I absolutely love
going on trips, deciding where to go who to see where I would like to visit,
its magical.
That’s all very
well I hear you say. But what about when you have the kids in tow?
Well this is where I
can help…
Wouldn’t you love
them to really enjoy the journey and you’ be kept sane at the same time?
Read on to find out
more…
We all know the
importance of planning but this is especially crucial when you have little
ones.
First of all …Give
them notice..
Chat to your child
in the days beforehand. Not too much, just a little every so often. Tell
them where you are planning on going and about some fun little thing that will
happen when you get there. For example you will get to see Granny or there is a
lovely pool that you will be able to swim in.
Mention about the
fact that you will be going on a journey and about how they will be able to
play with their favourite toy and listen to the lovely stories, or hear about
that rascal Teddy or the thing you know they really love doing.
One little tip -When
you mention it they may be engaged in an activity so be sure to notice that
they have taken in what you said. You will be able to tell if they have taken
it in. It doesn’t have to be much just a little reminder about it.
Be prepared…
Think about things
to keep them occupied and then the journey becomes so much fun they won’t want
it to end.
Involve them in
what they might like to bring. Have their bag strategically placed and
then they can help putting things in. This can be done over time. You
could mention something they might like and they can pop it in. Teddy is a must
in the backpack
Books are a firm
favourite.
Lift the flap ones are excellent for your
little ones as they can do it themselves and have fun interacting. I wrote to
the zoo is a great one.
The Usbourne series
of puzzle town, puzzle island etc are brilliant. These are especially good for
older kids but great for little ones too.
Before the trip make a list of things your
child can spot on the pages and then on the journey you can call out things for
them to find every so often.
Another book is
Farmyard tales where they have to find the yellow duck hiding on each page.
Audio is fantastic
as your child can listen and relax listening to stories but also they can have
great fun watching out for things they hear about as they go along.
Activities
involving using their hands can be calming.
One really good
idea I heard about is to have a clipboard and I would suggest a laptray if
possible to hold the pencils and crayons
etc.
Colouring pages are
great as are the old fashioned felt boards.
There are colouring
activities on 1stearlyed.com you can print off beforehand relating to what they
hear on the audio.
A good idea is to
have pages with images of colours. Having One colour on a page makes it easier for them to decipher – This way your
child knows what the colour red for example looks like when they hear it and
this gives them more confidence to spot the right colour cars.
Before the trip you
can draw the outline of teddy his body head arms legs. Practise the game with
your little one ask them what does teddy need. He needs ears – draw the ears,
what else do you think he needs? eyes – include buttons they can colour in.
When your child is familiar with the game you can play it in the car. Call out
what teddy needs and they can fill it in. Teddy is always playing hide and seek
and your child will have great fun hearing about his adventures
My little lad loved
anything with wheels and the audio makes it really interesting getting
them to watch out for tractors or bus or building site and they can hear the
matching sounds.
Having their
favourite toy is a must and we all know they may want to play on screen/phone.
You can balance this out and a great way to do it is to listen to the audio.
Of course the usual
staples of their favourite foods, plenty of wipes non spill drinks & potty
for emergencies should be packed.
Lollys are great
just this once as they last.
The children are
having great fun and they are improving their listening skills, increasing
their vocabulary and observation skills all without even realising just having
mega fun. Wahoo it’s brilliant.
They have fun and
you get a little peace . Win Win situation.
Enjoy your trip.
Michelle creator of
http://www.1stearlyed.com/
“Fun with an educational twist’
Fantastic for school runs or anytime.
http://www.1stearlyed.com/product/fun-in-the-car/
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