Quiet Time

I can think of many times that you are places that you need to keep kids entertained or "quiet," a task that is almost impossible. I always try to have the all equipped bag, filled with just about anything you can think of. (I hate to be caught without something or in need of it.) One of the things I always try to have on hand is different things to entertain my kids while we are out and about. I am sure I will be posting lots of different things I keep in the bag but here is one that I am going to give them for Christmas. I worked on this for a long time and so I figured, hey it is one more present to wrap and add to the Christmas festivities.

I found a ton of sites online that you can print quiet folder activities from for free. Stay with me and I will give you some that I have found.

I colored the pictures, which seriously took WAY longer than I expected. Coloring ceases to be fun when it takes too long I have decided. I had to do it in shifts. Then cut all around the pictures and got it laminated. I called all around at stores and it was going to cost me over $100 to laminate everything. I found an early childhood development place in town that has a laminator and caters to preschools and homeschoolers (and stay at home moms!) that let me come use their machine. It ended up costing me $5 to do them all!! I was SO happy.

Once they are all laminated, cut around them and leave a little bit of an edge. Then cut pieces of sticky velcro to fit each piece. Pull the velcro back off of the soft side and put onto folder.Then put the rough sided velcro on top of the soft side that is on the folder and peel off the backing. Place your piece on it and press it down so it adheres.Then finish putting the rest of the pieces on the folder. Now, you have a simple (and lightweight) thing to entertain kiddos at a moment's notice.Now for cleanup. Those papers stick to just about anything...

Oh, and here are some links to file folder sites:
Enchanted Learning
Preschool Printables
FastQ
Childcare Land
Mormon Chic