Christmas 2021 is sneaking up on us, so it’s time to start planning presents for the little ones in your life!
The Pop Speechies have done the hard work for you and compiled a list of their top 10 Christmas presents for school-aged children.
These presents are tried and true, and well-loved by our Speechies, so you can rest assured they’ll make the perfect addition to your Christmas list.
With ideas ranging from books to games, there’s a little something for everyone! Keep reading to find your next gift in our guide below.
1) Little Birdie Books subscription
What it is:
A subscription to our favourites at Little Birdie Books
Why Pop Speechies love it:
- Get a new book every month!
- New activities developed by Speechies to build speech and language skills in a fun way
- Easy for parents – simply set aside some time and follow the instructions provided!
- These books are educational but they can be enjoyed outside of education time – to read ‘just because’
- They act as a lifelong resource for your family
- Great for any age group but best for 3-6 years old!
How much it is:
$28/month for 6 months
Where to buy it:
2) Beat the Bear
What it is:
A fun card game to help little learners understand consonants
Why Pop Speechies love it:
- It’s a great game for preparing for school
- Helps little ones practice phonics, letter recognition and taking turns
- Play Beat the Bear with ALL the kids or just one
- It’s an excellent resource for single word vocab/single word speech sounds practice too!
- Suggestions for additional activities: only use letter sounds not letter names when playing, re-write each starting sound once you have found a match (great for handwriting/letter formation practice!)
How much it is:
$26.95
Where to buy it:
3) Stuff Happens
What it is:
A kid-friendly version of the fun adult game (S*** Happens!)
Why Pop Speechies love it:
- Great for social communication (opinions & theory of mind, turn-taking, reasoning)
- A hit with kids approx 13+ up
- Older kids can read the cards (A word of caution if you’re playing this one with younger kiddos – some cards may need to be screened by parents to ensure they’re age-appropriate)
How much it is:
$19
Where to buy it:
4) Rat-a-Tat-Cat
What it is:
A suspenseful, strategy-driven game that teaches simple mathematic concepts
Why Pop Speechies love it:
- Always a crowd-pleaser, this fun game can be played with the whole family to practice numbers, turn-taking and problem-solving skills
How much it is:
$17.85
Where to buy it:
5) Magnetic Dress-Ups
What it is:
A magnetic dress-up game for little ones, available in both male and female options!
Why Pop Speechies love it:
- Encourages colour and pattern recognition
- Inspires creativity and imaginative play
- They also have magnetic ‘scenes’ and feelings faces which can be used the same way!
How much it is:
$10
Where to buy it:
6) Ranger’s Apprentice and
Wings of Fire
What they are:
A range of books for the boys who ‘don’t like reading’!
- Ranger’s Apprentice series by Richard Flanagan
- Wings of Fire by Tui T Sutherland
Why Pop Speechies love them:
- These books come highly recommended by Pop families and are an exciting way to get young boys into reading and practicing those literacy skills!
How much they are:
Books can be bought as a set or individually.
Single books range from $10; some of the sets can be up to $60
Where to buy them:
7) Spot It
What it is:
Race other players to be the first to spot matching symbols!
Why Pop Speechies love it:
- This fast-paced game that can be played with the whole family!
- It’s an amazing resource for practicing vocab, matching, and some sneaky /s/ cluster work by yelling ‘Spot it.’
- Additional activity to level up: once the matching picture is found, use it in a sentence to add some extra language practice
How much it is:
$17
Where to buy it:
8) Taco-Cat-Goat-Cheese-Pizza
What it is:
This funny-sounding game is similar to Snap and is a big hit amongst our Speechies and Pop clients!
Why Pop Speechies love it:
- Game for the whole family
- Easy to play
- Great practice for matching and basic reading skills
How much it is:
$15
Where to buy it:
9) Zingo Bingo
What it is:
Don’t be fooled, we do not teach sight words at Spot! However, this is still a great game (despite the name!) for learning to read high-frequency words!
Why Spot Speechies love it:
- Used for a wide range of ages – you can be learning to read or a proficient reader and still enjoy this game!
- Awesome for early literacy skills-building, like decoding words and problem-solving difficult spellings
- Encourages a fun approach to literacy with lots of repetitions
How much it is:
$39.99
Where to buy it:
10) Pop the Pig
What it is:
This one is as hilarious as it sounds – feed the pig, but don’t let him pop or you lose!
Why Spot Speechies love it:
- A fun game for all ages, but your 3-6 year olds are going to LOVE this one!
- Practice turn-taking,
- Practice following directions
- Practice colours
- Understanding language, as well as cause and effect
How much it is:
$25
Where to buy it:
Christmas present – sorted!
Phew – that’s the Christmas presents for the kids sorted. And better yet, they’re all able to be purchased online AND (almost!) all under $50!
We hope you enjoyed our Christmas 2021 gift guide and that your little learners enjoy their educational Christmas presents.
Be sure to follow us @popfamily.au on Instagram for more tips, tricks and fun content!
