P1 Bookbug bag

All Primary 1 children receive a free Bookbug P1 Family Bag during the winter term. The bag is packed full of exciting items for you and your child to have fun playing with together. It's also a great resource to turn homework into little games you can play together. Take a peek inside, and you will find:

A whiteboard and whiteboard pen
Number magnets
Colouring pencils
An activities notebook
Scaredy Bat by Jonathan Meres and Anders Frang
My First Book of Sea Creatures illustrated by Zoë Ingram
Stuck Inside by Sally Anne Garland

Fridge magnet and whiteboard games

Game#1: Secret messages

Ask your little one to write you a secret message on their whiteboard, then hide it somewhere for you to find. When you find it you can write a message back, hide the board again and then ask them to find it and see if they can read your message. You can also both draw pictures to make your message easier to understand.

Their whiteboard can also be a fun way to get them to do their spelling homework.

Game#2: Fun with numbers

Image of a set of number magnets, a small whiteboard and a whiteboard pen.

Give them mini-challenges each day with their number magnets to keep them entertained, like counting backwards from 10 to zero, or a doing a couple of sums like 3 + 4. How fast can they do it? Can they write the biggest number they know? Can they say it out loud?

If they have maths homework, this can get them doing it without too much fuss!

Game#3: Dominoes

Image of a whiteboard with number magnets and dominos on it.

You can also use the number magnets to play an alternative game of dominoes. Place all the magnets face down and pick 7 each. Look at them but don’t show them to the other player. One player puts down a number. The other player must put down either the same number, or a sum that adds up to that number, using the plus and minus signs. The first player can then put down another number or sum that adds up to any of the numbers now on the board. If you can’t play, pick up another number. The winner is the person who puts down all their numbers first. You can use as many numbers as you like to make a sum.

Scaredy Bat by Jonthan Meres and Anders Frang

Scaredy Bat cover

When Little Bat can't sleep one morning, Middle Bat and Big Bat are quick to tease and accuse him of being scared of the light. There's only one thing for it. Little Bat will have to leave the old oak tree, all by himself, and prove them wrong…

You and your child can watch a film of Scaredy Bat being read aloud on the Scottish Book Trust website.

Game #1: Creatures of the night

Bats are nocturnal, which means they’re awake during the day instead of the night. Can you and your child make a list of any other animals that come out at night? If you need some clues, this page from the RSPB will help!

Game #2: Shadow play

The scary Bogey Bat turns out to be Little Bat’s shadow! You can have fun making shadow puppets with your child and seeing if you can guess what the shapes are – here are some ideas to get you started.

Game #3: Sleepy time

Little Bat finds it hard to get to sleep. Have a chat to your child about what helps them get to sleep – reading a story like this one can help! If they have problems settling, our sleep section has tips that can help.

My First Book of Sea Creatures by Zoë Ingram

My First Book of Sea Creatures cover

This beautifully illustrated natural history book is an ideal introduction to creatures of the seas. From the little shrimp to the big blue whale, there are detailed descriptions of lots of different creatures and fascinating did-you-know facts.

You and your child can watch a video of My First Book of Sea Creatures being read aloud on the Scottish Book Trust website.

Game #1: Draw a sea creature

There are lots of lovely pictures of underwater creatures in the book. Can your child draw their favourite? Have a chat together about the creature they draw. Where does it live? What does it eat? They could even give their creature a name and make up a story about them.

Game #2: Fact or fiction

There are lots of interesting facts about sea creatures in the book. Take it in turns with your child to share two real facts and one made up one and see if the other player can guess which is the fake fact.

Game #3: How big?

In the book we learn that a baby blue whale is 8m long when it’s born – that’s almost as long as a bus! You could talk to your child about how big they were when they were born and see if together you can find something in your home that’s about the same size. How tall were they when they were two? Or three? You could even measure them to see how tall they are now.

Stuck Inside by Sally Anne Garland

Stuck Inside cover

What do you do when you're stuck inside and all the fun is outside? Tilly has to stay in until a big storm passes by. Her pup Toby has to stay in until his sore paw gets better. And there is absolutely, positively nothing fun to do. Then a hopeful Toby brings Tilly his leash, and Tilly gets an idea!

You and your child can watch a video of Stuck Inside being read aloud on the Scottish Book Trust website.

Game #1: Name game

In the book, Tilly and her dog Toby find lots of different objects in their house. Can your child name all the objects, and explain what they’re for? And can they find them again in the machine Tilly and Toby make at the end?

Game #2: Bringing the outdoors in

Tilly and Toby make the best of being stuck inside by gathering together all the things that belong outside. What outdoor games could you and your child play together indoors? How about playing ball games with a rolled up sock? Or hide and seek? You’ll find more ideas in our page on keeping active indoors.

Game #3: Make a machine

In the book, Tilly and her dog make an amazing machine out of everyday objects. What could your child make out of items from your home? Help them draw their machine, or even make it for real. What is it made from? What does it do? Let their imaginations run wild!

Accessible versions of the P1 Bookbag books

If your child has a print disability, here are accessible versions of the P1 Bookbug books.

You can download symbolised versions of the books from the Symbols for All website.