Wednesday, March 20, 2019

6 Simple Busy Bags for Siblings

Six simple and easy-to-prep busy bags that will keep kids of all ages playing and learning together whilst on-the-go.



My kids are 2 and 5 years old and have always loved the novelty of busy bags. Here are six of their favorites! 

I love using Bumkins snack bags to contain each activity because they are durable, washable, and best of all come in loads of fun patterns. I often make a few bags at a time ready for the week ahead.


Materials needed:
- A4 paper folded into an 8-page mini book (@teacher_types on Instagram has a great video tutorial for how to do this)
- selection of markers or crayons, we also love using Kwik Stix


The open-ended nature of this task is so fulfilling for kids. My son thought it was the best thing ever that he got to make his very own book! Baby sis was obviously more into just mark making, but she also liked being able to turn the pages. Providing different drawing and writing utensils also adds a fun factor.



Materials needed:
- small letters (we used stickers and magnetic letters, both from Target)
- alphabet mat (thank you to Chick-Fil-A for providing these awesome ones, otherwise you could just write out the alphabet in colorful markers)


This bright and colorful invitation to match letters was a fun hands on activity. Big bro used the stickers to match the letters in each box. For baby sis this was more about exposure to letters as she is only 2. She of course also enjoyed working on her fine motor skills with the letters and looking at the pictures on the mat.



Materials needed:
- mini vehicles (we used Tiny Tonkas and Micro Machines)
- Dollar Tree mini Jenga-style blocks 
- small road tape (found in Target dollar bins)


Simply cover the blocks with road tape and challenge your kids to construct a little city. My son is car crazy so he thought this one was pretty cool!



Materials needed:
- large colored popsicle sticks (purchased at Target)
- velcro dots (purchased at Dollar Tree)


This busy bag is definitely baby sis' absolute favorite. So much so it gets used most weeks! She enjoys the sensory experience of working with velcro, as well as developing her color recognition and vocabulary. She likes to make colorful long lines and shapes.



Materials needed:
- wooden clothes pegs (purchased at Walmart)


Kwik Stix are perfect for adding color to wooden clothes pegs! Challenge your kids to match the colors by attaching the pegs to the craft sticks. This is a great fine motor skill workout for them! You can tailor the challenge to the age of your kids by varying the number of colors you include.



Materials needed:
- sketch book
- pencils
- line markers (purchased at Dollar Tree)
- mini washi tape (purchased at Dollar Tree)
- we used one of the larger Bumkins wet bags for this one


This open-ended busy bag never fails to keep both my kids creatively entertained. To be honest it really doesn't matter what you put inside. Try to just offer an opportunity for your kids to freely create with a variety of materials. This is great for fine motor skills, creativity, mark making, language development and so much more!


Feeling inspired? The best place to start is with a trip to somewhere like the Dollar Tree or Target to pick up some fun supplies. Then order yourself some Bumkins snack bags and you are all set for busy bag fun!

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