I was actually surprised to hear two people debating when it came to what to get a child for Christmas this year. While things like the maximum amount to spend is a normal debate in this case it was more about do you get the child the toy they want or do you buy them something that they could use as a resourceful tool for say school? The thoughts that ran by were things such as they are only a child so let them have fun versus if you start them early now then they will have a huge head start academically later.
I would personally lean towards just getting something that they will have fun with. Generally speaking it’s a gift and I think one of the goals is to get something the person would enjoy. I don’t think a child would normally value an expensive gift certificate to learn algebra at a night school as a example. This is usually more of a debate for adults where you know people often need something resourceful to make their busy lives better.
As a child though I am inclined to say they are still learning and one way to do that is to have fun in ways that stretches their imagination. Kind of like saying if I was trying to teach one financial management I don’t think buying them an accounting software that budgets their allowance would be as effective as simply buying a video game that has money managing aspects in it. Have to cater to your audience as they say.