Bear won't nap anymore, unless we are out in the car. Most days, I just keep going with her and we play, paint, read. But some days, I just want "me" time and need a way to entertain Bear.
I'm blessed with a child who is able to find things to do on her own, but occasionally, she just doesn't feel like doing anything.
Out comes the Quiet Time Box. It's a box that only comes out at Quiet Time and is filled with things she doesn't get frequent access to, such as the box of 64 crayons, or foam shape stickers. But it also contains some things that she does see outside of Quiet Time, but that I will rotate such as the coloring book and the puzzle. I didn't have time to go buy anything for this box, so it was all things I could gather from around the house.
What's in the box?
a sheet with numbers and fish stickers to practice counting, the box of 64 crayons, some paint chip samples, a puzzle, a little box full of stickers, foam shape stickers, a coloring book, the white board and some clothespins. There's also a pad of paper that's not in the photo.
(I was interested to see what activities she might make up for herself, hence the paintchips and clothespins.)
I used it for the first time today and Bear kept busy for 15 minutes until her brother woke up and needed to nurse. Since nursing time is reading to Bear time, she opted to leave the Quiet Time Box behind.
She chose to color Piglet, use the white board, and stick stickers onto the pad of paper.
I was sitting next to her enjoying some reading time, listening to her chatter about what she was doing.
I hope her enthusiasm for the box continues.
This is such a good idea. I really like the variety of things you provided for her. I really need to invest in a white board for Matthew, I know he would love it and it would be great for his quiet time. He is no longer taking naps either, sigh. Those naps are very much missed!! Great post, I really enjoyed reading about this!
ReplyDeleteGreat idea!
ReplyDeleteQuite Time Boxes are a great idea. A sanity saver! I used one when my nearly 2 year old decided not to nap anymore but my 5 year old was stil having day naps.
ReplyDeleteI have really enjoyed catching up on your blog and have missed having the chance to pop in for a visit.
ReplyDeleteWe also have a quiet box as Savvy can be a little hit and miss with her sleeps as well. She usually takes a nap, but it can sometimes be very short, so we use the quiet box during rest time. I like that you put in the clothespins and paintchips. Your box is full of delightful and creative goodies.
Your creative take on the Spinny Speller is a great idea. We have not ventured into many letter sounds yet, but when we do I will be sure to remember your idea.
I have added the book titled, The Way I Feel, to my christmas shopping list for Savvy. I like that it uses poems and visual literacy to supports the words.
We also cut out lots of pictures and use them to tell stories as well. It's always fun to come up with your own plot, characters and settings.
I have finally added an email contact to my blog, so I hope this now helps when I leave comments.
This is a great box! We have a box of 'quite time books' next to our bed, and Munchkin and I spend a peaceful 20 minutes or so reading while the baby sleeps in the afternoon. The books aren't off limits the rest of the time, but becasue they are out of the usual play areas they seem to stay in one place!
ReplyDeleteD hasn't napped since he was 22 months old. :( I usually use M's naptime as one on one time with D but some days I need a BREAK! This is a great idea!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great box, but we are not quite ready to give up true "me time" here. Anna doesn't take her naps either on most days, but we still put her into her crib and give her one of her early readers to look at. Most of the time she plays with her stuffed animals, reads, sings songs and otherwise busies herself. After 2 hours she starts to ask for us, because she wants more attention. It actually works well, because it's her true play by herself time and it seems to give her time to "digest" all the happenings of the morning.
ReplyDeleteI need to make some quiet boxes like this for my kids - neither Emma or Johnny will nap any more. They are pretty good at entertaining themselves, but I don't always like the ways the choose to do so.
ReplyDelete