Buying for an eight-year-old boy can be a blast, but also a little tricky! They’re taking a deeper interest in the world and figuring out how things work, as well as understanding their own personality and tastes more.
So what do you get a kid at an inquisitive age? The best gifts for eight-year-old boys help them develop these interests.
Advanced projects, especially in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and maths), things they can personalize (like craft kits), and sports games are all great ideas. To help you out, we’ve pulled together the best gifts across a huge range of departments so you can find something the eight-year-old boy in your life is going to love on his birthday.
Clothing, Shoes, Jewelry & Watches
As kids turn eight years old, they’ve now got a better understanding of themselves. They’ll likely have their own tastes when it comes to what they wear, and how their bedroom is decorated – be prepared for a lot of opinions at this age!
Luckily, there are still plenty of clothes, shoes, jewelry, and watches that your eight-year-old boy is going to find really cool – without you needing to know the latest in children’s fashion!
Voovix Kids LED Light-up Shoes
These Voovix Kids LED Light-up Shoes look like your regular black sneakers on the outside. That is until you touch a button, and they light up with color! Unlike the average light-up shoes, the lights on these Voovix shoes turn on or off on command. A kid can pick his favorite color or switch between all 11 colored light settings in a day. Night or day, these shoes can shine bright and make a statement.
Simple Joy’s Cotton Pajama Set
With dragons, octopi, and sneaky submarines, these comfy Carter’s PJs will send an eight-year-old to bed with sweet dreams. This set includes three comfy PJ pants with an elastic waistband. It also includes two short-sleeve T-shirts and one long-sleeve top with ribbed cuffs. Whether a child sleeps hot or cold, he can find the right combo in this mix-and-match set to sleep comfortably.
Educational
As children hit the age of eight, they’ll actually be finding educational gifts really enjoyable. Now they have better logic to follow instructions, improved dexterity to work with small pieces, and much more patience than they did in previous years – no more giving up after two minutes!
These enhanced abilities combined with their newfound curiosity to learn more about the world around them works means they’ll love challenging themselves and learning more from games, toys, and puzzles.
National Geographic Magic Set
The National Geographic Magic Set is like a wizard school in a box. It includes magic props such as a false thumb tip, a trick coin case, a specialized card deck, and of course, a magic wand. An eight-year-old boy can learn 18 tricks by reading through the booklet and watching professional magician video links. Soon he’ll be putting on his own magic show!
Crayola Inspiration Art Case
An aspiring eight-year-old artist can enjoy practicing his skills with this 140-piece Crayola Kids art set. This set includes 64 crayons, 20 colored pencils, 40 markers, and extra-large sheets of paper to make masterpieces. The art case makes this set easy to set up wherever inspiration strikes. Encourage a budding artist’s talent by giving him all the tools he needs to succeed with this birthday gift.
Hasbro Gaming Connect 4 Board Game
Hasbro’s classic Connect 4 game allows children to enjoy friendly competition. Two kids can choose a color and drop disks into place until someone is declared the winner. An eight-year-old kid will need to use strategy and problem-solving skills to win the game. This game includes 21 red and 21 yellow playing disks, a grid, two support legs, and a slider bar.
Magic Tree House Boxed Set
The Magic Treehouse series follows the characters, Jack and Annie, as they interact across time and space. Kids can learn about pirates, Vikings, dingoes, mummies, dinosaurs, and more. Also, they cover many historical events, such as the Civil War, the Revolutionary War, and the Titanic. These fiction books can teach history and social studies through lively fiction stories. With 28 books in the set, the adventures are just beginning.
Kapla 100 Octocolor Case
The KAPLA Octocolor Case contains one hundred mini wooden planks for building structures. An eight-year-old can use his imagination to build houses, roads, and other designs. This set can encourage creative thinking and problem-solving as a boy puts each piece in place. After a kid is finished building, all of the building blocks can tidy away into the wooden box.
Pressman Charades for Kids
Family members and friends can enjoy friendly competition and lots of laughs with this Pressman Charades Game. This game has three different difficulty levels so kids are challenged at their age level. Young family members can still play independently by following the picture on the card. An eight-year-old can find creative ways to get a word across through this fun-filled game.
Klutz Book of Paper Airplanes Craft Kit
The Klutz Book of Paper Airplanes Craft Kit shows a child how to create 10 different plane designs. He can pick from a variety of patterns and make up to 40 planes in all. This how-to book has 56 pages of instructions and pictures so an eight-year-old can accomplish each airplane model with success. This activity book is a fun gift idea for a craft-loving child.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books (Books 1-10) By Jeff Kinney
The bestselling Diary of a Wimpy Kid is a favorite with eight-year-old readers. This set includes 10 books from the series in a collectible boxed set. A reader can start off with the first book, Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Once he gets to know the character, a reader can see what antics the character can get into next – a great birthday gift for bookworms.
Vatos Dinosaur Eggs Kit
Fans of dinosaurs will love being part of archaeology excavation with this Vatos Dinosaur Eggs Kit. This kit includes twelve dino eggs and twelve chisels to discover which dinosaur surprises are inside the eggs. Twelve dinosaur fact cards allow a kid to learn more about each dino. This fun interactive set can be a great birthday gift for an eight-year-old boy or a fun party favor idea.
Electronics
Though your eight-year-old boy is likely to be entirely competent and familiar with electronics, we know it’s important to many parents that their children have less screen time.
However, there are still plenty of gadgets out there that your little one will love to play with that are educational and involve none to little screen time. They’ll thoroughly enjoy tinkering away safely with this technology as they turn eight.
Midola Wireless Bluetooth Headphones
A kid can enjoy a cord-free listening experience by connecting to Bluetooth with this headset. However, it also supports wired-in listening as well. The headband adjusts to fit a growing child’s head, making it comfortable to wear. Also, the pre-programmed low-volume setting goes easy on the ears. If the volume is too low for an eight-year-old, he can adjust the decibel level.
Wiszodet Smart Watch
A boy can snap photos, set a stopwatch, count his steps per day, and play up to 24 preloaded games on this Wiszodet Smart Watch. This watch also includes a selfie cam, photo filters, a video camera, music, a flashlight, and much more. The interactive touch screen makes this device easy and fun for kids to operate. It will make a memorable gift for an eight-year-old’s birthday.
Balleen.E Night Light Bluetooth Speaker
This Balleen.E Night Light Bluetooth Speaker is a few gifts in one. A boy can listen to music, or talk with friends over speakerphone with this tableside lamp. It has excellent, clear sound and at night, the LED mood lamp can provide a relaxing atmosphere in a boy’s room. Change the level of brightness by tapping the device, or tap and hold to change the color.
Nintendo Switch Lite – Blue
If a boy loves Nintendo games, he is sure to love this blue Nintendo Switch Lite. This device comes with an eight-year-old’s favorite games such as Super Smash Bros, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the Legend of Zelda, and other classics. The handheld device has the controls a kid needs to move, jump, and win the game, making it easy for him to take it on the road.
Home, Garden, & Tools
In previous years, children might have been more inclined to come home and switch their brains off by playing with games and toys after being at school all day.
However, at the age of eight, kids will likely be keener to come home and learn more about what they’re being taught at school or teach themselves even more.
This is a great opportunity to buy the eight-year-old boy in your life some games and toys that he’s going to love coming home to.
East Point Sports Hockey Game Table
This air hockey table includes all the fun of an arcade but is compact enough to fit in a home. It comes with two air hockey pucks, two pushers, and an LED scorekeeper that automatically records points. The sides are decorated with symbols of various hockey teams, plus the NHL symbol. An eight-year-old boy who loves hockey – or arcade games – will go wild for this gift.
High Sierra Loop-Backpack
The High Sierra Loop-Backpack is perfect for an eight-year-old heading back to school. The ash gray graffiti backpack looks trendy and can fit many necessary items. Interior pockets protect a tablet or notebook and keep small items handy and organized. A built-in suspension system helps balance the weight of heavy books to protect a growing child’s back. This birthday gift also can serve a practical purpose.
Ridley’s 100 Knock Knock Joke Cards
The Ridley’s 100 Knock Knock Joke Cards can bring laughs to adults and kids. Even the whimsically shaped cards are designed with humor in mind. Each card is in the shape of a door hanger card. This set of jokes can be an ice-breaker when new friends are coming to visit. Or, an eight-year-old can be the stand-up comedian at a family dinner.
Naturally Kids Dinosaur Backpack
A dinosaur-lover can enjoy getting a squishable (yet ferocious-looking) dinosaur plush toy and backpack. The denim backpack is the perfect size to fit a half-letter notebook, iPhone XS Max, Galaxy Note, or iPad Mini. A child can pack up some of his favorite toys and activities for a long road trip or an overnight stay at Grandma’s. The dino plush fits in an outside pocket, which frees up space for a kid to add other important items.
Kids & Babies Toys
Though the toys list gets shorter as they get older, eight-year-old boys still enjoy goofing off and playing with things just for fun.
Boys turning eight will likely still have a wonderful imagination and getting them toys like LEGO and Play-Doh will make sure they’re still expanding this all-important part of their brain. You can’t go wrong with our list of toy recommendations for the little boy turning eight.
VConejo 2 in 1 Dinosaur Color Dough
With this VConejo 2-in-1 Dinosaur Color Dough set, an eight-year-old can set up a complete Jurassic scene. The storage case opens to reveal a backdrop for volcanoes, fossils, and dinos. A child can choose from 11 different dinosaur molds and 11 colors of dough. He can also create plants and volcanoes from molds to add to the landscape.
Lego Minecraft The Skeleton Dungeon
Minecraft players can build in the real world using LEGO blocks. This LEGO Minecraft Skeleton Dungeon set has details and scenes from the video game. It includes the cave explorer, skeletons, biomes, a skeleton spawner, greenery, torches, a cave with avalanche features, a dungeon, and more. An eight-year-old boy can enjoy building the background and acting out his favorite scenes.
The Grumpy Baby Octopus
This red baby octopus may be grumpy, but we can’t help but love him! Your eight-year-old can feel an instant affinity for this soft plush toy. The huggable octopus can guard a child’s room, and squishing and squeezing it can help relieve stress. This humourous birthday gift is guaranteed to get some laughs. (Don’t be upset, Baby Octopus. It’s all in good fun!).
Outdoors
As boys turning eight continue to develop their brains through education and school, playing outdoors plays a huge part in maturing their brains too.
Improving their dexterity, physical skills, and cognitive abilities are all skills they learn by playing outdoors that help them grow as little humans. Outdoor play also helps improve independence, self-confidence, and self-esteem.
We’ve found the top outdoor gifts for you to treat your eight-year-old boy to on his birthday!
Kicksy Wheels Scooter
This vibrant orange Kicksy Wheels Scooter is sure to be a hit with an eight-year-old boy. The aluminum and steel construction is lightweight to carry. At the same time, this scooter is durable enough to withstand regular use. Also, the handlebars are easily adjustable to fit your child’s height. With this birthday gift, a boy will be ready to roll around the neighborhood.
Nerf DinoSquad Raptor Dart Blaster
An eight-year-old boy can go on his own Jurassic quest with this Nerf DinoSquad Raptor Dart Blaster. This blaster looks like the head of a Velociraptor dino down to the pointy teeth. The nerf darts fire out from its mouth. Kids can fire six darts in rapid-fire as the blaster’s 6-dart drum rotates until empty. This indoor-outdoor toy is ready for an imaginative adventure.
Springfree Trampoline Medium Oval
Jumping is a great way to release pent-up energy and get in some healthy exercise. With this oval trampoline, an eight-year-old can have plenty of space to jump. Unlike traditional trampolines, this one has no springs. Instead, composite rods underneath the trampoline surface provide bouncing action. A safety net surrounds the entire oval trampoline to keep your child safe while he jumps.
Estes Journey Launch Set
You can give an eight-year-old hands-on experience in science and engineering with this Estes Journey Launch Set. This kit allows kids to dabble in rocket science at a beginner level. Careful instructions and pre-colored parts ensure your child succeeds in this project. A birthday boy will be proud to launch his rocket into the sky in true NASA style: Three, two, one, blast off!
Banzai Bump N Bounce Body Bumpers
These two Banzai Bump N Bounce Body Bumpers allow children to have fun wrestling without anyone getting hurt. The Body bumpers come in red and blue and are fully inflatable. Children from four to 12 years old should be able to fit inside these blow-up body bumpers. Watch an eight-year-old open up this original gift and let the fun begin!
Kelty Mistral Kids 20 Degree Sleeping Bag
Camp in comfort with this Kelty Mistral Kids Three-Season Sleeping Bag. This mummy-style sleeping bag protects a boy from head to toe when he sleeps under the stars. The thick CloudLoft insulation keeps the body warm, while the side zipper makes this bag easy to remove. When it’s time to pack up camp, a boy can roll up the sleeping bag and stuff it into the Kelty drawstring bag.
Sports
A lot of eight-year-old boys will probably be part of sports teams already. However, sports toys and games are fun and important for those that don’t play a sport too.
Trying their hand at games like soccer, basketball, skateboarding, or bike riding is a huge way to help children develop their dexterity, physical skills, and boundaries. We’ve handpicked the best sports games that your eight-year-old boy is going to thoroughly enjoy playing with on his eighth birthday.
RoyalBaby Freestyle Kids Bike
An eight-year-old can enjoy riding around the neighborhood with this Royal Baby Freestyle Kids Bike. The bike is an eye-catching orange with a durable steel frame and wide tires for a smooth ride. A water bottle and holder are strapped to the frame so a kid can stay hydrated during exercise. This bike’s seat and handlebars can raise or lower to fit your child.
Spalding Slam Jam Mini Over-the-Door Basketball Hoop
Bring outdoor sports indoors with this Spalding Slam Jam Over-the-Door Basketball Hoop. The padded polycarbonate board looks like the real deal down to the tiny NBA symbol in the corner. Mount this miniature hoop to the back of a door and practice with the 5-inch rubber mini basketball. An eight-year-old boy will be able to perfect his hand-eye coordination and basketball skills with this hoop.
Wrapping Up
Turning eight is such a fantastic time for a young boy. But there’s no denying they become a little more tricky to buy for! They’re becoming more independent, looking to learn, and are developing their own taste.
But there are still a ton of great gifts out there that an eight-year-old boy is going to love. There are toys, games, and gadgets that they’ll have fun with, learn from, and be challenged by.
We’ve handpicked the best gifts across a range of departments, perfect for an eight-year-old boy’s birthday!
