Busy Bags ~ Incorporating them into your days.

 

I have spent the last month sharing with you many busy bag ideas. this post will share with you how we actually use them all.  I do not give my kids a free for all with them.  Maybe one day. 

I store them in a drawer unit which is inside of a closet.  One day my intention is to sort them by age range in the drawers. 

Yea, one day that’s what I’ll do.

Probably when the kids are older. 

That will be great since they will be to old to want to get into them anymore.  Yea, then they will stay organized. 

I switch out his activities one at a time, every few days or so, I take one out and add a new one in.  That way, I only have to teach him one new activity at a time.  He has a crate that I store all his current activities in.  When I need him to be doing something else (as in something different that what he he is currently doing), I move the crate right to him and he goes right to it. 

Here is a week’s (or whatever) worth of activities.

This one is a tot book from Carissa at 1+1+1=1

 

Many of these activities I (or one of the other kids) get him started with and he is usually content to finish up or at least work on it for a while by himself.

This system has really been working out quite well for us.

I hope you have learned many new busy bag ideas.

In case you missed my series, here it is:

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Thanks so much and please take the time to follow me.

Busy Bag-A-Thon ~Week 4~

 

Here we are in our 4th and final week.  Thank you for joining me each Sunday with our Busy Bag-A-Thon.  In case you missed Week 1, Week 2, or Week 3 check them out!

 

1. Simple coloring book page puzzles.  Color and cut out a simple coloring book page and turn it into a puzzle.
2. Bucket of animals into an egg carton.  Have your child use a spoon or tongs to transfer objects to an egg carton.
3. Shape sewing.  Thread yard through a simple shape.  Use a hole punch around a theme picture.  Have child thread yarn through each hole.
4. Magnetic letters.  Spell words or practice letter or sound recognition.
5. Put the fire out.  Color a fire on a small sheet of paper and write a number on it.  Your child needs to use that many toy plastic firemen to put the fire out.  (Firemen are available at the dollar store.  Other ideas here could be how many Indians fit in the Tee Pee, how many soldiers fit in the tank, etc.
6. Simple children’s board games like Topple, or Jenga.  Then child can play these games alone.  Think about what fun quality time this would be to spend with your child.
7. Homemade number flashcards
8. Melting beads.  Even if you don’t melt the beads every time, or if your child doesn’t finish the project, think of the hand dexterity used for this activity.

Thanks so much for joining me this past month.  I hope you gained great insight as to activities that will keep your toddler/preschoolers entertained and more!

Don’t forget to follow Family Style School.

This is linked to:

We are that Family / Works for me Wednesday

Busy Bag-A-Thon Week 3

 

Welcome to week 3 of our Busy Bag-A-Thon.

If you missed week one and week two check them out!

This week has some ideas for older kids as well. 

1. File Folder games!  Many can be found at File folder Fun!
2. Coloring book and crayons
3. Stacking cups
4. Felt Cupcakes.  Cut out cupcake part shapes and have child assemble them
5. Math games.  This one is from Confessions of a Homeschooler.
6. Play dough and play dough mats.  Put sheets of paper inside sheet protector for playdough fun!
7. Simple puzzles from the dollar store
8. Shape tracing- cut shapes out of foam.  Have child trace onto paper
9. Mad libs.  You can read and write for younger kids.  These are always great to keep in your purse for older kids.
10. Sound matching games.  This one is from Kidssoup.com
11. Sticker sheets and blank paper.  - This is great for those free sticker sheets they send you in the mail.
12. Kid Song CD’s.  This one is from Maestro Classics.
13. Small plastic container and lid matching.  This one is for numbers, but can be used for many things, letters, colors, shapes, etc.  These are from the dollar store.
14. Animal Sorting game.  From Homeschool Creations.
15. Electronic Flashcards… However, you can make your own version of this by using regular flashcards and playing games with them.

Busy Bag-A-Thon ~ Week 2

Welcome back!

This is week 2 of my 4 week busy bag-a-thon! 

It seems like this time of year we need more activities to be able to keep our toddlers and preschoolers busy, older kids back in school or being homeschooled, and the holidays quickly approaching.  I hope these ideas make your life and your toddlers life so much fun! 

Every Sunday I will post a bunch new busy bag ideas!   Stay tuned and in case you missed last week, here it is!

1. Shape matching disk.  Use clothes pins with shapes drawn on them and shape cut outs on a disk.  Double side it!  (See #2)
2. Color match using clothes pins and opposite side of shape matching disk (#1).
3. Threading game.  Thread shapes of felt onto ribbon with buttons attached.
4. Color popsicles. Colored felt sewn into rectangles that thread over popsicle sticks with color words and matching colors on them.
5. Clothes line game. Cut felt into clothing shapes, string line across two items, (I use kitchen chairs) and have child hang clothes to dry.
6. Letter flashcards on a key chain.
7. Shape making game.  Have sheet with the number of sticks needed to build each shape.  This is really good for older kids.
8. Fun play letters.  Pretend play that requires imagination- So great!
9. Colorful shape making game. This is an easier version of #7 for younger kids.

I hope you are able to keep your toddles busy this time of year. 

This post is linked to

Works For Me Wednesday at We Are That Family

Busy Bag-A-Thon ~Week 1~

 

Welcome to my Busy Bag-A-Thon!

It seems like this time of year we are needing to find more things to keep our toddlers and preschoolers busy.   I have recently participated in a busy bag swap and have acquired quite a few ideas.  Some are my own, but many are from the swap. 

Each Sunday for a total of 4 weeks I will be posting a variety of busy bag ideas.

 

1. Simply a nut can with shape holes cut in the lid and pom poms to stick through.  So simple, yet so fun. 
2. A bean bag and a piece of string.  Be creative here, make a shape to through the bean bag in.  Have your child walk the string line with the bean bag on their head.
3. Paint chip matching with clothespins.
4. Shape pictures.  Cut out colorful shapes and create designs with them.  Take pictures of each design for your child to recreate.
5. Homemade I Spy book.  Take pictures of groups of your child’s toys, then take individual pictures a few toys for them to find.
6. Button Shape Matching.  Cut out or trace shapes of buttons and  have your child match buttons to them.
7. Bug matching game. Use simple clipart to create a matching game for your child.
8. Sticker matching game. Put fun sticker shapes on one side of the paper, have your child match it on the other side.
9. Popsicle stick puzzle.  Use white glue or Modge Podge to glue a picture on the sticks and then cut apart.  Have a second picture so your child can know what they are building.
10. String pony beads on pipe cleaners.
11. Homemade marble maze.  Take two pieces of felt and sew together, with a marble inside and sew lines partway across.

This is linked up to:

Works for me Wednesday at We Are That Family