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I put together this guide for the best gift for a 4 year old boy because I put way more thought into the gifts I get for my kids than I probably should! I mean sure everyone wants to give a thoughtful gift, but I think I take it a few steps further.
How long will it keep them entertained? Will they really play with it? How easy does it clean up? Is it something they’ll enjoy? Will they like it for a day and never touch it again. Maybe just common mom questions when it comes to gift buying!
So I put together the BEST toys for 4 year old Boys in hopes that you can find something your little one loves and actually plays with!
Why We Love Them:
Four year olds are still testing boundaries and learning rules! It’s so fun for them to feel like they have a little authority when they pretend to arrest you!
Fortunately play handcuffs have an easy safety on them, so you won’t be stuck in hand cuffs at your four-year-olds mercy. You may never get out if that were the case. But my son loves his play hand cuffs and uses them frequently!
Why We Love Them:
We really love to color and spend a lot of doing doing it! It’s actually one of our favorite creative activities for kids!
So throw in the elements of using scented markers and your little one is sure to stay entertained longer. Sure they may end up with a rainbow colored nose, but that just adds to the fun! Scented markers are a great gift idea for 4 year old boys who already love to color!
But seriously, these smell amazing. Except for the stinky cheese ones and gross scents! Who decided to make those? But the yummy flavors are actually really good!
You can buy these in a small pack, or in a variety pack with lots of different scented art materials!
Why We Love Them:
Our 4 year old is still trying to navigate through learning his letters. We have let him go at his own pace and this game has been a great way for him to get some additional exposure to letters. This Alphabet Memory is still fun because you get to match the pictures, and they learn a little along the way.
This set is super sturdy and of a really good quality. It’s simple enough he can play with a friend and they can find the matches based on pictures. And they usually get excited when they do know what letter they turn over.
I find that 4 year olds playing Memory usually turn the same area of cards over time and time again. So it’s a really good way to drill those letters into their heads, and make it fun!
Why We Love Them:
Hopper balls are great if you have a super energetic little dude like us! Seriously, he never stops moving! These are especially nice when the weather is cold and they don’t spend a lot of time outside. We keep ours in the basement so he isn’t too loud and he is bouncing up and down.
They do deflate and pump up pretty easy if you’re worried about storage space, but we just keep our pumped up all the time.
Every new friend who comes over loves to try the hopper ball and bounce all over. It’s definitely a crowd pleaser!
Why We Love Them:
Well I don’t know about you, but I have had enough crayon and markers on everything during the past year of my sons life. So the Aqua Doodle Mat is a dream come true.
The pens are filled with water and the mat changes colors with the water! As the water dries the coloring disappears and they can draw something else.
It’s so nice to not have to watch them like a hawk with the markers and to not worry if they doodle on the floor or couch! This is great for toddlers too!
Why We Love Them:
This is one of the few toys that will actually keep my son entertained for extended periods of time. There are different instructions for things to build, but mostly he just creates his own things.
This Toy Drill Set has little screws and nuts that you can use and it is great for fine motor skills!
The drill has worked well for us for the past year, and he feels big having his own drill that “actually works!”
Why We Love Them:
These star projecting night lights are a little pricey for what they do. But they’re also a game changer. There are buttons you press to turn the lights on and different colors. And they then automatically turn off after a certain amount of time.
I love that when my son wakes up in the night he just clicks the light back on and stars illuminate his ceiling and he can go right back to sleep. But he doesn’t have to have an annoying bright light all night.
Seriously, they’re awesome, and they’re worth the money!
Why We Love Them:
Let me preface this by saying that you will likely have to build this one for your little guy! But it’s is a great gift for a 4 year old boy! They love to sit and watch the marbles go around and down and complete the run!
After a while of watching me build it, he can somewhat build his own run, but prefers if I help him.
Our marble run is little like this one, the pieces aren’t big and the marbles are smaller than a normal sized marble. But I like that we can do it on the table away from his baby sister and it’s not crazy tall! Plus it’s great for storage and fits in a small container!
Why We Love Them:
If I had to choose a toy that we loved the most, it would be Kid K’Nex! We have an older set that integrates with duplo legos, that I don’t think they produce anymore. But we have bought a few more of the Kid K’nex boxes to add to it.
The pieces are big enough that little hands can figure out how to get them together. And they are FUN!
My kids create everything you could imagine and more. They make animals, and people and cars and then they play with them.
This is definitely a go-to toy at our house, and I can’t recommend it enough as a gift for a 4 year old boy!
In addition this is one of our favorite creative activities! You can check out the rest here!
Why We Love Them:
If you haven’t seen the Thomas Trackmaster tracks yet, they are seriously awesome! You will love them!
The tracks connect tight so you don’t have to worry about them falling apart while you’re little one is playing. And the trains so on their own so they get to watch them.
But each of the tracks has different elements Thomas goes through that make it interesting and fun. We have a couple of sets, the one you have to reset every time. And the other is just super fun to watch as the track changes for him to get through.
I would recommend to get an additional train so you can watch multiple go at a time!
Well there you have it! Each of these is a great gift for a 4 year old boy. These are things we have in our home and use on a regular, sometimes daily basis!
I’d love to hear what your son loves to play with, and am always looking for fun new ideas!
Comment below and let me know!
If you loved this guide, check out of other gift guides here!
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