Terrific gift ideas for boys 6 to 9 years of age

What are his favourite games? Do you know what sports he likes to play? Here are cool gift ideas for boys based on personality type.

Rouse the curiosity of a future Nobel science laureate with one of many science and discovery games.

• Why not buy him a small telescope, a microscope or a vivarium?

Sports equipment is always a safe bet.

• If your son is interested in a particular sport, shopping for it should be a no-brainer. Go with a hockey stick and nets, a baseball and gloves, a basketball and hoop or a soccer ball.
• Active children also enjoy pogo sticks and skateboarding. On rainy days, you can keep your little sport entertained with an arcade game or a foosball table.
• Clothing, hats, accessories and memorabilia from their favourite sports team is also a good idea.

Does your son always have friends over? Does he have a large social circle he likes to play with?

• To keep everybody entertained, go for walkie talkies, board games, water guns or foam darts.

If he likes to show off, a how-to guide of magic tricks is sure to be crowd pleaser

• Boys also love collectables like baseball cards and marbles, which they can trade with their friends.

Do you have a budding musician or rock star in the family?

• If so, buy him a musical instrument with music books to learn his favourite songs.

If he prefers fine arts, buy an art set that includes accessories like scissors, stencils, felt pens, wood, and other utensils to help him unearth his creative side. Don’t forget crayons and colouring books.

Does your child prefer to play alone?

• There’s no shortage of ideas here. Pastimes like toy cars and race tracks, action figures, marble obstacle sets, and "seek-and-find" books will keep him busy for hours.
• Other ideas include remote-controlled drones, an electric train set and jigsaw puzzles.

There’s no escaping technology, and electronic gadgets often find their way to the top of childrens' wish lists.

• If you’re still hard-pressed for ideas, you can’t go wrong with a gaming console and video games. Kid-friendly computers, touch screen tablets, input devices like trackpads and colourful keyboards are fun and engaging.
• Don’t be surprised if your child wants to spend the whole summer inside in front of his computer.

Similarly, small, interactive robots are incredible appealing to children. Robotic animals are very sophisticated and some, which are voice-activated, can be trained like a real dog (and luckily won’t pee on the rug!)