Sparkle Stories

Packing for a trip this summer? Don't forget the Bingo card. ✈️ 🚗

Our free Sparkle Screen-Free Bingo printable is the perfect travel companion — 20 activities to keep kids curious, creative, and off their screens wherever the summer takes you. Car games, nature journals, friendship bracelets, fairy houses... it all counts.

Print it. Pack it. Play it. Free download here: https://www.sparklestories.com/blog/post/sparkle-screen-free-bingo/

Here's one of our all-time-favorite Sparkle collections for travelling (whether by plane, train or automobile!): Martin & Sylvia: Travel! ✈️ 🚆 🚗

Join Martin and Sylvia's adventures as they travel from New England to California — by car, plane, and train! In the five stories of this collection, the family brings imagination to each step of the way, and creates delight wherever they are — even delayed in the airport! Together these stories make nearly two hours of traveling fun and inspiration.

Listen to the full collection here: https://www.sparklestories.com/collection/martin-and-sylvia-travel/ Happy Travels!

Packed bags. Long drives. Perfect conditions for a little magic. 🎧 All week we're sharing stories, games, and activities to make travel time the best part of the trip — check back daily!

Summer break is almost here ☀️

Got little ones home from school this Simmer? We’ve gathered our favorite real-life tips for navigating summer with kids — from moms who’ve been through it all!

Our newest blog post is full of simple ideas, encouragement, and summer survival wisdom to help you feel a little more prepared 💛

Read it here: https://www.sparklestories.com/blog/post/tips-for-how-to-navigate-your-childs-summer-home-from-school/

That pile of couch cushions? Cognitive laboratory. 🧠✨ Next time the living room looks like a pillow fort explosion, you can officially call it educational. Swipe through to see what's actually happening when kids get lost in make-believe — from executive function to resilience to storytelling skills they'll carry for life.

Full post on the Sparkle Blog → https://www.sparklestories.com/blog/post/the-real-life-benefits-of-make-believe/

If you're looking for an impromptu game with supplies you're sure to have on had, look no further. The "One, Two, Three" game is easy, fun, and sure to provide lots of laughter and silliness. And since the players provide the words, the game is accessible for players of all ages! ✨ 🌈

Check-out the full instructions here: https://www.sparklestories.com/blog/post/one-two-three/ — and let the good times roll!

✨ Kind words from fellow Sparklers ✨

Screen-free fun that you can literally eat. 🌿✨ A pollinator garden is the perfect summer project — kids love the digging, the watering, and eventually the bragging rights when dinner includes something they grew.

Looking for more ways to enjoy summer unplugged? Check out our blog post for 77 Things to Do Instead of Screens: https://www.sparklestories.com/blog/post/77-things-to-do-instead-of-screens/

Here at Sparkle HQ we LOVE clue-based fun, and have created many a scavenger hunt over the years. One of our very favorites is our Summertime Neighbourhood Scavenger: https://www.sparklestories.com/blog/post/a-summertime-scavenger-hunt/ Won't you join us on this fun little mystery hunt!? 🔎

This particular scavenger hunt was inspired by the By Thistle By Thimble story "A Secret of Schuyler Springs." whereby something peculiar happens in the beloved town of Schuyler Springs: the springs dried up! Which would have been the end of Schuyler Springs had it not been for the secret held by three girls, and the clues they left behind for the one person who could help save it...

Listen to the full story here: https://www.sparklestories.com/story/by-thistle-by-thimble-the-secret-of-schuyler-springs/ to find out what happens!