How to turn your supermarket shopping trip into a kids game?

In my previous posts, I already talked about making sure you are well prepared and I shared several tricks you can use once at the supermarket to avoid trouble with your toddlers. Here I want to tell you about how we turn shopping into a nice kids game for your toddlers or preschoolers!

I have recently tried out a new game concept and the kids just loved it. I picked up the idea somewhere from a pretend play game and just implemented it into real life.

The concept is fairly simple: Instead of writing down a shopping list for myself, I make a shopping list for the kids. Of course they can not read yet, so the trick for this kids game is that I use pictures instead of text. It’s now their shopping trip and you just have to help and correct where needed. If I have a long shopping list, I just give them a partial list with up to 15 or 20 items on it.

To make the shopping list, I google the stuff I want to buy and make a collage from it. You could do this in word or powerpoint, but I’m using a program called Photoscape to edit my pictures and it allows to make collages in a couple of clicks. It takes a bit of time the first time you do this kids game. But the next times it’s easy and fast as you can just build on the shopping list you have already made.

So how does this kids game work? First I print a copy for each kid and off we go.

In the supermarket, I get them each a trolley or a cart or so, this way they have something in their hands and they don’t start running.

Then they search for the items on their list. In the beginning I let them search the items all by themselves and they are usually very enthusiastic to find the right stuff. Below, Victoria just found the bananas 🙂

On the shopping list I also note the quantities we need, so then we check to be sure we take the right amount. For Victoria (4,5) this works great as she is learning the numbers, with Lukas (almost 3) we skip the number part.

Every time they find an item and put it in the shopping cart, they circle it off on their shopping list.

The nice thing when they are two is that they keep each other motivated and they discuss on what to take and who takes it.

And they each have their own list (which is the same not to make it a competition), so I am quite sure I won’t forget to buy anything on the list 🙂

Towards the end I might help them look for stuff to avoid them getting bored. Once we have all the items we go to the till and they are usually very enthusiastic to help me put all the items on the band. (Although Lukas is still busy checking his list 🙂 )

Result of our kids shopping game: A smooth shopping trip and proud kids because they have found all the items on their list.

In the meantime I have done this shopping kids game a couple of times and I find it is a great game because:

• They get to help out, do “adult stuff” and so they are much more involved
• The trip lasts a bit longer, but it is so much more fun, both for me and for them
• You don’t depend as much on the patience of your kids. As they are busy with shopping, they don’t get bored and don’t misbehave
• It is easier to say no to all the sweet stuff they would normally want to buy (it is not on your shopping list!)
• You can use the game to train your toddlers in using the numbers

Do you have any nice ideas to turn a shopping trip into a nice kids game? Share them with us!