Art on the Move

While hot cars and cramped airplanes definitely aren’t the place for mural painting, art explorations while traveling can be simpler and more doable than you might think. With a few offbeat art supplies and a simple bag or pouch, it’s possible to stretch beyond the usual coloring book and crayons to provide low-mess, engaging, and truly creative art experiences for your child. You may even get a moment to crack open that summer novel you’ve been dying to read.

Travel Journal Kit
A truly special vacation should live on in memory. Making a travel journal with your child is a way to combine art, early literacy, and scrapbooking all in the same meaningful activity.

You’ll need:
Carrying case
Journal (you can buy a pretty one, use an office supply notebook, or staple together a stack of printer paper)
Writing and drawing tools: markers (thin and thick tip), crayons, colored pencils
Camera
Glue stick
Envelope—for collecting special treasures—a feather, a ticket stub, a note from grandma

Each day, you and your child can pick one or more memories to record. Children younger than 5 will likely draw their memories and tell the accompanying stories verbally. Parents can record the children's words (preferably verbatim), underneath the drawings in caption or story form (book format helps literacy development). Let your child take the photographs and glue special treasures in the book as well. At the end of your trip, you’ll have a delightful collection of child-centered memories to look back on. Don’t forget to have your child ‘read’ it to you before bed.