Preschool Activities in a Bag ~ Review & GIVEAWAY {closed}

It seems like there has been a lot of buzz recently about quiet time bins and activities, and deservedly so. As parents of a toddler and an infant, we know how difficult it can be to find activities that young children can complete independently. It becomes even harder if you desire for your children to be learning while completing an activity that they enjoy.

We've been searching online for fun and educational activities that our daughter could complete on her own. However, we haven't been able to find more than a handful of high quality ideas.

Then we discovered Preschool Activities in a Bag. We were drawn in by their slogan, "Where fun and education fit in the same bag." Preschool Activites in a Bag was developed by Paula Reetz (mom of 7) and Sherri MacLean (mom of 4), two homeschooling moms who were looking for ways to keep their preschoolers occupied and learning while they worked with their older children. They began brainstorming ideas and have now written two books full of activities (34 & 33 activities) that will entertain and keep preschoolers learning. Each activity fits inside of a gallon, zippered freezer bag. The activities also cost, on average, about a dollar to assemble.

In their books, Paula and Sherri also give all the information you need to organize a swap with other preschool moms. The basic idea of these swaps is that each participant puts together identical activities for all the participants. Then when you meet, everyone exchanges activities and you end up with a number of different activites for your preschooler.

To give you a better idea of what the activities are like, we're going to walk you through one activity. Make sure you read all the way to the bottom to find out how you can win a copy of Preschool Activities in a Bag 1 or Preschool Activities in a Bag 2. We will also provide you with ordering information if you want to go ahead a purchase a copy now. (View the Table of Contents of Book 1 and Book 2.)

GRID MATCHING

This activity develops matching skills.

Supplies needed:
~1 gallon plastic freezer bag with sliding "zipper"
~Variety of foam shapes (purchased or cut out)
~Copy of the grid on cardstock
~Sheet protector
~Label for the front of the activity bag
~Wide, Clear Packaging tape
~Tacky glue

*Since the Activities in a Bag are intended for ages 3 and up, we modified this activity a little for our (almost) 2 year old by reducing the number of foam shapes from 20 to 9. The supplies and directions are for the activity as originally written, but the photos show the activity as we made it for our daughter. We also decided to just use basic colors and basic shapes so we could also work on these concepts.

1. Sort out or make 2 identical sets of 20 different foam shapes. (9 in our case)

2. Glue one set of foam shapes onto the cardstock grid. When the glue is dry, place the grid into a sheet protector, trim off the flap with the hole and cut 1/2" off the top so it'll fit in the bag easily. We also folded the wide packaging tape over the top of the page protector so that Emahry can't remove the grid.

3. Make the label for the activity (example is included in the book).
Attach the label to the top front of the bag with wide, clear packaging tape.

4. Place the grid (inside the sheet protector) and the matching loose foam shapes inside the bag.
Completing the Activity:
~Place the grid on the table or floor and match the loose foam shapes to the ones on the grid.

You can purchase Book 1 or Book 2 for $21.95 (hard copy) or $15.00 (eBook). You can also purchase both books in the Preschool Activities in a Bag Bundle for $37.95 (hard copy) or $27.00 (eBook). Be sure to check out Activity Bags' Science Experiments in a Bag, Daily Activity Journal 1, and Daily Activity Journal 2.

If you make a purchase, please let Paula and Sherri know that you found out about their products here at A Heart for Home.

Now for the Giveaway!

Activities in a Bag has generously offered 2 of our readers a Preschool Activities in a Bag book (or eBook). One reader will win Preschool Activities in a Bag 1 and another will win Preschool Activities in a Bag 2. Both of these books have all the information you'll need to organize a swap or make numerous activities for your own little ones. (Ebook option open to International Entries)

To Enter This Giveaway:

1. Head over to Activities in a Bag and browse through the shop. Then come back here and leave a comment telling us why you'd like to win one of their Preschool Activities in a Bag books. If there's a specific one you prefer, please let us know and we'll try to accomidate you.

2. Gain an additional entry by placing our button on your blog (include the link in your comment). ~Simply copy the code under the button and paste it into the text box for an Html Gadget on your blog's layout.

3. Subscribe to A Heart For Home (let us know if you've already subscribed).

4. Follow Our Blog (let us know if you already follow).

5. Post about and link to this giveaway on your blog or tweet about this giveaway (leave us the link in your comment).

Please leave a separate comment for each entry!
That's one with the reason you'd like to win one of the Preschool Activities in a bag books, one telling us our button is on your blog (with the link), one telling us you've subscribed, one telling us you've signed up to follow our blog, & one with the link to your blog's advertisement or tweet of this giveaway.

The giveaway will end Monday, May 11th, at 12 Midnight EST. We will pick the winner through random generator. Make sure you leave a way for us to contact you.

Head over to Heavenly Homemakers for more Springtime Giveaways.

This post contributed to: Frugal Friday