Do you have multiple kids? Are you trying to homeschool bigs while keeping littles busy? Are you a mom who needs a break in the afternoon to catch your breath and your kids no longer nap? If you answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions, Quiet Boxes are a tool you can utilize in these scenarios.
What is a Quiet Box?
A quiet box is a box or basket housing toys, books, and educational materials only used at a certain time in the day. Quiet boxes are kept in a closet or on a shelf and only opened and utilized during a specific time.
For example, a Quiet Box may be taken down and opened for a toddler when his siblings are working on school. A Quiet Box may be utilized for older children in the afternoons when younger children are sleeping.
The magic of the Quiet Box is that it is only out for a certain chunk of time each day and gets put promptly away when that time is up. It can loose the allure if it’s available all day everyday.
What is in a Quiet Box?
What is in a Quiet Box depends on the purpose for it and the ages of kids. For toddlers and preschoolers: alphabet books, puzzles, matching games, small toys and animals, water wonder books. For elementary aged kids: books, puzzles, sticker by number books, audio books, games, flashcards.
The items in a Quiet Box are curated for the children it’s serving and items are specifically chosen to keep kids engaged independently.
Putting together a Quiet Box
You want a Quiet Box for your kids for a specific reason. Think through these questions to decide how you will use it and what will go in it:
1)Who will it be for?
Decide which kids will use the Quiet Box. If it’s for multiple kids, determine that now.
2)When will you use it?
Decide what part of the day the Quiet Box will be used for. School? Quiet time in the afternoon? The harried hour before dinner?
3)What will go in it?
Think through what your kids’ interests are, what will keep their attention, and what they can use and work with independently. You want to be sure the items going in the Quiet Box meet all these criteria.
Toddler and Preschool Items
Elementary Items
Audio Books
Books
4)Where will you store it?
The Quiet Box needs to be stored in a place it is not accessible to kids during other parts of the day. A closet, a drawer, a high shelf.
5)Will you have more than one Quiet Box?
You might choose to have more than one Quiet Box for the days of the week. You can create 5 Quiet Boxes, one for each day of the week or simply make one Quiet Box with another container housing items you can switch out to keep interest.
A Quiet Box can be an essential tool if you are schooling at home or a mom at home with littles. It gives kids something to focus on and allows you to work with another child or simply take a well deserved breather. Tell me: what will you put in your quiet box?