The best toys for six year olds will help them develop the skills they have already learnt and encourage playing with others.
Choosing toys to help 6 year olds tackle new challenges and encourage cooperation and sharing with other children is key. Friendships are very important to children at this age. Most six years olds prefer to play in same sex groups, where girls tend to spend their time with one or two best friends, while boys prefer to be part of a large group. The best toys for 6 year old boys and girls will help kids develop their developing bonds and friendships.
It’s likely that they already have a strong sense of who they are at this age and what they like, who their ‘best friend’ is and how they like to dress. While 6 year olds may act older than their age, it’s important to remember that they are still very young. That’s why baby dolls and pretend play sets are toys worth considering.
Sensory toys such as playdoh, sand and slime still continue to be popular gifts for 6 year old girls and boys. There are many colourful playdoh, slime and sand sets you can buy, each with their individual hook and in a self-contained kit to keep the mess – hopefully – contained.
For a sentimental gift, we especially love Now We Are Six by A.A.Milne – a lovely way to mark a 6 year olds birthday.
Best toys for 6 year olds
1. Waboba Moon Ball
Age Suitability: 5 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £5.99
Simple social games like playing with a ball, hoops or skittles never fail to please children and allow them to play with children of all ages.
Outdoor toys for play in the garden or in a park have the double benefit of helping kids burn off energy and getting them out of the house for a bit while they play!
This Moonball is not just any ball. It has a gravity-defying bounce for super high launches, and its lightweight body with flat-edged design will add spin to your bounce. This novelty ball is a great idea for a birthday or even as a stocking filler too.
2. LEGO City Town Fire Chief Response Truck Set
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £16.99
6 year olds tend to love playing with construction toys including cars, trucks, trains, trams, boats and barges. The Lego City Town Fire Chief Response Truck Set is the perfect challenge for a 6 year old, featuring just enough pieces – 201 in fact – that won’t leave them feeling overwhelmed.
With a little guidance they should be able to follow the instructions without too much help from an adult, and feel suitably challenged. If you’d rather buy a box of Lego that doesn’t come with instructions so they can freely make their own ranges, consider a classic box of Lego, which can buy sub £35 on Amazon.
3. Magic Maths Game by Orchard Toys
Age Suitability: 5 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £9.60
Help a 6 year old learn addition, subtraction and multiplication, while disguising it in game form with this fun maths and sums ‘magic’ game that gives maths a spellbinding twist. Tested by teachers and one of Orchard Toy’s best-selling toys for 6 year olds, kids will love it.
To ‘magically’ reveal the answer, kids have to rub the cards. While it’s a great game for a 6 year old, it’s also a good shout for younger kids aged 5, and is one they’ll no doubt be able to revisit for a few more years at that.
4. Galt Toys Fab Foil Art
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £3.94
6 year olds will no doubt love receiving an art set as a gift. The potential to keep them occupied and engrossed in creating and making for hours – or at least an hour – is high. We love this Fab Foil Art kit, which includes 8 sparkly pictures to make. Inside the box you’ll find 25 foil sheets in 8 assorted colors, with 8 pictures and a useful guide.
There are so many different ways to keep kids entertained with art set toys, however. As well as foil or felt art kits, you can choose from mosaic-picture making kits to T-shirt painting kits and more.
5. My First Picture Atlas Children’s Book
Age Suitability: 4 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £4.86
There’s something so satisfying about watching a child look at a book and trying to sound out the letters and comment on the pictures. At the age of 6 they will be getting to grips with the world of reading and looking for new books to engage them daily. Sitting with them while they look at books or reading to them is vital to encouraging the development of this essential skill, so you can’t go wrong with a book as a gift.
Kids will love the pictures and beautifully illustrated maps in this My First Picture Atlas book. It’s full of pictures and interesting snippets of information that will help them understand about their own little worlds.
6. Wooden Mini Guitar
Age Suitability: 3 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £45
Age 6 is a wonderful time to introduce children to their first, real musical instrument – in miniature size! Where as toddlers they may have shown a love of music through musical toys, play mats or plastic toy instruments, by the age of 6 kids have developed the fine motor skills and hand-to-eye coordination needed to begin learning the basics of playing a musical instrument for real.
It may be that they have taken up music lessons at school and are keen to explore lots of different instruments. This gorgeous guitar makes a lovely gift as it can also be personalised.
7. First Pottery Set
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £12.99
Anything that gets kid productive and encourages them to learn a new skill makes for a great toy for a 6 year old. Pottery making and painting kits are great for continuing to develop fine motor skills and hand-to-eye coordination, as well as encouraging a child’s individual creativity and expression.
You can also buy pack of Das modelling Clay on Amazon for around £4. But this First Pottery Set comes with added extras such as ceramic paint and instructions on how to make pinch pots.
8. LEGO Doll House with Swimming Pool
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £47.99
Toys that help with problem-solving are always a fail-safe bet when it comes to buying gifts for kids – particularly 6 year olds. As they reach the age of 6 and up, you can swap the Duplo building blocks they enjoyed playing with as toddlers to more mechanical, technical building toys such as Lego.
Lego is a great tool for inspiring imaginative play. There is such an ample selection of Lego to choose from, but you can’t go wrong with a social set up such as this dolls house with swimming pool. It also comes with 5 figures for kids to play with once they’ve built the doll house and swimming pool.
Airbrush Plush
9. Airbrush Plush
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: Yes | Price: £20
A 6 year old would be in crafty heaven using this Airbrush Plush colourful spray gun, which provides another creative medium to add to their art skills.
The set comes with a cute Unicorn toy that can be decorated using the spray gun that comes in the box. There’s a range of stencils to guide them or they can just go freestyle and design a pattern themselves. ‘The best feature about this toy is that you don’t have to worry about making a mess as the chalk paint can be easily washed off,’ says Emily, mum to William and Bethany. ‘The unicorn can be used to decorate again and again so, thankfully, it’s not a toy they will disregard after one use.’
1o. Science Lab Kit for kids
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £12.43
Science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) toys are great for 6 year olds. They will help inspire an interest in these subjects and give them some skills that they can build on at school. Fun science experiment kits make some of the best STEM toys for 6 year olds. Kids will love getting stuck in to messy play while learning some of the most basic and fundamental principals of science and how the world works.
11. Hatchimals Pixie Riders
Age Suitability: 3 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £19.49
Most parents will be familiar with Hatchimals because kids just love them. They’re cute, cuddly and collectable – three things that really appeal to children of this age. These Hatchimals Pixie Riders are one of the more popular Hatchimals choices on Amazon. It’s surprising just how much joy a simple surprise egg can give a 6 year old, so you won’t go wrong with a gift such as this.
‘My kids love collecting these Hatchimals toys and I’m always surprised at how well they look after them and each piece,’ says Susie, mum to Charlotte and Emilie. ‘They really want to try the Hatchimals Crystal Starlight Idols next, which can fly!’
Science Mad Weather Station
12. Science Mad SM51 Weather Station
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: Yes | Price: £17.27
Ideal for curious 6 year olds, the Science Mad SM51 Weather Station will encourage kids to become true meteorologists. The kit is straightforward and fun to set up and once in position, kid can use it to keep a record of the wind direction, the wind speed, measure the temperature in both Celsius and Fahrenheit and measure the rainwater levels.
‘This is a truly engaging toy that keeps their curiosity levels high,’ says Emily, mum to Bethany and William. ‘My kids are keen to keep checking in to check the rainwater levels everyday, which keeps the conversation – and their learning curiosity about the weather – ongoing.’
13. So Slime DIY Ice Cream Factory
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: Yes | Price: £17.27
You may groan at the thought of the slime in this So Slime DIY Ice Cream Factory, but it combines two of a 6-year-olds favourite things – ice cream and slime – so buying it as a gift will no doubt be a hit.
A slightly reassuring fact for anyone really not that keen on slime is that the six bags of slime that come with the set are designed to be used within the ice cream factory, so they should hopefully stay contained – as opposed to making their way around your house and onto your carpets, sofas etc.
To make the slime, kids just need to add water, so the mess can be kept to a minimum. Inside there are also 4 deco bags, 4 charms, 6 accessories and stickers to make the most creative and colourful ice cream sundaes.
14. Magic Sand Studio play kit
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £24.99
Sand-play toys are great for encouraging creativity and facilitating pretend play in children aged 6 in particular. Magic sand sets that let children design their own sand sculptures and structures, work with different colours of sand, cut, mould, shape and create are great for moving sand play away from pre-school sand-pit style activities, and into a more grown up arts and craft play for 6 year olds.
‘My kids get real satisfaction moulding and cutting up the sand in this studio play kit,’ says Susie, mum to Emilie and Charlotte. It’s a toy we go back to again and again on a rainy day.’
15. Planets XXL Puzzle
Age Suitability: 6 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £9.99
Toys that help with problem-solving are great for 6 year olds. Puzzles are the perfect example of a toy that will keep them engaged and entertained while building on those skills.
If you pick a puzzle with an educational picture on they can learn from it too. Think the solar system, a map of the world or even illustrations of dinosaurs if your child loves all things stone age. The options are endless and will never fail to make for a great gift idea for a 6 year old.
16.The Floor is Lava game
Age Suitability: 5 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £14.99
Stop kids leaping on the furniture whilst playing ‘The Floor is Lava’ with this game version of the popular challenge. Spin the spinner to choose your colour, then leap across the foam game tiles to safety. 27 action cards ramp-up the fun on this classic game of imagination and adventure. The aim of the game? Don’t touch the floor!
17. Marble Run Toy
Age Suitability: 4 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £17.99
STEM-related toys that involve children building their very own contraptions are good to introduce to kids at the age of 6. Choose from marble runs such as this one to geometric towers and more. Children will enjoy the challenge of putting together the pieces in the set and learn new skills along the way. What we love most about this marble run is that it can be configured in a number of different ways, which means it has less chance of losing its appeal.
18. Polly Pocket Mega Mall
Age Suitability: 4 years + | Batteries required: None | Price: £39.99
Polly Pocket has an enduring appeal that has lasted decades already. The tiny toy range is still loved by kids today. 6 year olds will adore this play set that comes with 6 floors, an elevator, themed stores and accessories.
There is a wide range of Polly Pocket toys available online. Choose from ‘Spin and Surprise’ play sets to wearable collectables that kids can wear like a necklace and more.
Magic Mixes
19. Magic Mixies Magical Misting Cauldron with Interactive 8 inch Pink Plush Toy
Age Suitability: 5 years + | Batteries required: Yes | Price: £70
For all kids that love magic and witches and wizards – be it Harry Potter or The Worst Witch – the Magic Mixes will be sure to delight. This real misting cauldron comes with all the spell ingredients to create the magic and items can be added to the cauldron to conjure up a spell and add to the drama. The idea is to use the wand to create your very own personalised Mixie character and with over 50+ sounds and reactions each step of the process will feel unique and enchanting.
Kids can use the spell book, then drop in the ‘sound dust’ for the Mixie inside to receive their voice. Then there’s the magic feather to give the Mixie wings and the Fizz Flower will add some colour to the potion. Kids can also give their Mixie a name by writing in the Naming scroll and dropping it in the potion. With its lights and sounds, the cauldron prompts the user with a ‘tap, tap, tap’ sound effect and all they need to do is tap three times on the rim of the cauldron to move onto the next step.
Once the Mixie has been created and revealed, it can be reloaded and the whole process started again.
20. Baby Born Surprise Mini Babies
Age Suitability: 3 years + | Batteries required: Yes | Price: £9
As kids get older they tend to gravitate to toys that are smaller and – in some cases – cuter. The Baby Born Surprise Mini Babies ticks both those boxes. There are 9 surprise packs to collect including Surprise Mini Baby Twins, Cherry Monkeys and more. Inside each surprise pack you’ll find two of three didi babies inside, carefully swaddle wrapped in bed with their very own birth certificate included.
Casdon 532 Toy Post
21. Casdon 532 Toy Post Office
Age Suitability: 3 years + | Batteries required: No | Price: £9
A wonderfully realised toy to play with, the Casdon 532 Toy Post Office comes with so much attention to detail. A great toy for imaginative role play, it features the dinkiest selection of cards for every occasion with envelope, stamps and a little post boxes to post them into.
There’s also a till with money, a stand to house newspapers and Post Office admin forms and mini scales to weigh parcels. Some of the pieces are a little fiddly for smaller hands, but we think it’s great fun for kids aged 4 and up. ‘My kids love to write me little cards from the Casdon 532 Toy Post Office and leave them on my dressing table,’ says Emily, mum to Bethany and William. ‘They enjoyed filling out the forms and marking them with the little stamp too.’
What are good activities for 6 year olds?
Coming up with activities for kids can be exhausting, especially as they get slightly older and they have more energy, more questions and a greater ability to do more in a day.
Luckily, by the age of 6, kids have mastered independent play and are ready for a little more freedom – so not every one of their games and activities has to include you. Although that doesn’t mean a child won’t want you to be involved all the time!
Norland Nanny and founder of The Nanny Louenna app, Louenna Hood has also shared with us what activities and toys she has found particularly effective for entertaining 6-year-old kids with:
- Make your own story book – plan and design the beginning, middle and end of a story, then draw illustrations to match each page.
- They love outdoor treasure hunts – by the age of 6 they are often able to read simple instructions so you can write out some riddles to get them to the next clue and leave a small prize at the end.
- Painting – I often set up watercolour painting stations outdoors and ask children to paint what they see. It could be a landscape or an object. Painting by numbers is always popular at this age too.
- Homemade play doh – You can make this with simple ingredients, just flour, baking soda, water and olive oil, and it is super fun. Mix the ingredients together, make shapes and then when you think all the fun is finished, make the dough into a pizza base and enjoy homemade pizzas for lunch.