At 10, a boy wants toys to compete with the adults: a two-player strategy game like 7 Wonders Duel, a chemistry kit with real experiments, a Perplexus maze that takes weeks, a 1000-piece puzzle, a model car that starts a serious collection. The gifts that work are the ones not marked "for children" on the box, mastered through method.

What a 10-year-old loves

This is the beginning of the end of childhood: he wants to be taken seriously, play the same games as the grown-ups, and win by strategy. Two-player games take a special place, against a parent or a best friend. He loves sciences that produce something, reactions, crystals, kit dissections, and collectibles whose value he knows. Soft toys stay on the bed, provided they have a sense of humour. Toys can be long, technical and expensive.

Our gift ideas

To play strategically

7 Wonders Duel is the great two-player civilisation game, Captain Flip is a family pirate game, Mythologic is fast deduction, and the Scrabble enters the house for twenty years. The Perplexus Beast is a three-dimensional maze that is not finished in a day. All our board games.

To experiment

The 30-experiment chemistry kit is a real laboratory, the galactic explorer kit heads for space, and the unbreakable wooden magnifier comes along on walks. See our arts and crafts.

To think alone

The Tintin Rocket puzzle has 1000 pieces, the Paris puzzle has 500. All our puzzles.

To collect

The Lego Tintin rocket is the centrepiece of a bedroom, the 1951 Mercury and the Back to the Future DeLorean open a 1/24 collection, the 2CV with its three cyclists tells the Tour de France, and the Concorde really flies. See our cars, boats and planes and our Tintin world.

To read and play cards

The Broken Ear in English gets Tintin read in the language of school, and the Tintin and cars playing cards serve every game. Our books.

To still cuddle

Bretti the yeti, Rufferty the wizard puppy, Steiff's Zoelle zebra and the Siamese cat have the humour it takes to stay on a 10-year-old's bed. All our soft toys.

What budget?

Under 20 euros: Mythologic, the Tintin playing cards, the Paris puzzle, the magnifier, the 1/43 model cars, the album in English or the knitting mushroom. Between 20 and 50 euros: 7 Wonders Duel, Captain Flip, the Perplexus, the 1000-piece puzzle, the explorer kit, the wizard cape, the Mercury and the DeLorean. Above 50 euros: the chemistry kit, the Scrabble, Bretti, Rufferty, the Steiff zebra, the wooden pirate ship or the Lego Tintin rocket, for a gift that leaves a mark.

Frequently asked questions

Which board game at 10?

A strategy game where luck matters little, with thirty to forty-five-minute rounds. 7 Wonders Duel for two, Captain Flip as a family. At this age he reads the rules alone and explains them to others.

Is a chemistry kit at 10 safe?

Yes, with a kit designed for this age, whose products are harmless and whose experiments are guided by the booklet. An adult stays in the room for the first steps, then he works alone.

Can the gift be wrapped?

Yes, gift wrapping is free: tick the box on the product page before adding to cart. Delivery to a pick-up point is free from 80 euros in mainland France, and you can collect your order in our shop at 211 boulevard Saint-Germain, Paris.

See also

• Gifts for a 10-year-old girl
• Gifts for a 9-year-old boy
• Gifts for an 11-year-old boy
• All toys for ages 8 to 12
• All our gift ideas by age

Advice from the team at L'Oiseau de Paradis, a toy shop in Paris since 1932.