Keeping a toddler, a 2 year old, a 3 year old, or any age kid busy on a long flight is definitely a daunting task! They have short attention spans, nap schedules get messed up, meal schedules change, but if you are prepared you can definitely avoid a meltdown— or you can at least try!
We have traveled to over nine countries with our toddler here is my collection of top 10 airplane activities for young children:
Snacks. Large variety, small quantity. We love the GoBe Kids Snack Spinner but I have also seen some parents use pill boxes.
Airplane Busy Bags. These bags are perfect for young children. It comes as a download and does require some initial prep work but these kits pack up very small and will grow with your kids to provide endless flexible and creative play. Kids will enjoy solving math problems to escape a maze, building numbers and shapes out of play dough, creating race tracks for their matchbox cars, playing games like airport bingo and tic tac toe, and solving number puzzles to reveal images and more! See more in the video above or click HERE.
Indestructibles. These light weight books are perfect for on the go and like the name suggests they are very durable. Our favorite book is “Things that Go!”. We usually take about four or five books along with us for airplane rides.
Crayons, markers and paper. The open ended creativity these provide make these a no-brainer to include in any child’s airplane bag.
Wiki Sticks. These unusual craft sticks are small pieces of yarn covered in wax. They are very malleable and can be used to create scenes on paper or road obstacles for small matchbox cars.
Stickers. Pick stickers that match your child’s interests. My son loves vehicles so we bring along some car and truck stickers. Use them with the wiki sticks to create a scene on paper or stick them on clothes.
Dot stickers. These stickers are great for all ages! For younger kids, use them to practice color matching and color naming or stick them on yourself to practice naming body parts. For older kids, use them for color or number patterns.
Post it notes or tabs. Like the dot stickers, these are great for any age child. For younger kids, stick them on the tray table and have them pull them off. For older children, use them to practice color or number patterns, or matching upper and lowercase letters. Spell out your child’s name, one letter per post it note, scramble the letters and see if they can build their name. You can do this with names or sight words!
Paint brush and paper. Use a paint brush, dip it in a cup of water and create a masterpiece on colored paper and watch it slowly disappear. You can also use the Melissa & Doug water reveal pads.
Don’t have the airplane busy bag listed above? Don’t forget to bring play dough, matchbox cars, and road tape!
BONUS: Wrap up a few small activities like birthday presents. Kids love finding surprising new activities hidden in their airplane bags. This works for any age but is especially fun with older kids.
I hope this article was helpful! If you have any awesome ideas to add mention them in the comments. Happy travels!!