12+ Ways Sticky Notes Improve Parenting
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There are so many amazing gadgets these days for parents, but I’m here to let you in on a little secret. The best parenting gadget is a colorful stack of sticky notes, and here is why…
The colorful paper gets everyone's attention, they are fun, and you can stick and re-stick them as needed!
Leaving notes in unique places helps relay messages where they are helpful or will have the best chance of being remembered. Stick them to a lunchbox, mirror, backpack, or your teen’s car keys!
Keep a stack on nightstands so that those middle-of-the-night revelations can be written down, and dealt with the next day.
They are great for travel needs! Pack a few pads for entertainment on a plane or in a car. The notes stick to car windows and tray tables for fun games or drawing. Have kids do their own packing by leaving a list stuck to their suitcases. (Depending on the ages of the kids, you may want to double-check that they packed it all!)
Play games with sticky notes at home or on the go!
Hide and Seek. Take turns hiding 5 sticky notes around the house, or at your campsite.
Play carpool hangman, or any favorite pen and paper game.
Make word or sentence puzzles. Place one letter or word per note, mix them up and have an opponent put them in order to spell a word or figure out a phrase.
Study with sticky notes!
Create flashcards for math facts, spelling, or vocabulary practice.
Kids can post them on their bedroom doors to have a fun way to study all week!
They also make great bookmarks, which you can take notes on as you read!
Reduce nagging by sticking notes where kids can see them, or leave encouraging notes to support reading and writing within the family. Wish them good luck, congrats, or tell them you love them. Maybe they will leave one for you!
Use them to count down to a vacation or holiday. Add small stickies to the family calendar covering up the days until a big event. Take turns removing one each day until the big day has finally arrived.
Family fun
Post a survey or question on the fridge and let the family respond over the week with sticky notes.
Dads can post their dad jokes.
Encourage younger kids to draw pictures if they are too young to write, so they can participate too.
Create treasure hunts using sticky note clues along the way.
Chart the path for achieving family goals by posting up notes to show progress. For example, a family training for a 5K race may add a note for each day they train to a garage wall as they head into the house.
Map out big school assignments step by step using sticky notes on a wall or desk where kids do their homework. As they finish each step, they remove that note. This helps kids learn how to take responsibility for their own work, and learn the value of doing a little each day towards a bigger goal.
Create stations for a family workout. List the activity and reps on each note and spread out the notes. Set a timer and then move to the next exercise.
Rainy day?
Let kids create a mosaic on the wall with colorful sticky squares.
Kids love secret codes, give them a stack of notes and see what kind of spy messages they can write.
Use the sticky part to roll the notes into cylinders. Challenge kids to stack them, or roll marbles through a long tube of them.
Sticky notes come in different shapes and sizes, and here are some of my favorites…
1.5 X 2 Inch This size is great to mark multiple pages in a book such as a cookbook, or your favorite parenting book! They make great labels or flashcards and are great small reminders to stick in your wallet.
3 X 3 Inch These are the standard size of sticky notes. Great for quick notes, reminders, and just about anything you need a note for.
8 X 6 Inch This size is great for sticking on the fridge so the family can add needed grocery items, or you can stick it on the inside of a book to take notes on or play word games on when traveling.
If you found some fun and useful ideas here, share this post with other parents you know who would like to add some fun to their parenting!
For more parenting inspiration and tips, dive into these other posts…
If you are tired of feeling overwhelmed, create your unique plan to meet the needs of your best parenting goals. How do you start?
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