Useful Stocking Stuffers for Children

Ditch the stress of all the clutter and junk this Christmas, Instead, grab useful stocking stuffers for children and have some meaningful fun!

I don’t know about you but some years I think I have all the shopping done. Then I remember: we have to fill some stockings, too.

Sometimes I forget to budget for them, too. So it’s a double problem: I want to find useful stocking stuffers for children but I don’t want to spend a fortune.

So check out this list and make sure stockings will be the hit of Christmas day. Save time, save money, save landfills from broken junky toys with useful stocking stuffers for children.

Stocking Stuffers for Children that aren’t Junk

You are a busy parent. You don’t have time to mess around with junky toys.

So this year, get useful stocking stuffers for children. Purchase items that are fun but also purposeful.

The best part of this list?

Almost all of these items can be found at your local big-box store so grab your mask and go shopping without the kids.

• Related: What You Need to Know about How Target Drive Up Works

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A lot of these items can also be found at your local Dollar Tree – but make sure it’s a quality brand you recognize. Don’t waste money on off-brand crayons or markers that won’t work well.

Play Doh

Listen, I know it can be a mess. But it’s so good for their little hands and fine motor skills.

Plus it’s cheap and it takes up a lot of room in a stocking.

Letter Sound Fine Motor Printables

We like to use play-doh with our Letter Sound Fine Motor pintables. So set a boundary – both for time (only 20 minutes) and physical space (at the kitchen table only) and let your children roll and pinch and get ready to write.

Expo Markers

Dry erase markers are so great for checking off routines on printables or practicing printing letters.

But did you know your child can write on a window or sliding glass door and it wipes off?

But sure to test – maybe your windows are old and it won’t work.

Hot Wheels Cars

Matchbox cars or Hot Wheels cars are super fun in a stocking. They are a purposeful toy that invites all sorts of creative play.

My son takes them into his sandbox, then later we give them a car wash in a sensory bin (don’t dump the sand down the drain!)

We also use Hot Wheele cars on our Road Letters and Numbers Printables.

Alphabet Magnets

Alphabet magnets are so useful for matching on alphabet printables or building words.  You can put them in a sensory bin of water and give your child a spoon to make alphabet soup.

I hide them in Easter eggs and have my son hunt for them. Plus, if you don’t have a magnetic fridge, use a cookie sheet.

Dot Stickers

This is by far the most requested item link I get from parents like you. Dot stickers are so fun and great for building a good pencil grip.

Have you grabbed this free Lowercase Letters printable yet? You can print it out, add some dot stickers, and put that in the stocking too!

Washable Markers

My children’s new markers for the school year are all dried up by now. So this is a good time to get another set!

We’re trying out smelly markers for the first time this year!

Fun Toothbrushes

It’s probably time to replace your children’s toothbrushes anyway. So grab their favorite themed toothbrush and add that to their stocking.

My children are just as enthusiastic about the toothbrushes as they are about the inevitable candy – haha!

Glitter Glue

Glitter glue – the easiest way to do crafts without all the mess of regular glitter. This gets my four-year-old engaged in craft projects like no other tool!

Plus it’s really good for squeezing and working those hand muscles.

Your children will love seeing this in their stockings.

Themed Band-Aids for Kids

We get character band-aids at Christmas. Again, this is something my rough and tumble children need anyway.

So we spend an extra dollar and get the cute ones at Christmas for the stockings.

Post-it Notes

I love post its for making a quick game for my children. Grab a piece of construction paper and write 5-6 letters for preschoolers or 5-6 sight words for older children.

Then write them on a post it.  Hide the post its in the room and invite your child to match them.

In the fall we used apple-themed post-its and a piece of white paper to make an alphabet tree. The sky’s the limit with post-its and activities.

Fidget Toys

With all the distance learning, fidgets are more important now than ever.  For a lot of kids (and adults!), keeping their hands busy allows their mind to focus more on what they are learning.

I love to play with this Wacky Tracks toy, too. It bends and clicks in lots of ways.

• Related: Best Sensory Toys for Children

Socks

This is a tradition now. My children know they’ll get a pair or several of fun socks in their stockings.

It’s practical, it takes up a bunch of room, and they look forward to it.

This year I went with Paw Patrol (shhhh).

Conclusion

Stockings can be really expensive if you fill them only with high-quality toys. So instead grab some useful stocking stuffers for children. Hit your local grocery store or big box store and stock up on fun supplies you know you’re children will need.

What else do you like to put in stockings?