The Ultimate Kid’s Activity Bags

Posted on by Missy

Yes, I am that Mom. I’m talking about the ‘activity mom’. When we go places, we are stocked with activities all living in a nice, organized bag. And activity bags, well, they’re my specialty!

Of course, we occasionally view the screens on long car rides or during skin prick testing (darn those allergies!). But, I always, always, always have activity bags.

They have changed and evolved as my kids have gotten older. They even look different for doctor appointments than they do for vacations.

Look in my car and you will find 4 activity bags (one for each kid) with varying items. I always have them, and I have never regretted bringing them with!

Doctor’s Orders

I am always surprised by the comments I get from doctors (we have a lot of appointments between 4 kids!) regarding the activity bags. Many doctors are amazed at what we bring with and are ready to get down with the kids and play! We must be one of the only families that brings non-technology entertainment to these offices, because we get so many surprising, positive comments!

But it doesn’t stop there. We bring these bags everywhere! Doctor appointments, car rides, vacations, running errands, church (within reason), brother sports practices, and literally any other time that we have to get into the car! My daily phrase before we get in the car is, “Grab your activity bag!” and the kids know just what to do.

Over the past 9 years, I have perfected the Activity Bag Method. Now, anytime one of my friends or family members need an idea that isn’t technology, they ask me.

Ditch the technology while you’re out and about and give these ideas a try!

The Bag

Let’s talk about the bag for a minute. You can put activities in just about any bag. over the years, we have tried a bunch of different options. We like this one, this one, and this one too! And depending on where we are going, my bag choice may be different.

However, this is my go to bag. My favorite of all favorites. The perfect bag for the car or a restaurant and will fit just about any activity! ***Please note, this is the company our bags are from, but our bags are vertical (meaning they are longer) the ones linked are horizontal (wider). I can’t seem to find the exact bags we have anymore, but we love ours so much I wanted to link the company!

Why do I love this bag, you ask? Well, let me count the ways!

  1. It is large, so I don’t have to tailor my activities to fit the bag. Pretty much everything fits!
  2. It has a zipper to keep all those goodies inside.
  3. It has 2 different sections so you can separate smaller items that may get lost in a large space.
  4. It has a spot on the front to write a name so you can tell which bag belongs to which kids.
  5. The strap is the perfect length to sling over your shoulder and helps the kids carry it easier.
  6. It’s clear, so you can see what’s inside without opening it. Definitely helpful for littles!
  7. The material is extremely sturdy. We have used these things almost daily for over 2 years now and have had no problems at all!
  8. It comes in a 4 pack! And since I have 4 kids, that was just perfect for us!

Let’s break it down by age:

***This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn on qualifying orders at no additional cost to you.

Baby Activity Bags

Materials:

How To:

Grab all of the items that you want to include in your activity bag and lay them out. Be sure to open everything and wash what needs to be washed. I like to place the extra pacifiers in a ziploc bag and then in the activity bag since one, inevitably, gets thrown whenever we are in the car!

While in the car, I would recommend keeping the baby activity bag up front with you. Your baby is not big enough to grab things from the bag, so you will need to hand (ok, it’s probably more of a toss) things back as needed.

The reason I make sure to have a suction toy and connecting rings in the bag is for those appointments and restaurant trips where baby will be sitting for a while. It is so incredibly wonderful to have a suction toy attached to the table at a restaurant with the connecting rings keeping toys from hitting the ground. It’s genius!

And if you haven’t tried the indestructible books yet, do it! They are the best!!! Baby can pull, throw, crumble, and even chew on these pages. And, guess what? You can put them in the washing machine. YES, The Washing Machine! And they’ll be good as new again.

Toddler Activity Bags

Materials:

How To:

Grab all of the items that you want to include in your activity bag and lay them out. Group them into two piles, larger items and smaller items. I like to place all of the larger items in the back, big section. Starting with the largest item (which for us, is usually a book) place it in the back section. Then move to the next largest item and place it in front of the first. Continue in this way until all large items are in the bag.

Now, grab all of your small items for the front section. For us, that usually consists of stickers, the small book, crayons, and sunglasses. Just like the big section, start with the largest item and place it in the front. Then move on in size order until everything is inside of your bag. I like to place the sunglasses all the way to the side of the front section, they seem to fit well there.

When it comes to toddlers, there is quite a range of abilities. Some are just out of that baby phase but still put things in their mouths. Others are well on their way to being big kids and want ‘older’ toys. Just gauge what your little is ready for and don’t give them anything that they can’t play with unsupervised.

If you don’t want stickers all over your window and they can reach it, maybe leave the stickers in your purse until you get to the restaurant! And if your little still puts things in their mouth, the crayons are probably left out until you can sit with them and draw.

Early Elementary Activity Bags

Materials:

How To:

Grab all of the items that you want to include in your bag. Separate them into large and small items. The large items will go in the big section, and the small items will go in the smaller section. Put all large items in the big section, starting with the biggest at the back. Place all small items in the smaller section, starting with the biggest thing in the back.

For this age group, our front section usually consists of crayons, pencil sharpener, small book, stickers, fidget spinner, secret message pen, and sunglasses. I like to put the colored pencils and crayons in a small zipper pouch and place it in the big section. Loose colored pencils and crayons tend to get broken or draw on things while in the bag.

I like to put the sunglasses on the side of the front section. There seems to be a natural place for them to go once all of the items are in. If there is anything that you don’t want your kiddo to have access to in the car, keep it with you and give it to them whenever you get where you are going!

Big Kid Activity Bags

Materials:

How To:

Grab all of the items that you want to include in your bag. Separate them into large and small items. The large items will go in the big section, and the small items will go in the smaller section. Put all large items in the big section, starting with the biggest at the back. Place all small items in the smaller section, starting with the biggest thing in the back.

For the big kids, we typically put the pencil sharpener, small book, stickers, fidget spinner, secret message pen, and sunglasses in the small section.

I like to put the sunglasses on the side of the front section. There seems to be a natural place for them to go once all of the items are in.

Extras

There were a couple extra things that I picked up to make these activity bags even more perfect for a long car ride/vacation. They might not be things that you would add when going to the doctor or out to a restaurant, but they were great for our 14 hour drive and the vacation that followed! Check them out below:

Let the Kids Help!

One of the great things about doing activity bags for as long as we have, is that my kids now expect to have them when we go places. Never has one of them asked for my phone, or to watch a show at an appointment. They just grab their bag and pull out an activity.

Since they have gotten a bit older, I have let them have a hand in helping to create their bags when we are taking larger trips or it’s time for a bag refresh. I will give my 9 and 7 year olds a few simple instructions like, ‘go grab 2 books you would like in your bags’, ‘pick some stickers you want to use’, ‘grab one activity from the activity closet’ (I’ll have to do a separate post on our activity closet!), and ‘check your pencil case and make sure you have the drawing supplies that you need.’ They can easily follow them and take charge of getting their bags in order.

For my 6 and 3 year olds, it’s more of a mommy-led activity where I ask them to pick 2 books and then I do the rest. My 6 year old is getting closer to the point of his older brothers, but with 4 of them, sometimes it’s just easier for me to do it!

Tip: If you are going on a trip, you will probably want some things to be new and exciting. In that case I let my kids help build their bags, and then I add a few ‘surprises’ while they are sleeping or at school. That way, they had a say in what books were brought and the activities that were included, but I still get to hold their interest for a little bit longer with new, exciting activities!

I have truly found the best place to shop for those inexpensive, exciting activity bag additions is the Target Dollar Spot. I love, love, love Target as it is, let’s be honest! But they also have a great Dollar Section! Even though everything is not a dollar anymore (sigh), it is still inexpensive, and they always have a few fun surprises for the kids.

Enjoy!

Now that your activity bags are ready to go, enjoy your trip or family adventure without having to hand over your phone just to occupy the littles! I promise, you will never regret having a few activities to keep your kiddos busy. And, hey! They might actually learn something while they read, write, draw and explore all of those goodies that you include!

Thank you so much for reading, sweet friend. It truly means the world to me. Until next time, you can follow along on Instagram and see what we are loving on Pinterest. I hope you love your activity bags as much as I do! Have a question I didn’t answer? Leave a comment, send me an email, or PM me on Instagram. I’d love to answer all of your questions!

If you are looking for a ready-to-go bag for the Most Magical Place on Earth, I’ve got you covered here!

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