What if I told you that last year my kid who doesn’t love reading (I’ve only got one of those) said one of his favorite Christmas gifts that year was a book?! I want to show you exactly what we did to turn a book into a most amazing gift.
We’ve done the same thing for each of our older kids (who can read) for the past couple of years and each one has been a hit. I’m going to share with you specific ideas for kids of varying ages and interests, so feel free to use these exact ideas for people on your giving list!
We don’t buy a lot of “new” books around here. Most of our kids are voracious readers and would quickly read us out of house and home if it weren’t for the library and the thrift store. BUT in this case we do buy a new book because I’m looking for a specific book in most cases (though if you find the right book used, then by all means get it!).
Pick the perfect book
The first thing you’ll need to do is pick an awesome book. The kind of books we’re looking for are books that teach something exciting that your kids want to learn. Let me give you some examples and then I’ll share with you the key to making this gift awesome.
My son who doesn’t love reading is currently 10 and is a maker at heart. He loves engineering, building, inventing, and projects.
Some of the books I looked at for him were:
The one I decided on was Rubberband Engineer, but I’ll probably get the other two in the future!
In a minute we’ll look at lots of other ideas for kids with other interests.
Address the problem
Now if you’re a kid like my son and you thumb through a book full of really cool projects with great instructions and pictures on Christmas morning, what are you going to want to do?
You’re going to immediately want to get started on those projects! But while the supplies are fairly simple and inexpensive, you don’t have the things you need to make the project you want to start with. So you flip to another page, eager to try that project, too. But same problem– you don’t have the supplies you need.
After this happens a few times you give up and shelf the book. You ask your mom to pick up the supplies next time she’s at the store, but she’s busy and doesn’t remember. Your cool book isn’t nearly as cool anymore.
Make it a magical gift
The key to making this gift awesome is that you include supplies needed WITH the book! Of course you don’t have to include everything you need for every project, but having a good arsenal of supplies to start out with– so that you can do some of the projects– makes a huge difference.
So when we gave our son Rubberband Engineer. We also gave him:
- packs of paint stirrers (also available at Home Depot)
- big bag of rubber bands
- mouse traps
- rubber tubing (found at Walmart where pet fish are sold)
We wrap the supplies right with the book so that the kids immediately know that they have what they need to get started with their projects.
More Examples
Here are some examples of some of great books and the supplies that go with them:
- comb
- hair brush
- hair elastics
- bobby pins
The possibilities are endless! Just think about the interests of your child, find a book gear toward kids that teaches that topic in a fun way, and include some of the necessary supplies along with the book! If you’re kids are like mine, they’ll dive right in and get started while there’s still wrapping paper all over the floor!
What type of fun “how to” books would your kids love?
Next in the series:
Day 11: Frugal Stocking Stuffers
There are so many wonderful how-to books for children, and over the years I’ve been able to pick up numerous of them from second-hand stores. However there is a different option for you if you either cannot afford the book or cannot locate the specific book that you are looking for.
good article
Buy the book used! We exchange used books at Christmas. Save even more.
Balloon animals!!
There are so many great how-to books for kids; I’ve managed to pick up several from op shops through the years. But another alternative, if you can’t afford the book or if you can’t find the exact book you’re after, is to find a tutorial on-line, print it off, and tuck the print-out into a box of goodies that are needed to do the project. I’ve done this before with craft projects, science projects, around-the-world kits, etc. Added bonus: you can give the same gift to multiple kids. While you might not want to do this with your own kids, it works great if you’ve got to buy for a lot of cousins or friends.