If you are taking any sort of trip this summer, then you’re probably looking for a way to keep the kids occupied while traveling to and from, and during their downtime while there. If whatever activities you found also happened to prevent summer slide, then all the better!
We recently went on a camping trip and put together two homeschool travel kits, one for our SunnyGirl (age 2) and one for LittleMan (age 5).
Besides the file folder games and the sight word ball, pretty much everything inside of the travel kit was purchased from Dollar Tree. All the file folder games we used were found as free printables online (links below).
Dollar Tree shopping list:
1 reusable shopping bag to hold everything in
1 binder to hold file folder games
1 pencil pouch
1 coupon organizer, for holding nomenclature cards
1 4-pack of finger lights
1 composition notebook
1 pack of colored pencils
1 6-pack of file folders
1 plastic basket
3 tins of miniature puzzles
1 metal cookie sheet
1 2-pack of clear containers with locking lids
1 magnifying glass
File folder games we used includes:
Herbivore, Carnivore, Omnivore Sort
Animal Tracks
Money Matching
Place Value Matching
Shadow Matching
In order to keep the extra pieces neat and tidy, we taped a ziploc baggie to the back of each file folder.
Also in the binder is the composition notebook and pencil pouch of colored pencils.
The finger lights can be used as a fun pointer to keep your place while reading.
A coupon holder is handy to keep nomenclature cards organized on the go.
Because we were going camping and planned a lot of time outside, we brought the magnifying glass and clear lidded containers for collecting and observing items found in nature.
These mini puzzles came in small tins and were perfect for traveling. I merely added a small piece of magnetic tape to the back of each piece so they would stick to the cookie sheet.
I also made my own generic travel-sized versions of Candy Land and Snakes and Ladders for LittleMan’s kit.
Printed on cardstock and laminated, these games should be durable enough to survive the next few year’s worth of camping trips.
If your child is just a bit younger, be sure to check out our Preschool Homeschool Travel Kit for more ideas!
by 
