Summer Fun (and Learning, Too!) Tips for a Tech-Free Road Trip
Ah, summer time! The time for road trips and family memories! And it all goes off without a single hitch? Right?!? Maybe not. When traveling with kids, we all know it is not that easy! When my kids were little, we didn’t own a tablet. With a long seven hours of riding in the car to California ahead of us, I knew that I had to find some way to keep them busy. I also knew I didn’t want to blow our entire vacation budget on items that we needed just to get there. I needed a system, and fast!
Here’s what I did:
STEP 1
Get a bin that fits on the floor of your car in the back seat. I have two kids, so I had two bins, one below each of their seats. (I love the dollar store for this kind of thing, just make sure it is sturdy so it doesn’t break if they step on it).
STEP 2
Fill the bin with items that your child only gets to play with while they are in the car. Involve them in this process, this will get them excited about their busy bin for future trips! We typically saved any fast food toys/books for this purpose. (Hey, they were already in the car and it didn't cost any extra! Plus, who doesn’t love those little plastic toys that come with the fries?) Other items included mess free markers with the special paper, the magic water marker books, twistable colored pencils, mini pads of paper, stickers, mini Etch-a-Sketches, and some sensory toys like individual light up fans and squishy balls. My mother-in-law also made these treasure hunt pouches for the kids with a list of objects inside (one with words for my older child and one with pictures for my younger one).
STEP 3
Place the bins on the floor of the car (or they can fit in the middle of the car, or wherever else you have room!). They can bring them up to their laps when they want to dig through them. Because their legs are still dangling, they should have plenty of space for their feet. As my kids grew, they didn’t mind their feet resting on top of the stuff anyway.
Congratulations!!! Your child now has their very own Busy Bin!
We used these bins not only for road trips, but for everyday errands. My kids were always excited to get in the car because they anticipated playing with the things in their bin. For longer trips a few new things were added, such as a new sticker book, fresh and fun pens/twisty crayons, or perhaps even a few little candies. They always had great suggestions of what else could go in there, and I’m sure your kids will too
!
Extra bonus: Whenever children play with physical objects, all kinds of brain development occurs. They are talking about their toys, expanding their language skills. They are using whatever objects they have available to represent other things, which is called symbolic play. They are developing socially as they share, interact, and collaborate. They are acting out play routines, participating in what is called dramatic play.
Keep in touch!
What does your bin have in it? Leave a comment below!!