I’ve got a nephew who is 3-something years old. He’s really into airplanes. All of the ideas of gifts I’ve found have either been books (I give him books, but I’d like to give him something interactive) or toys that are way above his age level.
Does anyone have a recommendation for a good gift for a 3 to 4-year-old who loves airplanes?
Edit: I just want to give a big thanks to all of you for being so helpful. I’ve got some great ideas for Christmas, his birthday, and beyond if he remains fascinated by planes. Very helpful.
Maybe one of those paper airplane building books.
Thank you, that sounds like a great idea!
Someone also makes one of those “page-a-day” calendars with instructions for a new plane every day, typically with designs printed on them so the planes look cool after being folded.
I helped a friend’s daughter make paper airplanes once. She was all excited about making all sorts of new airplanes but none of them were flying.
So over the course of a few weeks I had her repeat the same basic airplane again and again, until she mastered it. At first she hated the idea of going back and doing the same airplane again, but as her folds got better and her airplanes started to fly better, she got really into it.
The grin that spread over her face when she realized she could get better at things was amazing.
And she was six. I’m not sure if an airplane a day would be appropriate for a three year old.
This!
My kids have had a few of these over the years and they’re great. At 3-4yrs, they’ll needs some help with instructions and folding, but it’s still a great gift.
Has the child flown on a commercial airline, yet? My son loved having a Southwest branded toy airplane - realistic looking one - after he had flown on that carrier. It let him relive his flight and expand on it in his imagination.
See if you have a small, local air field that you can get him a flight in a Cessna.
There is a new LEGO set of the Concorde ;-)
A shirt with an airplane on it. Get one that’s a few sizes too big so he can wear it for a while.
I don’t know if the Air & Space Museum has an online gift shop, but they have stuff for all ages. Even if you’re not close to the ones in DC, they have storage hangars all over that they open to the public. Keep an eye out for that.
Is there a minimum age to fly a lightweight aircraft? Seems like the lighter you go, the less restrictions. Maybe make a drone for him to fly in and you can control it, that has to be legal somewhere.
On theme though not literally an aeroplane; the parachuter toys, like little army men that have a parachute on them that you throw out of windows/down the stairs, they were always an absolutely favourite of mine.
Make sure to get the type with netting that connects the parachute to the person as opposed to strings as it can never tangle
This was the first thing i thought of. They also come as fireworks that will launch the little guy into the sky and pretty much always get him stuck in a tree. 9/10 would recommend
