Are you planning on a road trip this summer? Do you have children in grades K-3? If you answered yes to those two questions then you should pick up a Mead On-The-Go Activity Board before you hit the road.
My son (age 5) really enjoyed this large dry erase activity board that comes with three thick, double-sided activity boards. The boards are connected with a spiral binding and the whole package measures about 12×12 inches.
The activity board comes with a dry erase marker with an eraser attached to the top of the cap so that you can dry and erase with ease.
Some of the games included are Tic-Tac-Toe, Dots and Lines (where you try to connect dots to make squares), Travel Bingo, Hangman, Conversation Starters, and a few License Plate games.
To be able to get the most out of this activity board your child should be able to read. It’s more than a dry erase coloring book, but rather a game and thinking center. While my five year old enjoyed the activities, there were some that were above his head, such as Hangman. With some help he could probably get it, but not while I’m driving the car and he’s sitting in the back seat. For an older child Hangman would be great.
I really liked the Conversation Starters, which would be so fun for family discussions on a long car ride. I’m curious what my kids would say (and my husband as well!) if we discussed “If you were granted three wishes, what would you choose?” or “If you joined the circus, what act would you perform?”
Many of the games can be played individually or with a partner by taking turns and passing the board back and forth.
The one fault I found with the Mead On-The-Go Activity Board is that the marker doesn’t have a secure home. Yes, it does fit in the spiral binding, but not snugly, so that it can easily slide out. And if your child looses the marker while the car is in motion they are out of luck!
For our next road trip I’m planning on tying a piece of string around the marker and the spiral binding so that it is free to move, but also close enough that if the marker falls my child can pull it back with the string.
Overall Mead has once again made a great travel activity that is fun and educational for children. I love that the boards are thick and sturdy so that this will last a long time. The price is affordable; if I had multiple children grades k-3 I would buy one for each child so that they all have something to work on in the car.
Mead On-The-Go Activity Board
http://www.mead.com/meadstore/catalog/productDetail.jsp?prodId=54232
Price: $8.99
| Appealed to the advertised age range | 4 |
| Instructions were easy to follow | 5 |
| My children played with this multiple times | 5 |
| Small pieces were a problem | 4 |
| Messy* | 4 |
| Would travel well |
5 |
| Durability | 5 |
| I would purchase this for my family | yes |
| I would purchase this as a gift |
yes |
| Overall rating | 5 |
All ratings on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being highest.
*dry erase markers can stain!
Meet the Reviewer!
Janice Richardson is an elementary
school teacher turned stay-at-home
mom of three energetic little ones,
ages 5, 3 and 1. She enjoys
playing with her family, being outdoors,
and eating chocolate.Janice runs an etsy
shop, www.etsy.com/shop/feltyfun,
where she makes and sells preschool
activities made from felt.One of her
goals is to someday visit each of the
50 states and each continent.
