(Last Updated on November 6, 2023)
It seems like every year I’m scrambling to figure out what to put in my kids’ Christmas stockings. If you’re like me, the last thing you want in your house is more plastic trinkets! But I end up defaulting to that kind of filler when I can’t think of anything better.
Well, no more!!
This time I’m making a list, checking it twice, and not wasting this opportunity to give my kids some useful, engaging, and maybe even educational stocking stuffers!
Trendy products come and go, but these “ABC’s” – Awesome Brainstorming Categories – will never go out of style! Each A to Z category will remind you of a whole group of stocking stuffer ideas to help you come up with the perfect picks for your kids!
(There may be affiliate links in this post – click here to learn more. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.)
The Stocking Stuffer ABC’s!
A is for Accessories
This category includes clothing like socks or boxers, and outerwear like hats, mittens, and earmuffs – really anything you can roll up compactly. Try earrings, necklaces, bracelets, and rings for your older kids. Play jewelry or dress-up accessories are perfect for their younger siblings.
B is for Bedroom Decor
Help them personalize their space with glow-in-the-dark stars, a nightlight, or wall decals of their favorite characters or animals. (My daughter’s current favorite is this bird decal, and we liked this one, too.) Themed light switch covers are another small-sized stocking stuffer idea; they’re easy to change as your kids age out of Mario mania and move on to Marvel madness.
C is for Cards & Other Small Games
So many options here! Some of our favorites are Blink, Uno, Bananagrams, Spot It, Set, Math Dice Jr., Tenzi, Rory’s Story Cubes, Star Wars Top Trumps, Phase 10, and Waterworks.
D is for Digital Gifts & Gift Cards
For kids who like to pick out their own gifts, try gift cards to any of their favorite physical locations (restaurants, play-places, toy and game stores) or online stores like Amazon and iTunes. Don’t forget gift cards or subscriptions to services like Netflix, Pureflix, Hulu, Spotify, and video game sites like Steam.
E is for Explorer’s Supplies
Sneak in educational gifts for your kids’ future adventures and science projects. Open up larger sets like a backyard scientist kit and wrap each part individually to make it fit in a stocking (or to share it between siblings). My kids have loved using their magnifying glasses (we’ve liked this one best) and kids’ compasses for their explorations. And this (surprisingly inexpensive!) pocket microscope is another great, stocking-sized option.
*2023 Update: My kids still use the pocket microscope they got years ago – we’ve definitely gotten our money’s worth on that one!
F is for Fun Food
Add a few special treats to their stockings that you don’t normally buy – maybe a favorite flavor of normally-too-expensive applesauce pouches, or the individual serving boxes of cereals you usually don’t allow for breakfast. Novelty treats can be fun, too – my kids loved the year they got astronaut ice cream for Christmas (it went along well with our astronomy unit, too)!
G is for Gum & Candy
While we try not to fill up an entire stocking with candy, a few sweet treats are okay in my book. Toss in a few gold chocolate coins, candy canes, or one of their favorite candy bars. As for gum, I feel less mom-guilt when we chew Pur and Glee brands. They’re all the fun of regular gum (not quite as long-lasting, but still good) without as much yuck in the ingredients list.
H is for Hobby-Related Gear
This will be kid-specific, depending on their interests. Here are a few examples:
- Biking – bike repair kit, bike pump, bell, head/tail lights, or other bike bling
- Rock Climbing – carabiners, chalk-bag, or grip-strengthening toy
- Arts & Crafts – sketching pencils, drawing pens, pattern scissors, beads, sequins, and other crafting supplies
- Swimming – goggles, swim cap, diving rings, and small water toys
- Home & Garden Tools – kid-sized oven mitts, gardening hand tools, seed packs, gardening gloves, a kid-sized hammer, or a child-friendly manual drill
- Reading – fancy bookmarks, stocking-stuffer-sized paperbacks, or a reading light
- Sewing – small travel sewing kit, sewing scissors, thread, pin cushion, or buttons
I is for Inventor’s Supplies
My kids love their “inventor’s box” which we keep stocked with items like these: small motors, alligator clips, rope and string, zip ties, wooden dowels, wooden wheels, straws, pipe cleaners, small LED lights, binder clips, battery holders, and pulleys.
J is for Joke & Puzzle Books
Small or travel-sized joke books (our Garfield-loving family enjoys this one), crosswords, Mad-Libs, riddles, and fact books are perfect for stuffing stockings. Even some larger paperback puzzle books can work in a stocking if you roll them up.
K is for Keychains & Backpack Clips
Okay, these sometimes verge on being tchotchke. But for the older kid who actually needs a keychain, a nice one could be useful. And for your backpack clip connoisseur, who collects different characters, another cute clip-on emoji might be a highly-prized addition to their collection.
L is for Labels, Stamps & Stickers
Stickers, sticker books, and rubber stamps are great for young kids or older ones into scrapbooking and crafts. Personalize the gift with “Property of…” labels or order stickers with your kid’s name. Travel-sized sticker books should fit in most Christmas stockings, but double check the product dimensions since sticker books often don’t roll up easily.
M is for Music Equipment
For your young percussionists, try new drumsticks, mallets, a triangle, shakers, or finger cymbals. Other small-sized instruments, like a harmonica or recorder, fit well in a stocking. If they’re already playing an instrument, think about accessories you’d be buying at some point anyway: guitar picks or a capo, a marching band music clip, reeds, a tuner, or a metronome (or a combined tuner/metronome like this one).
N is for Non-“Thing” Ideas
Christmas stockings are the perfect place to tuck “experience” gifts like passes for a museum, a roll of tokens for a local arcade, or a little card announcing an upcoming family weekend getaway! Plus, you can always use the stocking as a hiding place for the first clue of a scavenger hunt leading to a larger gift hidden somewhere else!
O is for Optical Illusions & Logic Toys
Get them thinking with brain-teasers and logic toys. Rubik’s Cubes are classic but there are all kinds of crazy twists on it if they need a new challenge. Kanoodle is a new-found favorite logic game of ours (but not the best choice for the easily-frustrated). And my kids go back to this optical illusions book again and again (though this particular one might be a little big for some stockings).
P is for Practical (& Still Fun) Toiletries
These are the kind of things you’d get anyway but can easily pass off as a gift (especially if you get a fun flavor, color, or favorite character)! Cherry ChapStick and a flashy light-up toothbrush are some of my kids’ favorites. Or try other “fun-practical” gifts like glitter nail polish, fancy soaps, hair clips, or character Band-Aids.
Q is for Quality Toys
I don’t mean a bunch of random, plastic doohickeys that break after 10 minutes and you find them under the couch two years later. I’m talking about higher quality toys that last, or ones that would generate renewed interest in toys your kids already own. Maybe an additional LEGO figure, a new Hexbug Nano, Shopkins, a Thomas train car, or some Hot Wheels cars. Play-Doh accessories wrapped individually or a pack of TOOB animal figurines fit well in a stocking, too.
R is for Recreational & Outdoor Gifts
Don’t forget about summer toys just because it’s the dead of winter! A jump rope, sidewalk chalk, small sandbox toys, or beanbags are still great options. Or give them a new swing set accessory like a spyglass or climbing wall handgrips (this set is similar to the one we love but is too big for a stocking, so split up the pack between siblings or put one grip in the stocking as a hint that the rest have been secretly installed outside)! Then bundle up the kiddos and let them burn off some of their winter cabin fever in the backyard!
S is for School Supplies
The letter ’S’ is also for Sneaky Homeschool Mom! Who says glue sticks, tape, and colored index cards have to come out of the “school supply” budget? Generate some school excitement with new supplies to carry you through the long winter ahead. We love Pip-Squeaks markers for our youngest and a variety of tapes (packing tape, colored duct tape, regular clear tape, washi tape) for all the kids’ art projects and inventions.
T is for Tiny Technology
Think ahead about the tech that will help you in your parenting or homeschooling and you’ll thank yourself later! Give them a kid’s wristwatch to encourage time-telling or new earbuds to motivate them to use audiobooks independently. A headphone splitter might (might!) help your kids stop arguing over the iPad, and headphone adapters can help save your sanity by adapting regular headphones for use on certain electronic keyboards and electric guitars. (Incidentally, headphones are one of the best tools I’ve found for minimizing chaos in our homeschool – check out the post 20 Fantastic Ways to Help Your Homeschool Kids Stay Focused for more ideas)
U is for Useful Gear
A pocket knife, multi-tool, or compact camping gear (like utensils or a personal water filter) could be great for your older kids, while a flashlight or compact umbrella works for all ages. A money clip, kid’s wallet (my son loved this one for years), or small purse can be given just for fun or as a way to encourage money management skills. (They also work well to present a cash gift or gift cards).
V is for Videos
DVD’s fit into most stockings so stock up on family movies or educational ones for the year ahead. We’ve enjoyed Magic School Bus DVD’s, the What’s in the Bible series, and Leapfrog phonics videos like Leapfrog Letter Factory.
W is for Writing Utensils
You can find fun pencils with crazy toppers, pencil grips, and colorful pens at most dollar stores. My kids love gel pens and actually stopped complaining (as much) about writing when we started using them! White board markers, other fancy markers, and fabric paint pens are perfect stocking stuffers.
X is for eXtra Batteries
You probably wouldn’t want these to be the only thing in your kid’s stocking… and you might receive questioning looks at first. But if they’ve gotten toys that require batteries, they’ll be happy to use them right away! Plus, if they have a stash of battery-less, dead toys like my kids do, batteries will bring the old toys back to life! It’s like getting all those remote control cars and talking dolls from Christmases past all over again!
Y is for Yearly Traditions
Hanging stockings is a tradition all by itself, so what better place to hide personalized ornaments, homemade coupon books, or other fun “family tradition” gifts! Another idea is to have each member of the family write a little note of encouragement or gratitude to each of the other family members and tuck the notes in each stocking. Gifts from the heart are the best gifts of all and it’s never too late to start a new tradition!
Z is for Zany Gifts
If your kid’s stocking is getting too “practical” or “educational”, mix in one or two off-the-wall or unexpected surprises like light saber chopsticks, this nose-shaped eyeglasses holder, or some other family-specific inside joke.
There you have it – the Stocking Stuffer ABC’s! Next time won’t you sing with me?
Looking for a gift for a prospective home educator, homeschooling parent, or the homeschool skeptic in your life? Check out my book, Think About Homeschooling: What It Is, What It Isn’t, & Why It Works!
Subscribe today to receive new posts via email!
