The elementary years are some of the most amazing that your child will move through. From the ages of six to 12, your child will move through so many intense interests, stages, and forms. They are still deeply interested in play and hands on learning, but the topics can be nearly. endless. With so many choices for toys, it can be hard to know where to begin. So, I hope this ultimate list of toys will be helpful as your Montessori child enters the elementary years.
Montessori Toys, Materials and Games for the Second Plane by Interest
This list is broken down into popular interests for elementary aged children. Browse the lists below by interest instead of age. Under. each interest there are a variety of choices that may or may not be right for your specific child. Remember to shop with your child in mind when considering large lists like these! And, remember this list is not exhaustive, use it as a guide.
LEGO and Building
There are an endless number of building block and building toy options available for children. Many carry over from the preschool years right through elementary. I have listed some of the most popular here, but this is far from an exclusive list.
LEGO
There are far too many amazing LEGO choices for me to list them all here. I am going to list some of our favorites here and then if there are LEGO that are related to other specific interests, I will list those in that category.
Other Building Toys
Graphic Novels and Comics
This list does not include specific series recommendations but ways to expand an interest in graphic novels and comics further into a child's play.
Kid Made Modern: Comic Book Kit | Journal Kit
Art and Crafting
There so many incredible opportunities for artistic creation for children. I will list some fun art kits here then some specific supplies to consider for different types of artistic expression below.
Kits
Stepping Stones: 4M Kit | Daisy Stepping Stone
Drawing and Painting
Watercolors: Water Color Tubes | Stockmar Waldorf
Handcrafts, Sewing, and Fiber arts
Sculpturing
Air Dry Clay (real clay)
Air Dry "magic" clay (light weight)
Wood Working and Building
Woodworking offers so many great skills to elementary aged kids, and there are so many great tools to help make that happen. Here are a few gift ideas for kids interested in wood working:
Sports
So many elementary children love playing and watching sports. Specific sports team related gifts are always good choices. So are books to learn about famous players and games related to the game that you can play indoors. Here are some popular sports categories:
Generally
Baseball
Books: The Most Amazing Baseball Stories of All Time | Baseball for Kids | The Kid from Diamond Street
Basketball
Basketball Pop It (stocking stuffer)
Books: Salt in His Shoes | It's a Numbers Game
Soccer
Gymnastics
Gymnastics Pop It (stocking stuffer)
Active Play and Gross Motor Development
This category of interest is for big body movement that is not specifically related to playing sports.
Jump Rope (stocking stuffer)
Small World Play and Fantasy
This is a very broad category of play and I cannot come close to producing an exhaustive list of possibilities for small world or fantasy play. I have included some more general small play and loose part options and some popular fantasy categories.
Fairies
Mermaids
Unicorns
LEGO Dots Unicorn Bracelet (stocking stuffer)
Warriors, Knights, and Dragons
There are so many amazing options when it comes to this type of historical and fantasy play. Here are a few!
Dolls
Many children still love doll play at this age. But it often shifts away from babies to older looking dolls. I have not included many baby dolls for this reason but dolls that look and feel older. There can be a lot of overlap here with small world and pretend play section.
Art Kits: Make a Mermaid Doll | Paper Dolls
Pokemon, Minecraft, Mario, and Other Video Gaming
Many elementary aged children get intensely interested in video gaming. But in today's world we are lucky to have many toys to support that interest. I have listed options from a few of the most popular game related series here. Don't forget that clothing, accessories and decorations also make great gifts related to these interests.
Minecraft
Pokémon
Super Mario Brothers
LEGO Mystery Bags (stocking stuffer)
Other Video Gaming
Fashion, Self Care, and Jewelry
I'm not including actual jewelry here but that would also make great gifts!
Animals
Animals are such a HUGE point of interest for kids in this age group that it would be impossible to get every single animal covered. But here are a few fun animal themed toys including some more popular categories.
General Land Animals
Books: Ultimate Book of Animals | Anthology of Intriguing Animals | Animals Visual Encyclopedia | Zoology
Dinosaurs
Ocean Animals
Books: National Geographic Ocean | Ultimate Ocean-pedia | Puzzle Book of the Ocean | Knowledge Encyclopedia Ocean
Card and Board Games
Board and card games are endlessly popular among elementary children who are wired to work and play with others. Here are some classics and more unusual games to add to your home.
Win-Lose
Cooperative
Single Player
Card Games
Gardening, Nature and the Outdoors
For kids that love the outdoors, exploring and nature:
Specimens: marine life | insects
Bird Call (stocking stuffer)
My Little Museum
Rocks/Crystals/Geology
Gardening
Cooking
Big kids love to be in the kitchen too! Whether they have years of experience or they are just starting, here are some tools and fun activities for kids in the kitchen:
Robotics, Engineering, General STEM
This is such a broad category that I can only scratch the surface here of the things kids into STEM might enjoy. These ideas are meant to inspire more than be an exhaustive list:
General STEM
Books: LEGO Chain Reactions
Robotics
Books: Robot Book | Robotics Discover the Science and Technology of the Future | Everything Robotics
Engineering and Architecture
Books: How Technology Works | The Way Things Work | The Fascinating Engineer Book. | The Future Architect's Handbook |
Science Exploration
Tools and kits for scientific exploration without a particular theme or project:
Space and Space Exploration
Space is such a huge and varied point of interest for kids. Here I tried to keep it less about learning about space and more fun things to support and interest in space, the stars, and planets.
Playmobil: Shuttle/Rocket | Mars Exploration
History
As a history geek myself, I totally understand this interest! I wish there were more toys supporting a love of history. Don't forget about books, DK brand are excellent, covering a variety of historical times/places/events. - I cannot list them all here.
Excavation Kits: Parthenon | Stonehenge
Paper Dolls: Jane Austin Dress Up | Georgian House Sticker Book
American Girl Historical Dolls: full size | mini series
Mythology
Mythology is so appealing for so many second plane children. Here are some ways to support popular mythological interests:
Character Based Play
There are so many literary and media based characters that elementary children could be interested in! I have picked some of the most requested and popular here. Don't forget things gifts like bedroom decorations and clothing items which I did not include here.
Harry Potter
So many LEGO choices: Larger Hogwarts Series | Smaller Classroom Series
Golden Snitch Fidget Spinner (stocking stuffer)
Star Wars
Super Heros
Lego: Thanos Mech | Batwing
LEGO Books: Marvel Visual Dictionary | DC Character Encyclopedia
Action Heros: Marvel Titan | DC Justice Society
Spiderman pop it (stocking stuffer)
Puzzles and Puzzle Cubes
Puzzle ability can vary so so much between children. While some children might never like puzzles, others might be able to do hundreds of pieces. I have added some puzzles to specific interests above, and here are just a few general examples of fun puzzles at varying levels of difficulty:
Puzzle (Rubik's) Cubes
Remember this list is by no means exhaustive. There are so many incredible things that your child could be interested in. By tailoring your options to the child’s interests, you can give them a truly captivating and exciting experience they will remember forever.
