Today I had to print out several important emails for a client meeting this evening and received the dreaded message from my Canon inkjet printer: toner cartridge empty.  Now I was stressed I wouldn’t be prepared for a meeting and didn’t have a printer available for the rest of the day.  Having two children that would accompany my trip to Staples for the inkjet toner was not exactly my plan for the day.  Instead of getting frustrated an irritated I decided to turn this office supply shopping trip into a learning experience for the kids.  Take the time to involve your children in your home business and educate them in what you do throughout the day.

Here was my plan for our shopping adventure:

1.  Kids love going to new places and can be part of your shopping experience.

2.  Have your child hold the item (toner cartridge) and have them help you find the replacement.  This is a fun game and they can’t break the old one, because it’s already used.  Have your children look for numbers and letters if they can’t spell yet.

3.  If you need assistance, have your child ask the staff and encourage them to ask questions.  This has been wonderful in teaching my daughter confidence while speaking.

4.  Cash or Credit.  Take this opportunity to teach your children about money and how much an item costs.  Tell them them the difference between cash and credit cards.  Describe the process with them.

5.  Get a catalog from Staples your local office supply store and turn it into a game.  My daughter likes to find items that we have at home in the catalog.  You can have your children cut out the items or circle them and make a game out of it.  Better yet, you can use this game to help you organize and reorder office supplies.

Next time your home office ink jet printer decides to dry up, grab your kids and have some fun at your local office supply store.  Just make sure to give yourself a few extra minutes and your kids will remember your shopping experience and might even help you too.  Just think, you might have a new office assistant right in your own house.