Screen-Free Activities: Stationery for Kids in Summer 2021
After a wild and wacky school year, summer break has finally cracked for the kids in our part of Canada. Once the initial excitement over the lack of daily structure wears off, how do you keep your kids occupied — and prevent screens from eating up the day?
Pictured here are the Faber Castell Jumbo Grip Graphite Pencils, Faber Castell Eraser With Cover Sleeve, Appointed Notebook for Kids, and the Clairefontaine Séyès (French-Ruled) notebook.
Our solution? Stationery, of course!
Pens, paper, pencils — all things that can create endless entertainment for any age. From classic tic-tac-toe to complete fantasy world-building, using analog tools is a great way to keep kids engaged, occupied, and learning over the summer.
One of our newest collections at Phidon Pens focuses on writing and creativity goodies for kids. We recently added a new section for kids' stationery on our website, and these recommendations cover creatives of all years of age. We curated this collection with kids of all ages in mind because in our eyes, kids stationery needs to be durable above all else! This collection features products that are reliable (even after some rough play!) and easy on the wallet.
Pencils are a perennial favourite because of the ease of fixing mistakes, but there is a lot more to a kid-friendly pencil than just the ability to erase! The bumps on the body of the Faber Castell Jumbo Grip Graphite Pencil, for instance, are fun to touch, and the pencils also come in several fun colours. Pencils can be used from everything from writing to drawing, and they are perfect for activities like board games as a result. On a philosophical level, pencils also teach kids that it’s okay to make mistakes in their learning process — something that becomes even more important considering the “keeping up with the Joneses” online that they are exposed to from an early age.
Pictured here are the Appointed Notebook for Kids and the Kaweco Perkeo fountain pen in Jungle Green, Peony Blossom, and Breezy Teal.
Effective erasers, the kind that don't rip notebook pages, are also a great tool to keep around if you have a budding artist or a STEAM wiz! Practicing multiplication tables, tracing letters, and rating their favourite books and movies will be no pressure at all when kids know that their choices aren’t permanent. The Faber Castell Eraser With Cover Sleeve is a great option for taking on the go, and the moving parts are a handy solution for kids who like to fidget. For a littler learner, the Faber Castell Grip 2001 Eraser looks and feels similar to a crayon, which makes it great for small (and picky!) hands.
The paper your child might like depends on the activities you think that they will enjoy. A notebook with wide lines is a great choice for a young child starting to write, as the lines give them lots of space to take their time with their letters. For wide lines, we especially recommend the Appointed Notebook for Kids. For a child that likes to doodle, a blank notebook puts no confines on their creativity. Options like the Clairefontaine Flying Spirit Sketchbook and the Appointed Spiral Sketchpad will definitely do the trick. If your child is learning cursive, calligraphy, or handwriting, a Séyès (French-Ruled) notebook, like the options made by Clairefontaine, will be perfect for practice.
Your child is just poking away at hobbies? No matter what your child is interested in, Rhodia notebooks are an affordable option that can fit every interest. They come in a variety of page rulings, and the paper is of the quality to stand up to even the wettest fountain pen inks. They can take virtually everything your child can (literally) throw at them!
Pictured here are the Little Renegades Mindful Kids Activity Cards - Bedtime Edition and Little Renegades Mindful Kids Activity Cards.
Older children may be interested in keeping journals, especially if they see their parents writing. They can keep track of all of their adventures and the things that they are learning about the world. They can record everything about their current interests — sports, music, movies, books, video games, food, genealogy, birdwatching, you name it — in a thick notebook or sketchbook. The Leuchtturm1917 A5 sketchbooks have over 100 pages of thick, 150gsm paper, making them great for drawing, writing, and even sketch-noting!
Even if your kids aren't interested in long form journaling, you can always get them into planners and calendars! You can have them record the due date for their books to teach them about time management (and avoid late fees at the library!), or you can have them write down one lesson they learned or something they are grateful for at the end of the month.
Teaching gratitude, believe it or not, is much easier than you may think! Activity sets like the Little Renegades Mindful Kids Activity Cards are great prompts that are designed to empower kids with basic techniques like awareness, breathing, meditation, gratitude, and stretching. We could all use a little more quiet in our lives, and it is useful to teach kids that they have the tools to achieve calm within them at all times.
Pictured here are the Faber Castell Erasable Colour Pencils and the Faber Castell Goldfaber Aqua Watercolour Pencils Set.
Speaking of calm, is there anything more calming than the glide of a smooth pen? In North America these days, fountain pens and ink are associated with luxury writing experiences. However, in some places around the world, children learn to write their very first words with a fountain pen! Though it may be messier than a pencil, fountain pens teach your child care, maintenance, and proper care of beloved items. Many fountain pens for kids even feature grip sections that encourage the proper holding technique for a writing instrument. Plus, the appreciation for handwriting, especially with its association with memory retention, is something that can't be overstated!
If you have a child that has mastered their alphabet, a fountain pen is also a great way to get them interested in cursive handwriting. Since cursive isn’t taught in most schools these days, it will provide a fun skill that doesn’t always feel like schoolwork. The Grip Fountain Pens from Faber Castell are a great option for a child's first fountain pen because they feature fun colours and a great writing experience at an affordable price. We even just brought in a limited amount of special edition colours (like the 2010 Rose Shadow, 2011 Pearl Turquoise, and the 2010 Coconut Milk), so we won’t blame you if you want to borrow this pen to sign off on worksheets and crosswords!
For a bit of colour, why not try some coloured pencils or watercolour pencils? Both are fabulously fun options for drawing and sketching, but we all know that kids just love colour no matter what. Whether they’re using them to write in their diaries or colour in a traditional colouring sheet, the Faber Castell Erasable Colour Pencils are a stress-free way to unleash the rainbow. They even feature a reinforced tip, so there will be more time colouring and less time sharpening.
Pictured here are the Faber Castell Grip fountain pens in Coconut Milk, Dapple Gray, and Rose Shadow
Finally, all of the stationery goodies have to have a home somewhere! Pencil cases that won't get lost or crushed in a backpack are few and far between, but we think that the Midori Book Band Pen Case is the perfect option for on the go. It is large enough to fit all the essentials, but small enough that you won’t spend eons cleaning up all the materials if you decide to go sketching at the park or across town to their grandparents’ house. It’s all about mindfulness and picking what is necessary and useful!
And, at the end of the day what kid doesn't love stickers? Whether you're using a sticker-release notepad, a regular notebook, or some other creative solution, there is no greater joy than the stick.
Finally, if you're a parent-to-be and you’re looking ahead, congratulations! You yourself might even like a journal to keep track of your own baby progress. The Baby 1Canoe2 Guided Journal provides prompts to track your pregnancy and to document the first 24 months of your newborn's life. These are invaluable memories that you won’t want to forget a moment of!
What's your child's favourite stationery item? Let us know in the comments, and happy summer!