School holidays start next week for most Victorian schools. I have found that if we are going to be spending time at home, it is handy to have some “I’m bored list …
Packing for school camp
All of our kids to date have loved going on school camp. Fortunately we haven’t had any one who has found it hard to be separated from the family. I think having …
20 minute blocks of time with the kids
Time blocking is a great technique to use to achieve what you want through out the day. If you look at my weekly schedule, it is effectively time blocking. Time blocking is …
Tips for saying no without guilt
This is my response to this reader question from last year’s annual survey. How do you say no to things without having guilt – requests for play dates, extra curricular activities etc? …
Car travel with kids – individual travel packs
A number of times a year, we take the six plus hour car trip to Mildura to visit my family. We have been doing this ever since the kids were babies and …
3 of the best educational iPad apps for primary school kids
Apps can be a great tool to use to support and reinforce kids learning. As noted in my post Homework help – managing it with multiple kids, I regularly use educational apps …
Managing after school activities
In the annual survey, many readers asked me questions about how to manage after school activities with a number of kids. I have written about it before on the blog in detail …
Managing homework materials
In our home we have three formal desks and five kids at school. This means that not everyone has a place they can use as their own and have their homework materials …
Balancing the needs of the kids
As with a number of posts recently, this topic today is inspired by feedback from the blog annual survey. In the section of the survey where I asked readers if they had …
Is it possible for kids to contribute to the housework without being reminded?
There were a number of questions around getting kids contributing to the workload around the house. And I loved this one: Will my 4 & 6 year olds ever get ready and …
Washi tape for beginners
Today’s guest post is from Christina Douglas of My Little Caravan. Christina has been a long time readers of the blog and I was lucky enough to meet her in person at the …
Non technology related school holiday activities for the kids to do at home
As noted in my post late last year I was thrilled by the volume of questions people were leaving for me in the annual survey and I will be answering some of …
DIY peppermint bath salts
This post is also part of my 10 week Christmas planning series. You can find the rest of the series here. My daughter wanted to make a little something for her classmates …
Dragon by Nuance making study easier
This is a sponsored post for Dragon and Digital Parents Collective. This giveaway has now closed. Winners will be announced shortly. School holidays do provide a relaxing break for the kids, …
Review: Planet Trekker children’s menu at InterContinental Melbourne The Rialto + win a night for you!
This is a review post. The giveaway has now ended. Congratulations to Zoey! Check your inbox for an email from me. My key goal for 2014 has been to focus on family harmony. …
End of termitis plus ideas for school holidays
Pretty much everyone at the Planning With Kids’ house has come down with a serious dose of end of termitis, including me. I feel like the runner staggering to the finish line of …
7 tips for cooking with kids in the kitchen this school holidays
This post kicks of a series of posts on getting kids in the kitchen to cook these school holidays sponsored by Western Star. As you can tell from the blog, I spend …
Children’s Book Week 2014 – resources and teacher’s notes
I love book week. Each year it is celebrating in August in Australia. It is a great way to put a fun focus on reading and expand kids knowledge of authors and …