A mother in class a couple of weeks ago innocently asked if I had written a post about activities for traveling with kids. I had not. And my sister and her family (including a climbing 1-year old and a chatterbox 3-year old) are about to embark on a 24-hour journey from Sydney to Amsterdam. So I decided now was a good time to put together my favourite Montessori activities for traveling kids.
I also asked the parents on our Facebook page for their ideas – a lot have made it into this post but you can see all their great suggestions here.
So here they are. The ultimate list of Montessori activities for traveling with kids…
You are never going to keep a toddler or young child quiet for long. But these activities might engage them for a few minutes between eating snacks, walking around the plane, checking the map, and listening to audio books.
- Soft books with opening and closing, threading and velcro are great for busy hands
- A coin box with a selection of coins can keep a 16-month old focused trying to master the key and the posting
- Bring a selection of Schleich animals – nice and sturdy for long trips
- Fuzzy felt sets or a DIY version are light and entertaining. Limit the number of pieces you bring or you may find yourself picking up a lot of pieces!
- Options for doodling – magnetic doodle board or aquadoodle or a stamping kit
- Magnetic sets like this or this are also great for confined spaces
Getting creative
Never leave home without some basic crafting supplies – here are some cute supplies to get you started. Note: no scissors in hand luggage on planes (I might have just done that quite a few times already).
- 3-pack notebooks from Hema
- home made playdough
- customisable travel journals from notonthehighstreet.com
- my favourite Stabilo 3-in-1 woody pencils
Stickers
One activity you probably hadn’t overlooked. Not only can you find cute animals and travel stickers, here are some other sticky ideas:
- Washi tape (patterned Japanese paper tape) – this tape is removeable so it would be perfect to make impromptu roads for vehicles, for tic-tac-toe, for tearing into pieces, and sticking on your favourite parent
- Bandaids – useful if you cut yourself, but also fun for playing doctors, or applying to your teddy
- Pocket passport – you could make your own or buy a pretend passport for your child to place stamps in and stickers. Love this.