This year’s hottest presents for kids are all about getting them outdoors for fun in the sun
Planning on leaving your Christmas shopping to the last minute? Think again — because 2019’s hottest toys are on the brink of selling out.
Retail
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If you haven’t got your Christmas shopping sorted yet, it’s time to get cracking.
Because according to Australia’s biggest retailers, these are the gifts on most Aussie kids’ Christmas wishlist this year — and they’re expected to sell out soon.
Nutritionist Tracie Connor said it was important during the Christmas break for kids to disconnect from electronics and get outside.
“There are so many benefits to play outdoors and we live in a country that offers fantastic weather for it across the holiday season. Outdoor play encourages essential physical activity, it can increase their immune health and overall wellbeing as well as offer an opportunity to use their imaginations and make new discoveries,” she said.
Ms Connor said the holiday season offered families a chance to connect, and parents should look at buying toys that encouraged that this Christmas.
“If looking for toys and activities for the kids, aim for the ones that encourage outdoor play; there are plenty of outdoor toys available to choose from,” she said.
A spokeswoman for Scentre Group, which operates Westfield, said sports equipment, pool toys and scooters were all popular with kids this festive season.
“With the summer holidays fast approaching, it’s no surprise that toys to get kids outdoors and off screens return as a popular trend this Christmas. Parents continue to give hands-on toys such as scooters, pool inflatables and sports equipment,” group general manager of centre experience Lillian Fadel told news.com.au.
“STEM products like robot kits and Lego also continue to be popular, whether it’s lo-tech options or more sophisticated ones.”
Ms Fadel said these toys were a favourite among parents as well given the rise of technology both at home and at school.
“Along with keeping kids entertained for hours, STEM toys mean they can learn new skills or further their interest in STEM-type subjects while they play,” Ms Fadel said.
Fantastic has produced new scooters and Toy Story toys just in time for the Christmas season. The Razor Wild One is the perfect first scooter for kids and is low to the ground for new riders, but the real exciting one is the Razor E Punk, which has an electric motor allowing it to hit speeds of up to 14km/h.
Toy Story 4 was one of the biggest animated films of the year, and the new voice-activated figurines of the main characters are set to be big hits under the tree this year.
Moose Toys believes this season’s biggest sellers will be figurines and plush toys.
“Kids have amazing imaginations and draw inspiration from the world around them. The toys that offer the broadest capacity for imaginative play tend to be the same ones they choose to play with day in day out,” a Moose Toys spokeswoman said.
The newest one from the Moose Toy family is from the popular ABC TV show Bluey.
The soft blue heeler dog is available in two sizes from all major toy outlets throughout Australia.
“We were incredibly excited to launch our soft range of Bluey plush toys back in November, but even we couldn’t have anticipated the amazingly, positive reactions we are seeing from fans young and old,” the spokeswoman said.
There were lots of other exciting toys for kids, and Moose Toys expected a few of their products to be under the tree this year.
“We anticipate Kindi Kids will be on a lot of Christmas lists this year as well as Heroes of Goo Jit Zu (the tactile, goo-filled action heroes) and of course Scruff-a-Luvs, the adorable pet that goes from scruffy to fluffy,” the spokeswoman said.
Retailers Big W, Kmart and Toyworld will all be open in the lead-up to Christmas stocking these gifts and many more.
Originally published as This year’s hottest presents for kids are all about getting them outdoors for fun in the sun