Activity Kits

Whenever we go on a trip whether it be overseas or to a restaurant or the doctor's office, I create activity kits to keep James occupied. These are basically games and toys separated into individual zipper bags (which I found at a dollar store).

The fact that the objects are kept in their own bags makes them easy to grab while we're en route, handy to carry around and simple to clean up. I choose things that I know will intrigue and entertain James. I always make these kits well in advance and then hide them until the trip so they're new and interesting.

Below is a collection of kits I've created for past trips. You can click here to see some others I've made when James was younger. Note, we don't bring along ALL of these on each trip. The contents change as James does. :)

Memory game. I purchased this beautiful handmade game here.

Matching numbers to pictures.

Animals. James loves these Toob animals and goes off into his own world whenever he plays with them. :)

CVC cards.

Linkable shapes to sort by color or shape.

Fruit & vegetable matching game.

Math in a bag.

Button snake.

ASL cards. I found these on abcteach.

Art matching game.

Modeling beeswax. This is a nice, time consuming activity because you really have to warm the wax up in your hands before it becomes malleable.

Playdough & a few cutters. As you all know, I prefer homemade playdough, but it doesn't keep well during travel, so I opt for the teeny-tiny jars of Play-Doh.

Dry-erase tracing letter cards.

Lacing number beads.

Peg games.

Open and close items.

Stickers and a little "sticker book" - just a bunch of scrap paper stapled together. (Samson is my friend's son's name - I created some activity kits for her to take on a trip.)

Lacing shapes.

Peg stackers - we love these! You can find them here.

Clothespins - an excellent fine motor activity. James can try to match the pins to the holes or to the numbers on the card.

Counting/number puzzle - I found this somewhere on the island, but it's available here.

Big bag of sorting fun! This is an oldie, but goodie - James just loves it. He can sort these things either by color or object.

Color cards. These would go well with the above-mentioned sorting bag.

Lock and key.

Constellation matching - these are the same cards we used during our space unit.

Other activity ideas:
:: Small books
:: Crayons in a handy-dandy crayon roll
:: Mini Mudpuppy sticker scenes.
:: Three part cards
:: Nomenclature cards (family cards are great, if you're getting ready to visit relatives)
:: A few drawers from the alphabet box
:: Spinny speller
:: Brain Quest deck
:: Paper people

~Thank you for your comments~