitive skills, as well as social and emotional skills².

Many games encourage the development of motor skills and coordination in children. For example, the game Abile & Agil by BougeHop was created by physiotherapists and promotes the development of motor skills. The cards Les Bougeottes are also great to encourage kids to move and they have various fun themes (animals, locations, etc.).

There are also games designed for pretend play, which allows children to develop language skills. For example, with a farm-themed set of objects, children will learn the vocabulary specific to that theme and be able to use it later when they play. These types of games help with spoken language.

Of course, books remain the main way for kids to practise reading! Yet, other tools are available, such as Janod’s magnetic boxes, to practise writing and reading.

Some games, such as puzzles or tangrams, promote the development of logical thinking in children. Osmo is a game that helps children develop logical thinking and motor skills; you play it on a tablet, which means kids may be more interested. This game can also be used to develop other skills, such as writing and mathematics.

Riddles and quizzes are great games to work on children’s thinking skills. The game Bioviva Junior helps kids learn new things with different challenges and puzzles to solve.

You could also gift art supplies, like pencils, construction paper, or scissors with different edge designs, which help children develop their creativity.

Electronic Games for Children Aged 6 Years and Older

Technology is very appealing to children aged 6 to 11 years old; they love using it for play and entertainment.

Many educational electronic games help children work on the various areas of learning of the elementary curriculum. Using electronics can help motivate kids, as they won’t feel like they’re working but playing.

However, it’s important to vary the activities that don’t use screens so children can develop other skills that couldn’t be improved with electronic games. Plus, if you choose to let your kids use technology, it’s important that you pay close attention whenever they do so, since there’s a lot of content available online and it’s often not suited to young kids. That’s why it can be a good idea to set parental controls for downloading games and other apps.

The RESP as an Educational Gift Idea

If you’re worried your gift will still end up collecting dust somewhere, you’ll most likely like this idea: offer the RESP as an educational gift for your child or a child dear to you. Planning for school is also important for a child’s education! They might not jump for joy at first, but once they enroll in post-secondary education and are ready to withdraw the sums collected over the years, they’ll surely be grateful. You can also offer a small material gift alongside the RESP, such as a piggy bank shaped like their favourite character, for example!

Whether the child is 6 or 11, it’s always the right time to invest your money in an RESP and receive all the government grants you may be entitled to (up to $12,800 in Quebec! Not a small gift at all!)³. It’s good to know that, at Kaleido, the money deposited into an RESP is invested sustainably. Moreover, Kaleido clients have access to a slew of accompanying services to support their children through various challenges⁴. All great reasons to consider the RESP as a gift idea! Ask our team for more information today!

Also looking for gift ideas for your preschooler or teen? Discover all our gift ideas for kids aged 3 to 5 and our gift ideas for teenagers between 12 and 17 years old. They too have access to fun educational games that can help them develop their skills!