I have had a few people comment on my post about school and the preschool activity bags that I made for Ami. I thought I’d share the ideas that I’ve used and hope it will be a blessing to you. I’ve used this idea for several years, but just recently made up some new bags for Ami. These are a great help for when you need some uninterrupted time to spend with another child working on school, or if you just need time to get other things done. I keep these bags only accessible to me and only hand one out when the time is appropriate, thus these become more special to the child. I used several ideas from this site, but it’s easy to let you imagination run and come up with all sorts of things.
These bags can be relatively inexpensive. A lot of what you put in them is already around the house. One small investment to make is to use large ziploc bags with the true zipper on the top. This makes it easy for small hands to open and close the bag and they can be responsible for cleaning up after themselves. I’ll post some pictures with ideas and then just list others that I have made.
This box holds most of our bags. On the right is a bag of dry beans. You can spread out a blanket or mat on the floor and pour these in a larger bin or container. I bought a cheap set of measuring cups and spoons at Wal-Mart for only $1. I also provide plastic containers or dishes from the play kitchen for lots of imagination.
1. Collect junk mail that comes to your house. You know it’s junk mail before you even open it, so save it in a bag for your child to discover. I also put extra envelopes and paper in the bag so they can write their own notes and “mail” them.
2. Clothespins and a rope. Just tie the rope between two chairs and they can pretend to wash and hang their doll clothes.
3. Wrapping paper and a roll of tape. What child doesn’t want their own roll of tape?! Also provide safety scissors if you are comfortable with it.
4. First aid kit for imaginary play with a doll. Put in some bandaids, old medicine dispensers, alcohol wipes. We also have a child’s “doctor kit”. See picture here.
5. Watercolor paints, Q-tips and bathroom cups. This is a fun painting activity for kids.
6. Old travel/toiletry kit with toothbrush, old contact case, empty bottle. They can pretend to pack up and get ready for a trip.
7. Paper plates. That’s it, let them use their imagination. You can add scissors or tape or a glue stick.
8. Magnets. These can be alphabet magnets or any other kind. You can also add large bolts, large paper clips, or other metals for them to experiment with.
9. Stickers. Just gather up ones from around the house and make a stash for them. Provide some paper and let them stick to their heart’s content.
10. Sand paper and crayons. This is a great texture activity.
That’s the end of the pictures, but here are several more ideas…
11. Lacing shapes. We like Lauri brand.
12. Can of shaving cream. Let them play with it on a cookie sheet. They can use their hands or put a couple of drops of food coloring in and they can swirl it in with fingers or Q-tips.
13. Decorative scissors that cut with a fun edge. I taped a big piece of paper to the wall and let Ami use construction paper and gave her a stick of glue. Fun to see what she came up with.
14. Origami paper. No their designs won’t be great, but they can have fun exploring.
15. Straws to cut up and string yarn through.
16. Pipe cleaners and pony beads. These won’t slip off and frustrate the child. Great fine motor skill activity.
17. Plastic Easter eggs. Fill them with surprises, or just let the child find things to put in them.
18. A lint roller (the tape kind) I got for free. How fun to roll and pick up fuzz all over. 
19. Paper lunch bags. They can use scissors, a glue stick and crayons to be creative.
20. Bubble wrap. We have a bunch of this and Ami loves to stomp on it. Obviously this activity won’t last as long as others.
21. Plastic templates, edged rulers and paper for tracing shapes and designs.
22. Magnifying glass and small toys.
23. Colored paper squares and bean bags for tossing and hopping. Also include a rope and they can toss the bean bags and try to “walk the line” and retrieve the bean bag.
24. Buttons and a muffin tin, bathroom cups, or ice cube trays (sorting, classifying).
25. Cardboard tube (paper towel, wrapping paper, or toilet paper) and a car or things to roll through the tube.
26. Let them play in the sink with dish soap and water. Fun for a long time!
27. Color hunt bag…give them a colored piece of construction paper and have them search the house for items that match that color. They can collect things in the bag within reason.
28. New Play Doh.
Another idea for these bags as a whole is that you can lay out a special blanket or mat that is only for this time. This can teach the child self discipline and obedience when they have to stay on the blanket for an allotted amount of time. It also helps greatly to keep the activity contained. I read that some moms use a small plastic swimming pool and set the child in the pool or put a small table in the pool (obviously w/o water).
Oh, there is so much more! No, I haven’t made all of these bags, and much of these things can be gathered at the last minute. But the idea is that it’s easy for you to pull out on a second’s notice and provide your child with a constructive and educational activity.
I also realize that safety may be a concern on some of these items (scissors, rope, alcohol wipes, etc), but as the parent you can use your own judgment a make a choice depending on your child.
Another idea is that you could do an activity bag swap with several other moms. Have each mom make up 10, 15, or however many bags of the exact same kind and then get together and swap them. You could set out rules such as only using gallon-size ziploc bags, no more than $1 per bag or whatever.
It really took me not much time and very little investment to put these bags together. Some of my bags I have used for more than 10 years so I think my investment of time has paid off very well!
Okay, that was a long-winded post, but I hope it gives some of you some ideas. It has helped me tremendously when trying to home school. It’s also great fun for the preschooler whether they spend 5 minutes or 30 minutes with the bag. Ami likes having her very own “school bags”. Often the older kids can’t wait to finish up a particular assignment so that they can have play time with Ami.
One more thing while I’m on the subject of Ami. I’m taking her to see a naturopathic doc this afternoon to see if we can find some answers to her itches and eczema. It’s been an ongoing problem this summer without remedy so far and I’m hopeful for some ideas or answers. We’d appreciate your prayers.
Man, I love those big blue eyes!