Oh So Fun Week: Activity Book

We are doing a LOT of traveling this summer, and I have to take a flight with just me and the two kids.  I needed to come up with something for my 3 year old to do to entertain herself while I take care of the baby.

I did a lot of researching "quiet books" and activity books.  Some of the quiet books made out of felt that are interactive are just so darn cute, but i didn't have the time to make one so detailed, PLUS I didn't want something that had a lot of little pieces, especially on an airplane.  Thirdly, I wanted something that was reusable, so paper activity sheet weren't gonna cut it, either.

I finally decided on an activity book with pages placed in 8 1/2" x 11" sheet protectors that you can use dry erase markers on.  And here is what I came up with:

Supplies: Oh Happy Day "Amber's Avenue

I added my pages in the sheet protectors and designed a simple cover page made of thick chipboard covered with paper.  The cover can fold back behind the last page to act as a support/board for drawing on.

I simply bound the cover with some strips of muslin so that it would be light but easy to maneuver, too.

I bound all my pages together to create this awesome book!

And now a look at my inside pages.  I tried to think of things that my daughter was "into" but also some learning type of activities, too.  I use bright colors (for the most part) and simple designs for a 3 year old.  Some of the activities are simple, and some are much more challenging, but that is the way I wanted it!  What is also great about this format is that as she grows, I can add pages or switch out simpler ones for harder ones.

Also, I thought about adding directions to my pages, but she can't read anyways, and honestly I kind of want her to be creative and do what she thinks she is supposed to do.  Of course I will guide her a bit, too.

OK, and now the pages:

This first page you have to match the color of the bird to the word of that color by drawing a line. I printed the words in their respective color to help her identify them easier.

Supplies: Oh Happy Day "Chloe" 1766, Oh Happy Day "Abbie's Sunshine" 1769

Here I cut out some letter tiles and added some blank spaces underneath for her to try and write letters.  She can also trace over the letters in the tiles themselves.

Supplies: Splendor "Letter Tiles" 1680, Splendor "Candytuft" 1676, Bonjour "Petite Fleur" 1542

There are different ways to do this butterfly page.  She can simply just point to a count the butterflies, or draw a line from a number to each butterfly as she counts.

Supplies: Sweet Tooth "Vanilla Shake" 1563, Bonjour "Butterfly Flutter" 1536, American Crafts Stickers

Here is a little girl that she can draw some clothes on!

Supplies: Oh Happy Day "Andrea" 1773, Sweet Tooth "Lollipop" 1557, Splendor "Sunswept" 1684

Draw some stems and leaves for the flowers.

Supplies: Country Charm "Vintage Wallpaper" 1514, Sweet Tooth "Sour Cherry" 1559, Flower Child "Flower Child" 1640

Add sprinkles and cherries and other toppings to the ice cream cones.

Supplies: Flower Child "Wondering Geo" 1638, Bonjour "Provence Plaid " 1544

Draw strings on the balloons and add more balloons to the empty strings (her favorite page).

Supplies: Bonjour "Provence Floral" 1543, Bonjour "Bonjour" 1534, Bonjour "Les Fleurs" 1538, Flower Child "Peacock" 1646, Flower Child "Swirling" 1648

Draw some faces on the mustache heads.  (I cut the circles and ovals with my die cutting machine and fussy cut the mustaches from patterned paper).

Supplies: Oh Happy Day "Andrea" 1773, Oh Happy Day "Chloe" 1766, StoryBook "Storybook Cards" 1744

Finish coloring the rainbow.

Supplies: Storybook "Golden Stars" 1740

Create a story. (She is really into making up stories right now and is also on a dinosaur kick, too.  She doesn't know how to write, but she gets the idea and tries....)

Supplies: Storybook "Golden Stars" 1740, Storybook "Fido"1739

Match the shapes.

Supplies: Sweet Tooth "BubbleGum" 1552, Sweet Tooth "Gumdrop" 1555, Oh Happy Day "Meagan" 1770, Country Charm "Weekend Fun" 1515, Flower Child "Organic Geo" 1645, Bonjour "Bouquet" 1535

Tic Tac Toe.

Supplies: Oh Happy Day "Mira's Pearls" 1764, Bonjour "Provence Plaid" 1544

Draw in some weather: rays on the sun, snowflake for the snowman, moon for the stars, and rain from the cloud.

Supplies: Country Charm "Weekend Fun" 1515, Bonjour "Provence Floral 1543, Sweet Tooth "Bubble Gum" 1552, Storybook "Animal Crackers "1734", Stroybook "Storybook Cards" 1744

And finally, we are huge Dora fans and I had these Dora chipboard pieces that I bought at a craft store.  When I saw this map paper from the StoryBook collection, it immediately reminded me of "Map".  You have to help Boots and Dora get to the Chocolate Tree!

Supplies: Stroybook "Argh" 1735

I have been letting my daughter try this out and she LOVES it....I'm not kidding.  She asks to play with it everyday.  At this point I am saving it for the airplane so it still has some novelty.

This project didn't take that long to do once I had written down what each page was going to be.  Hope you enjoyed it as much as we do!