[ObsessedByFIAT]

This is kind of an usual question, which a parent might ask, but trust me, I am very bad at gifting and so is my better half! That's why reaching out here to get some ideas for a gift for my son, who is going to turn 12 very soon!

A bit about the kid:

Hyperactive, intelligent, witty with words and thoughts, a bit impatient, always wants to explore something new.

Now, he already has the usual suspects - a freemotion 2 bycycle, a nerf gun, dart board etc. You get the drift.

I am thoroughly confused with what could be a good gift for him.
He has recently picked up a few hobbies, cricket, chess and bird watching, for which he already has a full cricket set, an amazing chess board and a good camera. He is doing pretty well at all these and beyond my expectations.

I wish to gift him something that stimulates his brain, he finds it new and interesting (atleast for sometime) and he gets to explore something new.

Any and all the ideas are welcome within reasonable budget of a middle class father!

[condor]

May be a guitar ? Indian classical instruments can be considered, too.

If he takes it up, then he is going to have to put in effort in practice and classes, and this will bring in a certain discipline too.


Robotics kits is another option, based on his interests.

However, after all the suggestions come in, you will be the best judge since you would know what kind of things has piqued his interest.

Also try to get him slowly into physical training. Will go a long way in him maintaining his health, while he gets stronger. This can also be a further push into systematic cycling.

Edit:
Like @vik99 says below, a joint activity will be excellent - both from a father-son bonding perspective, and also guiding your son step-by-step so he can be independent in these activities. Cycling especially out on the road is best under a watchful eye.

A point I missed to add above:

I would prefer kids step outdoors, and develop a strong liking to outdoor activities. Books - hard or soft copy can give them a good past-time, but this is not beneficial in the long run, health-wise.

Hiking & Trekking is a good activity too.

[revsperminute]

Kids these days are such geniuses. I played with RC cars all day and dreamt of building the world's biggest Hotwheels collection when I was 12. If he already has all the materialistic stuff he needs, why not gift him an experience? Spend a day with him doing something new. I am 20 now and whenever I think of the happiest moments of my childhood, the experiences I shared with my parents come to mind much before the gifts I received.

[vik99]

Originally Posted by condor

Also try to get him slowly into physical training. Will go a long way in him maintaining his health, while he gets stronger.

Adding to this, perhaps you could get him enrolled for swimming lessons or even better both of you could take classes (assuming he/you don’t already know how to swim). It could turn out to be a fun activity which also strengthens the father son bond.

Sure this isn’t a gift in the traditional sense, but apart from being a life saving skill, swimming is pretty good exercise!

[sdp1975]

I have 12 year old twins and I bought them Amazon kindles sometime ago. I keep buying books for them regularly and they enjoy reading them, mostly fiction. Of course you can also consider buying the usual paperback books. I think that reading is a nice habit to develop in kids.

[HowardRoark]

1. A gym set: Set your son on a healthy path for his life and you can start with very basic dumbells and keep on adding.
2. Ham Radio: I think anyone above age 12(please confirm it) can start studying and applying for restricted ham radio operator. It will keep him sharp and be part of ham radio community. Once he passes the exam you can gift him some radio equipment.
3. Tinkering: You can start a weekly or monthly tinkering time with your son where both of you work on something together. It can be his bicycle oiling and maintenance or repairing some equipment. My grandpa did this and I cherish those moments.

[Amrik Singh]

A healthy body is necessary for a good mental condition too. The youth of today is poor in physical activity. I would suggest some Gym equipment e.g. Dumbbells, Treadmill or something similar to his liking.

[ObsessedByFIAT]

Really honoured by all the replies and some thought provoking suggestions!

My kid already has access to a Gibson Guitar, Casio keyboard, bongo and a djembe. Initially he was a found of singing and still does sing well, but he is not interested in pursuing it further professionally.

As regards with the father-Son duo activities, both of us get cracking at every opportunity. Infact, there are a few things which I got to learn from him!

Health is one aspect he has been a little of the track with. He is taking cricket classes and doing good in leg spin bowling. But I don't think it's going to last any longer. He has already started to loose intrest.

That's the whole dilemma which brought me here! It's really hard to keep him hooked on to one single thing for too long. As with every other kid, his interests keep changing which is making it hard for me to find something new!

I sincerely appreciate all your views and suggestions and they sure are giving me a wider perspective! Can't thank enough!

[Capri89]

Introduce him to Astronomy. Space is infinite and to lose interest there would be bit hard because he could discover something new everyday.

You may buy a binocular or a small telescope too.

It would also encourage him to be outdoors and get fresh air. It also acts as a family activity and adds to the bonding time.

[Jeroen]

How about a nice Lego Technics set?
A
They can be quite the challenge to put together and are very educational in terms of learning mechanics, three dimensional thinking

As others mentioned a RC car might be good to. I think you need to make sure not to buy toy stuff, but hobby stuff.

Jeroen

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by ObsessedByFIAT

He is doing pretty well at all these and beyond my expectations.

Give him some freedom sir; from your expectations. He will do well.

Give him some quality time sir. He will fare well.

Give him the right to choose sir. He will pick well.

Give him everything that you, as a father, alone can give him.

Being is, specifically for an adolescent, far far more important than buying.

Trust me, he will turn out fine.

Best wishes.

[rajeevsulu]

This is the agevwhen most if not all kids are confused a bit! Let them be, they will find something very interesting and rewarding. Once he does, just help him with it. It is best he finds it on his own! Cheers

[download2live]

Kids will typically try out several things before deciding on something to stick with. This generation is having too much of electronic media in their lives. Stuff which has been designed by psychologist to get young minds addicted.

So my vote goes to outdoor sports which happen to be team sports. Anything. But it should involve teamwork.

[Haldian]

I was going to recommend a point and shoot camera or a good pair of binoculars. But he might already have these (at least the camera as mentioned). My reason for suggesting these is due to nurturing their creativity at this age and giving them the opportunity to view the world with their own lens.
On similar lines, one item that comes to mind is drawing pad attachment for computers.

[Amrik Singh]

Originally Posted by Jeroen

How about a nice Lego Technics set?
A
They can be quite the challenge to put together and are very educational in terms of learning mechanics, three dimensional thinking

Lego is new name with all plastic while Meccano is something much older and Metal. Check on their website