Looking for just the right gift to give to a child in the elementary or middle school age-range this Christmas season? Give them something that will nurture their faith, and be lots of fun, too!
Art & Building
There’s a reason LEGO toys are beloved everywhere! A LEGO Nativity set will not only keep kids busy building, but also teach them about Jesus and the first Christmas. Another great LEGO set for learning about the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is Father Leopold Celebrates Mass.
Blocks are a classic toy, and these stunning patron saint blocks help your baby learn about the saints while they build and play.
Kids love stickers, and these sweet saint stickers are perfect for tucking in their shoe on St. Nicholas’s Day or their Christmas stocking. This sticker gift set comes with a prayer book and tote bag, or simply sign up for the Catholic Sticker Club and your little one will receive liturgically-themed stickers in the mail every month!
For a lasting keepsake, sturdy vinyl saint stickers (more options here) can be used to decorate water bottles, tablets, or any other special item.
Have fun putting together a puzzle and learn about the Mass at the same time with the Order of the Mass floor puzzle, or learn about the saints with these puzzles.
Kids who love to color can make seriously beautiful art with coloring books for Feasts of Our Lord and Lady, saints and Catholic items, and Mysteries of the Rosary, and even “stained glass” to hang in your windows with Dover’s Nativity stained glass coloring book.
Your little artist will love a subscription to Craft of Faith, featuring hands-on projects that help kids learn about the Bible.
Keep little hands busy with a Future Saint Water Reveal book.
A Catholic pennant is a clever addition to a little athlete’s wall.
Little ones will feel safe and sound falling asleep with a St. Michael the Archangel pillowcase.
Pretend Play
What’s cuter than a little kid wearing a little apron? A little kid wearing a little apron with Our Lady of Guadalupe on it!
Honor your child’s patron saint with a plastic or soft plush doll from Shining Light Dolls, or these natural wooden saints from Saintly Heart.
Dozens of beloved saints come as peg dolls, so kids can play with them again and again, getting to know these Heavenly friends. (You can find even more options by searching “saint peg dolls” on Etsy.) Don’t forget the perfect play set for saint peg dolls, a little church in a box just their size.
Raise your hand if you played Mass as a kid! We sure did, and now your kids can too, even using the proper names and materials with this pop-out paper Mass kit.
For an even more durable (and beautiful!) version, check out wooden Mass kits on Etsy, like this one from Almond Rod Toys or Worthy of Agape.
Little ones who attend Catechesis of the Good Shepherd religious formation have a special devotion to Jesus as the Good Shepherd. Nurture that relationship with their own Good Shepherd play set, either paper or wooden.
Saint dolls are quick and easy to make at home with these lovely saint paper dolls that come as a printable instant download. Bookmark this page for an easy craft on future feast days!
Kids can play teatime, or enjoy a cup of hot chocolate with you, in this beautiful mini mug (made by a Catholic mom!).
Little explorers and kids doing nature study will enjoy this adventure bag and logbook for toting treasures and recording their favorite memories.
Media
The Saints and Heroes video series by CCC of America are Catholic kid classics, teaching the next generation all about the lives of the saints.
The Holy Heroes Glory Stories CDs are a great way for kids to get to know the saints and perfect for car rides (got a holiday road trip coming up?). Older kids can’t miss listening to the TAN Books Story of the Bible CDs.
Brother Francis movies are a great way to introduce younger kids to Catholic beliefs.
A subscription to Formed might just be the best media gift you can give. Kids can access movies, TV shows, audiobooks, CDs, and e-books about the faith.
For the Whole Family
A subscription to Catholic Family Crate is the gift that lasts all year, giving lots of opportunities to grow in faith and create special family memories.
Sign up your budding chef for online cooking classes with Kids Cook Real Food. As your kids learn to make delicious snacks, this gift will benefit the whole family!
Add a fun Catholic twist to family game night with the Alleluia card game, a Catholic card game, Road to Bethlehem game, or FeastDay game that helps kids learn about the liturgical year.
The whole family will be singing along with the delightful music from Making Music, Praying Twice and Roundabout Folk (made by Catholic sisters!).
Learn about living the virtues alongside your kids with the wonderfully designed and written The Virtues for Catholic Youth book.
Books!
Good books help form a person’s character, and a novel about a Catholic family is a gift to last a lifetime. We recommend Hilda Van Stockum’s wonderful Mitchells series, consisting of three books: The Mitchells: Five for Victory, Canadian Summer, and Friendly Gables. And every Catholic kid should read the thrilling classic Outlaws of Ravenhurst. You can find lots of other great ideas over at Good Books for Catholic Kids and Bethlehem Books. Younger kids will love the wonderful picture book options at TAN Books.
Learn all about the 7 Sacraments with this Catechism in LEGO (and a note of caution; do not buy a similar-looking book called The Brick Bible, as it is not suitable for children).
Show kids how they can be saints with the delightful new picture book I’m a Saint in the Making, and introduce the concept of saintly intercession with My Little Book of Patrons.
Wiggly little ones can understand the Mass better through the story of Sam the Guardian Angel, or through Katie Warner’s beautiful picture books that illuminate different aspects of the faith. Older kids can follow along on Catholic time-travel adventures in the Chime Travelers series.
Kids can learn about the great deeds and legacies of North American and Canadian saints thanks to these fun-filled activity books.
Revel in the joy of the Christmas season with this elegant new work, A Child’s Christmas ABC Book: Angels in the Air Arrayed, and these beloved Christmas classic picture books.
Nurturing Prayer and Faith
Kids will appreciate having their own prayer books, especially these fun superhero and fairy tale themed ones, with traditional Catholic prayers.
An icon or image of a child’s patron saint is a meaningful gift (we like the beautiful images of the saints from Light Bearer Designs), especially when paired with an engaging biography of the saint for children.
Encourage a child’s growing prayer life with the Holy Heroes spiritual journal or a Mass journal designed to help kids engage with Scripture and spend time in prayer.
This Catholic growth mindset journal helps kids face life head-on, while the Be Yourself! journals (one for girls and one for boys) help children understand their identity and purpose as children of God.
Kids can learn about the saints in a hands-on, playful way with these Super Saints Cards.
Made especially for children ages 8-12, the Rise Up devotional is “designed to plant the seeds of a prayer life and guide it to blossom.”
Kids often do their best thinking (and praying!) when their hands are occupied, and this Adoration coloring book can help them enter more fully into prayer and learning about Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.
St. Therese was known to use “sacrifice beads” to find little opportunities of serving others. Kids can imitate her example with their own beads set.
These sturdy Rosaries and prayer card sets encourage kids to follow the examples of the shepherd children of Fatima in loving Our Lady.
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And today we celebrate...