This year, we’re introducing a new gift guide category just for tweens. With all the rapid growth and change happening in our families, we know they’re going to be firmly in this category soon. Even though it’s an awkward age group, they still have their own distinct developmental needs.

At ages 10-12, kids are no longer little but not quite teens. They ask bigger questions, challenge ideas, and start understanding how they learn. Language sharpens, conversations deepen, and puberty often begins, bringing physical changes and self-awareness. Emotionally, tweens explore identity, crave peer connection, and care deeply about fairness. Gifts for this age group should provide flexible structure, foster open communication, model emotional regulation, all while supporting their evolving interests.

You also want to be careful not to choose gifts that are either too adult or too infantile. They are right in between.

Books

Look for books that support exploration of identity, emotional growth, critical thinking, and social awareness. The best picks blend engaging storytelling with meaningful themes that help kids navigate the transition from childhood to adolescence. Coming-of-age tales, if you will.

We don’t have a top fiction pick in this category because it all depends on what your kid is into. Coming-of-age stories span genres, from magical adventures to real-life growing pains, each with a different lens on growing up. For many of us, series like The Baby-Sitters Club, Goosebumps, and Harry Potter were the ones we started at this age and grew up with. With so many great options available today, the best starting point is whatever genre your child naturally gravitates toward. These will be in the Young Reader and Middle Grades sections of the library/bookstore.

On the flip side, try to avoid books that feature a TV show cartoon character or a book that was adapted from a show or movie your kid has already seen. We would also avoid any abridged editions of classic literature.

Other fun titles to snag:

Murdle Jr. Puzzle Mysteries by G.T. Karber – If your tween enjoys cracking codes, solving puzzles, or playing detective, Murdle Jr. is a brain-boosting adventure they’ll love. Readers join a team of kid detectives to solve 40 quirky whodunits using clues, codes, and logic grids that build critical thinking, pattern recognition, and perseverance along the way. Also try the Cluedle series by Hartigan Browne.

Spy School: Entrance Exam by Stuart Gibbs – This is not a traditional novel. It’s an interactive activity book filled with puzzles that simulate the CIA’s fictional recruitment process for the Academy of Espionage. A puzzle-packed companion book to the Spy School series, it’s designed to test your espionage skills through clever challenges. This book is a great pick for fans of the Spy School books and graphic novels who want to test their own spy skills.

Incredible True Stories for Curious Kids by Diana Reinhart – This non-fiction book offers bite-sized stories about wild escapes, surprising inventions, pop culture legends, and jaw-dropping science told with humor and vivid characters that make it feel more like story time than a textbook.

Essential Skills Every Kid Should Know by Ferne Bowe – This 3-in-1 guide for tweens teaches life, money management, and outdoor adventure skills to build confidence, independence, and real-world know-how. They may not be psyched to get it, but it might make those “how to adult” conversations a bit easier.

STEM

For this age range, search for STEM items that promote hands-on exploration, problem-solving, and creativity. Chances are they will have developed a base of science knowledge by this age, so these sets would enrich their study with practical application. The best tools promote curiosity while building confidence and resilience.

Top Choice: LEGO Sets

• Why We Love It: We have talked about LEGO sets before, but for tweens you are welcome to go BIG. Don’t be afraid to try a set that is more challenging. Building with LEGOs strengthen spatial reasoning and executive function, as they learn to follow instructions, plan ahead, and troubleshoot mistakes. These hands-on challenges also nurture resilience, especially when a structure collapses or a piece goes missing as they must adapt and rebuild. The bigger the set, the bigger price; so bigger models might end up being a whole-family gift or a gift with supervision. Plus, with all of the variants of LEGO sets (Disney, Lord of the Rings, sports cars, architecture), you can find a model that your kid is excited to tackle.

Engino Discovering STEM Sets – These hands-on engineering kits offer a wide range of kits that let tweens build working models while exploring core scientific principles. Each set includes step-by-step instructions, scientific explanations, and experiments that reinforce learning through play. Projects span mechanics, physics, renewable energy, architecture, and robotics. They also have sets for ages 3+, 6+, and 12+.

Arts/Crafts

Pick mediums that support tweens’ cognitive, emotional, and social development – especially those that encourage creativity, problem-solving, and self-expression. The best activities offer open-ended exploration, build confidence, and help tweens navigate their growing independence.

Top Choice: Art Dice

• Why We Love It: This set of ten colorful, 12-sided wooden dice designed to promote creativity through randomized prompts. Each die represents a different category, suggesting a total of 120 unique ideas to inspire drawing, painting, or mixed media projects. The randomness of each roll helps break creative blocks and shift focus from perfection to play.

The Buddha Board – Inspired by Zen mindfulness, this water-based drawing surface is low maintenance, calming, and encourages creativity without pressure. This makes it ideal for kids navigating big emotions, screen fatigue, or perfectionism. It is also a beautiful visual decoration.

FlowArt Activity Pads – These are guided art meditation books that use dot-by-letter and stamp-by-shape techniques. Tweens use included markers to fill in scenes one letter or shape at a time, creating colorful mosaics while entering a calming flow state. No prior drawing or painting experience required.

Games

Find games that build critical thinking, emotional regulation, social skills, and creativity. The best ones challenge their minds, spark imagination, and support growing independence. We have a mix of cooperative games, card, and board games.

Top Choice: Harmonies

• Why We Love It: Perfect for ages 10 and up, this beautifully designed tile-placement game invites players to create dreamlike landscapes and habitats to attract animals. Players earn points by strategically combining terrain types and fulfilling animal card patterns, balancing geographic features with faunal needs. Each decision impacts the evolving ecosystem, offering satisfying layers of strategy. The game includes solo and expert modes, with “spirits of nature” adding complexity for advanced players.

Other favorite games to grab:

• 7 Wonders
• Exit: The Sacred Temple – similar to an Escape Room feel
• Beat That! – a party game for adults and kids 9+
• Pun Intended
• Forbidden Island
• Totem – conversation cards

If your family is big on game night, you can also grab adapted versions of adult games. Ticket to Ride also has Ticket to Ride Jr. and Ticket to Ride: First Journey. Settlers of Catan has a junior version, a two-player version, and a ton of expansion packs that can make the game harder or easier depending on your kid’s skill level.

Stocking Stuffers
Tweens may choose to skip over toys and go right to gift cards. They might also ask for adult brands and labels. Try to pump the brakes a bit and compromise with products more aligned for their age group, especially in skin care, makeup, or tech. In addition to these development-based stocking stuffers, you can also go with gentle toiletries, a small bottle perfume/cologne, and low maintenance hair care.

Project Genius Wooden Puzzles – pair these with a historical fiction book, or history-based game
Shashibo Shape Shifting Box
FOLDOLOGY The Origami Puzzle Game
The Wacky ‘What Would You Do?’ Card Game
Burst
Rainbow Colored Pencils or any other fun pens/markers, paired with a journal or sketchbook

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Most of the linked items can also be found on our Child(ish) Advice Holiday Amazon Storefront.

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