A five-year-old girl with a little sister/brother will undoubtedly already feel very big. Not adult, but big. And that’s true, because in height she will indeed stand taller. In cognition and the degree of her social-emotional capacity, she will also be much further along. In school she will feel more and more real responsibility for her younger classmates. For her fifth birthday, the girl deserves a gift that suits her. In this blog, you will find the best gifts for a 5-year-old girl and all the relevant information that matches her life stage.
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Developmental Stage of a 5-Year-Old Girl
Your girl of (almost) five years is still a toddler. Although she is very aware that some children are much ‘younger’ and others are ‘older’, it is not the case that her whole development is complete. On the contrary, she is still part of the development that may continue for decades.
Changes you will notice in a 5-year-old girl can be organized on cognitive, social-emotional, and physical levels.
First of all, the physical level. A girl will generally have a lot of physical energy. Running, jumping, hopping, cycling, balancing; these are terms you will hear throughout the day. Coordination is not yet what it should be, but it is certainly present to some extent. In terms of fine motor skills, the girl will be busy with cutting, coloring, and solving simple puzzles. Naturally, a lot of cognition is involved in this.
The cognitive development of a 5-year-old girl is quite remarkable. She develops a greater understanding of cause and effect and becomes increasingly better at counting and recognizing letters and numbers. Sentences are produced at a more complex level (various tenses mixed together) and there is an expansion of vocabulary. Additionally, interest is shown in stories, and imaginative scenarios are devised, explained, and acted out. This acting out happens more often with peers, although parallel play will still be present.
Empathy, cooperation, sharing, and identification will be central on a social-emotional level. Parents/caregivers are still needed for reassurance, but a five-year-old girl will become increasingly independent. Know that this is just one possibility of what is possible. If your 5-year-old girl is not yet busy with this, there is no reason to panic. Not every child works at the same pace, some are slower, others extremely fast.
Don’ts (types of gifts you don’t want to buy for a 5-year-old girl)
We could talk endlessly about gifts that are incredibly fun for a 5-year-old girl. Take a look at our top 20 best gifts for a five-year-old girl. You will be amazed at the possibilities. However, there are also some types of gifts that you should avoid buying for a five-year-old girl for several reasons. For example, if you go for a craft set, choose one with water-based materials. Crafts can be messy, and water-based paint is easier to clean from clothes than oil-based paint, just to give an example. Think like a five-year-old to determine what might make a good gift.
What is an appropriate budget for this age?
An appropriate budget is merely a reflection of ‘what if.’ A ‘what if’ in the sense that you don’t need to feel obligated to spend a certain amount. If you are a bit tight on money this month, a five-pound gift might be just as nice as a sixty-pound gift. The emotions of the dear girl can be all over the place, so what she thinks of it will be a surprise anyway.
- Parents/caregivers: £30.00 to …
- Immediate family members (uncle & aunt, grandparents): £10.00 to £50.00
- Neighbors/acquaintances: £5.00 – £20.00
For all people who might fall under a different title than neighbors/acquaintances, we recommend a similar budget as described above.
Additional Tips
Finally, a few tips that are not entirely unimportant. You should realize that a child at the end of their sixth year may become quite interested in letters and thus reading. It’s good to keep this in mind, but don’t bring a book for beginning readers just yet. At this age, it is much more interesting to read to them. Reading aloud enriches vocabulary, stimulates imagination and language skills, and strengthens the bond between parent and child. It lays the foundation for reading enjoyment and cognitive growth, offering lifelong benefits. So consider where you focus and whether it is relevant for, in this case, a five-year-old girl.
1. Craft Supplies
Scissors, pencils, finger paints, paper, stickers, glue, stamps, and coloring books. You name it, and a five-year-old will dream about it every night. Given that she has been playing with the same things for the past few years, you can understand that there isn’t much good left of them. In other words, it’s time for a nice replacement. Think of a whole new set of scented markers or a clean, new set of papers to cut up again. Wonderful, right? And you know, as long as it has glitters, is made in a certain color, and does what it’s supposed to do, you can make most five-year-olds happy. What a life, to be so young.
2. Children’s Makeup
With a fun makeup set, the girl can express her creativity and play imaginative games while learning about colors and textures. Overall, it’s a fun way to stimulate her imagination and let her experiment with different looks. What makes this makeup ‘children’s makeup’ is that it is made of child-friendly materials. Moreover, it’s not very expensive, so it’s not a big deal if, for example, a lipstick breaks or a pile of eyeshadow crumbles. Anyway, it’s a fantastic item for a five-year-old girl. And if you’re already in this area, scroll down to number 6 on this list.
3. Puzzles
The big girl of 5 years has been at some sort of preschool/ primary school for a while now. That is, of course, the place where you are learning a lot. However, it’s not the case that you can’t make puzzles at home anymore. There won’t be any teacher who forbids it. So, if this girl specifically has a passion for making puzzles, you should give that to her for her birthday. At least, if you also enjoy giving and doing puzzles. Choose a puzzle with a theme from her favorite TV show or one that varies in difficulty. There is plenty to find in puzzle land, so make the most of it.
4. Nail Stickers
Look, many things are not good for you. In fact, some things make you wonder why they are tolerated, ever invented, and still normalized. Think: smoking, drinking alcohol, eating unhealthy food, etc. Fortunately, these are all things your five-year-old hardly has to deal with. However, there is something she is probably interested in that isn’t really good for her. Or well, not good for her nails, and that is, you guessed it, nail polish. Luckily, some smart entrepreneurs have found a solution for this: nail stickers. It’s an accessible way to make your nails prettier. If she’s done with it, she can take it off easily, and if not, she can leave it on for another day. After a bit of fiddling with dad or mom, it’s also quickly applied, so that shouldn’t be a problem either.
5. Games
The beauty of being a child is that you get to play all day long. You are so spoiled that your parents would actually prefer you to play all day and not bother them with the fact that you are bored. But of course, you need something to do. A nice gift to ensure a five-year-old doesn’t get bored is a game. These games range from outdoor games to games you pull out at the kitchen table on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Note that a game is not initially perceived as very fun. You don’t know what to do, it takes a lot of time to figure it out, and before you get that far, you’ve already given up. Therefore, it’s important to play a game with the five-year-old first before letting her play it alone or with friends/siblings. A free tip from us to you.
6. Dress-Up Clothes
Yes, here it is, number six. If you’ve done your makeup nicely, it’s super fun to dress up too. Maybe you’re a policewoman, a tough dragon, or a cute fairy. Either way, the clothes complete the look, and the look completes the dress-up. A perfect combination in which the five-year-old can completely lose herself. Sounds like a fun afternoon where the clothes are flying around, cheeks are completely red, and you’re sitting with an overtired but satisfied toddler in the evening. Because a toddler, that’s what she still is. She is already much more independent than a year ago, but she is still very young and dependent on the people around her.
7. Unicorn
Unicorns are the perfect companion for a 5-year-old girl! From unicorn pajamas to unicorn plushies, she will love everything related to these magical creatures. Think of a unicorn backpack for school, a unicorn mug for her favorite drink, and even a unicorn dollhouse for hours of fun. With unicorn stickers, she can decorate her belongings, and with a unicorn dress-up costume, she can transform herself into her favorite mythical creature. Unicorns will certainly spark her imagination! So no matter what you buy around this theme, a unicorn is always a good idea.
8. Bike
Now that this girl probably has been going to school for a while, it’s time to get a good bike for her to get around on. Whether she can ride a bike or not, you have to start somewhere. We recommend buying a bike with training wheels so that she can confidently go straight ahead for the first while. It’s also good because cycling in real traffic is quite different from cycling back and forth on the street. Well, a bike gives, as you probably know, a sense of freedom, adventure, and independence. Great to be able to give this to a five-year-old girl at this age. She will probably keep cycling for the rest of her life, so you can’t approach it positively enough.
9. Books
A good book for a five-year-old is like a magical door to a world full of adventure and imagination. It not only stimulates her fantasy but also helps with language development, concentration, and empathy. Moreover, books are the best friends whose batteries never run out and never crash! So while other devices may lose their magic, books always enchant. And let’s be honest, who doesn’t need a bit of magic in their life? Since the five-year-old can’t read by herself yet, it’s an adult (or older sibling) who reads to her. You also want them to enjoy reading, or do we see that wrong?
10. Lego
Around this time, it’s okay to transition from something like Duplo to Lego. Fine motor skills are better, and patience or concentration is also better. Additionally, with Lego, children can create beautiful constructions. In terms of development, it will further develop problem-solving skills, spatial awareness, and fine motor skills. All in all, a great way to improve everything, although the most important thing is, of course, that she enjoys it. If you know in advance that building with Lego is not for the girl, don’t burn your fingers on it. That also applies to the 9 other categories we have described in this blog.
