← Back to the blog
Some little ones sit with a puzzle for twenty minutes. Others are up, down, across the room and back before you finish your coffee. If you are shopping for the second kind, this list is for you. Every idea here gets a toddler or preschooler moving, swinging, tossing or cheering, and most cost less than $25.
We picked these the way we pick games for class: simple, safe, and fun enough that a child asks to do it again tomorrow. The skills are the same ones we work on in class (catching, carrying, sending, aiming and rallying), even when the game is different.
Ten gifts that get little players moving
- A bag of balloons (about $5). The best first racket toy in the world is a balloon. It floats slowly, it never hurts, and a two-foot-tall player can actually hit it. Tie one on a string to a doorframe and you have a hitting station for a week.
- A first paddle (about $15 to $25). Look for one around 5 ounces, 12 to 13 inches long, with a small grip. Our first paddle guide has the size chart and a few examples. A paddle that fits a little hand gets used. A grown-up paddle sits in the closet.
- Foam balls (about $10 for a set). Soft, bright and slow. Rolling, tossing and tapping foam balls builds the tracking and catching that every racket skill sits on. They are also quiet, which parents appreciate.
- Racky’s Play Pack ($9.99, print at home). Ten games built on the same five skills we work on in every Ready Set Rackets class, as printable cards, plus a 30-day calendar, a star chart for the fridge, six Racky coloring pages and a certificate. It lands in your inbox right after checkout, so it is the gift that still works on December 24. Get it in Racky’s Shop.
- Both Racky books, signed ($24.99 shipped). Color With Racky and Racky’s Activity Book, signed by Coach Tyler, with a sticker inside. Order by December 10 for the holidays. Also on Amazon, unsigned, $9.99 each.
- A roll of painter’s tape (about $5). Tape on the floor turns a hallway into a river to walk along, a target to aim at or a line to rally over. It peels off clean. Pair it with the Play Pack and you have a month of games.
- A small laundry basket or bucket, just for them (about $8). Fill the basket is a class favorite. A basket that belongs to the child becomes the target for every toss, and cleanup turns into a game too.
- Paper plates and a marker (about $4). Two paper plates make an alligator mouth that catches balloons. One plate on a stick is a first paddle. Draw a face on it and it is Racky’s cousin.
- A session of classes (gift card). If you live near one of our Pennsylvania locations, a session of Ready Set Rackets is a gift that shows up every week for five weeks. A grown-up plays right alongside. See the schedule and we will make a printable gift note for the stocking.
- The Racky plush (not real yet). Enough families have asked that we are thinking about making one. If your little one would hug a paddle with a goofy smile, join the waitlist. It is free, and you hear first if it happens.
A few things to skip
Full-size rackets and hard balls are too heavy for little hands and can sting. Anything that needs a net or a court will mostly stay in the box. And battery-powered gadgets that do the moving for the child teach very little. The best gifts here put the child in charge of the swing.
How to wrap a printable
Print the Play Pack on regular paper, roll it up and tie it with ribbon, and tuck a balloon inside. On the morning of, blow up the balloon and play Balloon Bop before breakfast. That is the whole present, and it will get played with more than anything else under the tree.
Want the games before you buy anything? Racky’s free 10-day First Swing Challenge sends one short game a day by email. Start there, then come back for the pack.
