CREW Review- Travel Activity Binder

Activity Bags!  Have you seen them?  They are all the rage these days. Co-ops, play groups, friends are making and exchanging them.  The concept is fairly easy.  You gather the supplies to create a game or activity, as do a specific number of other people, and then you trade every so often, creating a rotating wealth of fun for your child.  Each activity in a bag is intended to be a kid friendly activity that they can do with little to no help from mom and dad, and are usually housed in one gallon zipper baggies.  Don't worry, there is a free coordinators handbook that will walk you through the whole process from start to finish on how to set up a swap. Cool, huh?  I have never done so, but I was intrigued by the idea so when I saw we could review for the company Activity Bags AND get to choose which ones to use, I jumped at the idea.


Since our kiddos are on the road a lot and I did not think I was interested at this time in doing a swap, I chose Travel Activities in a Bag, a slight variation on the "in a bag" concept.  Instead of housing your supplies in a baggie, you use a school binder instead.  The e-book has very clear directions on how to start a swap, with what each person will need to supply and how to put together the activities as well.   Since the activities are in a binder,  the responsibilities for a swap are simply making copies or gathering binder supplies.  I was a lone ranger in this project so I gathered all of the supplies myself- a small 3 ringed notebook, a pack of children's dry erase markers, and a cloth for erasing, dice and page protectors.  I printed the pages, stuck them in the protectors, popped them in the binder and we were ready.  Easy!

 

As time would have it, we have not gone on any long trips during this review period- which is what I had in mind when I asked for this review, though one is coming up.  BUT- you know moms, we are easily adaptable!  So I found a few other usage ideas-

 

  

While mom is making dinner!  I don't know about you, but that sometimes seems to  be the "haunting hour" as mom use to say, in our house for the 5 year old.  Busy time for me = crazy time for CJ!  Several times now, I have solved our problem by putting him at a stool near me and he works while I work.  I think by keeping the binder off limits except for the car and times like this keeps it new and fresh, and therefore a special treat- for him and me!

   

 

See the sheets waiting to be folded- just keeping it real, my friends!

Another time the travel games came in handy was while waiting in a doctor's office. Since the binder stays in the car now, it is an easy grab and go option for entertainment. Because the games differ in levels, it is easy to entertain and challenge different ages at once. Often opposite pages will be the same general idea, but at a harder level on one side. The page you see below is one in which you add hair to the numerous faces, a favorite of CJ's! The older kids love the stories where you write in the words with a particular part of speech and then read the silly story.

 

 

You can purchase Travel Activities in a Bag for $15.00   It will come as an e-book to download in pdf form.  One of the reasons I loved this product is that I think it can be used for any age, individually or a few children at a time.  We highly recommend this product!

To see what fellow CREW members had to say about Travel Activities in a Bag as well as other Activity Bag products, simply click on the banner below! 

  Disclaimer- Our family received Travel Activities in a Binder in exchange for our honest review of the product.  Opinions expressed are our own and were not influenced by the company in any way.