At age 9, both of my daughters began taking on more grown-up tasks: My oldest daughter fell in love with baking, whipping up cookies, cupcakes, and other sweet treats. My younger daughter asked for a sewing machine, wanting to try her hand at making and embellishing clothes.

When it comes to presents, you might consider giving kids this age more-grown-up toys and tools. Real tools can increase engagement with a hobby and are likely to last longer than their toy counterparts. Years later, my now teenage daughter treasures (and continues to bake with) the cookie cutters she received as gifts; my younger daughter still uses her sewing machine, embellishing her clothes and even learning to make her own.

Many 9-year-olds are also deepening their friendships and spending more time socializing with other kids. Sports equipment, like a light-up frisbee, and games, such as novel versions of classics like chess, dominos, and Trivial Pursuit, can encourage group fun.

I tested potential gifts with my own kids, interviewed child-development experts, surveyed parents and caregivers, and tapped into the wisdom of more than half a dozen other Wirecutter parents to draw up this list of gift recommendations for 9-year-olds.

If your child is drawn to cooking and baking, you may also want to check out our collection of cooking tools for kids. Our guide to fiber crafts for adults includes some projects that may be appealing for artsy 9-year-olds. We also offer more gift ideas for 8-year-olds, 10-year-olds, and tweens. See all our kid gift ideas here.