Individualized Road Trip Travel Folders for Kids

This week my daughter, son-in-law, and grands left on a road trip. To help keep the kids entertained on the way I prepared a travel pack with items for the whole family and for each individual child. (I know; they have tablets with movies and video games, but even those can get old after a few hours)

Travel Folder Contents

For the family:

• hidden picture books
• decks of cards

For each child (in a sturdy report folder with brads and pockets):

• a bag of stickers to decorate their folders, or in the case of the younger grands, themselves
• 4 coloring pages each
• 2 scavenger hunt / paper games each
• 2 Mad Libs
• a book
• a pen
• a mechanical pencil

A Little About Some of the Items

Stickers:  1) to be used to individualize each folder (and exercise their creativity),  2) as I said, the younger kids enjoy putting them on like Band Aids (and just manipulating them is good for developing fine motor skills),  3) all of the kids could use them to make collages on the blank sides of the papers in their folders (another exercise in creativity)

Coloring Pages:  I tailored each coloring page selection to each child’s skill levels and to the trip itself (coloring provides more fine motor skill practice, eye-hand coordination, and self soothing skills). For instance, they were traveling to my parents’ house, and my parents have hummingbird feeders outside their dining room window, so I found pictures of hummingbirds for the kids to color. Also, my mom plans to take them to see the musical Beauty and the Beast, so I found free, on-line, Beauty and the Beast coloring pages to print out for them. (Note, I did not pack crayons. The grands already have plenty of those, so I did not want to burden my daughter with still more.)

Scavenger Hunts:  For the older kids, I created a grid of boxes lettered A-Z. The objective? While riding, hunt out the window for objects that start with each letter and write the name of the object in the boxes (providing observation and spelling/guess-and-go practice). For our pre-kindergartner, the scavenger hunt was similar, except it was for items that fit the basic shapes and colors (thus sharpening her skills at identifying basic shapes and colors). Alas, no scavenger hunt for our little guy.

Paper Games: For the older kids, I printed out a sheet with “supercalafragilisticexpialadocious” written across the top and instructions to make as many words as possible using only the letter in the feature word. These can be made with any word or phrase, for instance, at first they were going to travel the coastal route through the redwood forest, and I planned on making the word “Redwood National Park.” (Note: this activity builds vocabulary, and spelling skills.) Our pre-kindergartner loves mazes so I found a free one on the internet for her (another good builder of eye-hand coordination and fine motor skills).

Mad Libs:  I photocopied six fill in the sheets out ofVacation Fun Mad Libs and put two in everyone but the toddler’s folder. (As a Language Arts teacher, I loved Mad Libs for building student knowledge of the basic parts of speech, and my students loved hearing the crazy results of their word lists.) I figured one of the older kids could whisper what type of word was needed in our pre-kindergartner’s ear, so she could still ask the family for each word, and likewise her helper could help her write down the response.

A Book: Again I made sure each book was the appropriate skill and interest level for the older kids (so they can work on maintaining and building their reading skills). For our pre-kindergartner, the book I picked was a folktale I had already read to her.. Therefore, she could look at the pictures and, as she turned the pages, tell herself the story (thus developing verbal and narrative skills). For our little guy, since he got cheated in terms of activity pages, I included 2 board books–one of which features cars and trucks, some of his favorite objects.

It took me way longer to prepare these things than I had anticipated, but it was a labor of love and worth the time. When done, I gave everything to my daughter to dole out along the way as necessary.

Your Turn

I really enjoyed preparing personalized entertainment folders for each of my grandkids. Furthermore, it occurred to me not everything I packed was just for kids. Next road trip with my husband, I will definitely bring along the Vacation Fun Mad Libs .

What do you pack for road trips? If you have children, or grandchildren, what do you include for skill building? What about entertainment? Please share using the comment box below. Let’s encourage one another!

• Note: Books featured in graphic are Magic Tree House Merlin Missions #9 Dragon of the Red Dawn and Vacation Fun Mad Libs .

Savoring Summer: Today It Felt Like Summer When…

Summer… It’s both a “kick back and relax” and “have a blast” season. We celebrate it by eating ice cream sundaes, vacationing to the max, and having fun, fun, fun, except–

Not everybody lives by an academic calendar. For families with no school-age children, those whose children attend year-round school, those not employed in the field of education, and those dealing with serious medical or life issues, summer may seem to bring little variety to their days beyond the natural changes of the season–longer hours of daylight and hotter temperatures.

Therefore, it’s easy to feel like you’re missing out. I know, because that is how I was beginning to feel this year.

Savoring Summer

In the midst of my own little pity party, a contrarian voice piped up in my mind:

• What about the bar-b-que at your daughter’s house?
• What about the individual birthday breakfasts and shopping trips with your grandkids?
• What about going out garage sale-ing with your husband?

The Fix

One afternoon last week, my husband and I found ourselves sitting out at my daughter and grandkids’ pool. The temperature was perfect–warm, but perfect in the shade. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves overhead. The air echoed with the shrieks and laughter of children, and our grands were showing off just for us.

Now this, I thought, feels like summer.

And suddenly my whole conundrum about feeling cheated and left out of summer dissolved like morning fog from an ocean beach. I wasn’t missing summer; I wasn’t paying attention to summer.

Today It Felt Like Summer When…

That evening, I jotted in my journal:

Today it felt like summer when we sat with Genny and watched the girls swim at their swim club.

Then I wrote:

Yesterday it felt like summer when I woke up with the sun and opened the downstairs windows to let the cool morning air inside.

The next day, I wrote:

Today it felt like summer when, after my nap, I went out front wearing a short skirt and top, and flip-flops to talk to hubby who was watering our tomato plants.

In the following days, I wrote:

Today it felt like summer when we reserved our train tickets for our trip to visit Mom and Jim.

Today it felt like summer when I prepared travel activities for my grands who would soon depart on a California vacation.

Today it felt like summer when hubby and I walked in Waterfront Park after evening church.

Thus I discovered that I, too, am enjoying summer, only I had not been savoring it.

Your Turn

What about you? Are you struggling to get that “summer feeling” that we see in commercials, T.V. shows, and movies? Do everybody else’s summers seem more “summery” than yours? I challenge you to complete one sentence each day:

Today it felt like summer when…

I’ll do it, too. Here’s the one I wrote this morning:

Today it felt like summer when I finally painted my toenails a pretty shade of cotton candy pink.

Please share a sentence or two from your own summer “savorings” in the comment box below. Let’s encourage one another!

Map Journal: Travel Journal Fun

My husband and I have been dreaming of going on a road trip for a long time, and so, I’ve been eagerly pinning information about keeping travel journals on my “Journaling and More” board on Pinterest

One pin in particular, a map journal, looked like so much fun that I decided to make one for a trip taken a few years back just for the sheer pleasure of making something.

Why Keep a Travel Journal?

Keeping a travel journal is a great way to capture memories of your travel experience while they’re still fresh. It also provides a great means to look back and remember your journey.

For children, in addition to the reasons mentioned above, a travel journal provides a fun way to exercise literacy skills during the season of the infamous “summer slide.”

What Materials do You or Your Kids Need to Make a Map Journal?

• a map–I downloaded mine on the computer, but if I were really on a trip, I know I’d want a big map that shows the complete trip from departure, to destination, to return home.
• marking pens, a variety of colors
• stickers
• scissors–to cut pictures out of travel brochures for use on the map
• glue stick, tape, paperclips, bradsm (whatever will make things stick)–to attach pictures to the map

Now What?

As you travel, after each stop along the way, take a few moments to record the experience on your map. What you note could be as pedestrian as gas prices and restaurant reviews, as lyrical as descriptions of what you experienced and saw, as imaginative as posing some “what-if” questions or dreaming of a return in the future.

My Map

My map is a memory of a trip, from the perspective of a child, that I took with my mom and her best friend to a beach town we had been visiting since me, my siblings, and her children were kids. We met up with family and friends there, then mom and I spent a few days at my aunt’s house in Carmel. The trip is a special memory because only a few years later we lost our beloved friend to cancer.

Your Turn:

Do you have a trip coming up? Will you or your children make a map journal of your journey? If you do, please use the box below to post a picture of your creation/s.

Have you ever kept this, or any other type of travel journal? Do you have any tips for us newbies? Please share. Let’s encourage one another.

Summer Literacy and Fun: Some Blasts from the Past

It is nearly mid July. Are you firmly launched into a joyously literate summer?

I have enjoyed taking my grandkids out one at a time and engaging in wildly interesting conversations. We’ve also crafted together (supporting fine motor skills needed for writing, keyboarding), played cards (supporting mathematical literacy), and of courser read together. Yea Yea’s little library is a hit with our little ones.

Are you looking for ways to nurture both literacy and family fun? Here are three posts from previous seasons that are worth a second look.

Books and Hobbies

While originally a January post, Books and Hobbies  is well worth a second look in the summertime. Hobbies bring joy, pleasure, and a sense of accomplishment to life, and help to build students’ basic skills. Summer, with its long days, vacations, and more open schedules, is a perfect time to enjoy them.

Dining Out–Family Literary Exercise and Fun

This post was inspired by a Fourth of July meal at a favorite family restaurant, however the practice it presents is one that can be useful and enjoyable in any dining-out setting, and is another great way of preserving family memories.

Summer Reading: Let’s Make a List!

This post reflects on the stunning loss of reading skill students experience every summer and proposes a list of places in which to fit reading into your student’s summer life. After you read, please insert your own ideas for great places to read with your kids.

Your Turn

What are some ways you have nurtured literacy in your family’s life? Please use the comment box below to share. Let’s encourage one another!

A Sensational, Sparkling, Savory, Fourth of July: Using Sensory Details

It is nearly the Fourth of July–that sizzling, sparkling, savory celebration of the birth of the U.S.A. What better holiday to stimulate writing with sensory details!

Sensory Details

Whether writing to capture your life, writing to entertain or inform, or writing for the pure pleasure of simply writing, sensory details add richness, depth, and realism to your writing.

What are sensory details? These are details that can only be detected through the use of your senses:

• the beauty of a white frosted birthday cake topped with strawberries and blueberries
• the vanilla scent of the frosting
• the sweet tang of the berries on your tongue
• the scrap of your fork on the plate
• the silky texture as you swipe your finger through the frosting

Happy Birthday U.S.A.

Fourth of July Writing Exercise

Fourth of July celebrations are so full of sensory detail:

• the crisp red white and blue of a flag
• the sulfurous scent of fireworks
• the tangy taste of bar-b-que
• the sizzle of sparklers
• the warmth of the sun against your skin

This exercise can be done by yourself, or done with your family. For each person participating in this exercise you will need either a pocket-sized tablet, five index cards, or a piece of paper divided into 5 sections and a pen or pencil that will fit into your pocket or purse.

Preparation: Label either one page, one card, or one section for each of the senses–sight, smell, taste, hearing, touch.

You, or each of you, will carry this with you throughout the day and evening, and pause periodically to record what you observe with your senses.

At the end of the evening, or the next day, look over your list.

• For those who like to journal, use this list as you capture the holiday in words.
• For those who like to write poetry, use this list as the pre-write for a poem.
• For those who write fiction, use this list to create a scene.
• For those who write non-fiction, use this list to write an article about July 4, 2018 as celebrated in your community.

Enjoy!

Have fun. Participating in this exercise will help you capture and savor the very specific and particular details of your Fourth of July.

Your Turn

Using the comment box below, let’s share 3 to 5 items from our lists or a bit of the writing that results from it. Again, have fun, and let’s encourage one another!