Keeping the kids awake during road trips
/
When I was young and when we went on road trips, we had to walk barefoot uphill both ways in the snow. Wait. I mean, we had to entertain ourselves with nothing more than the radio to listen to and the other passengers to entertain us. (But. But. I don't LIKE THAT SONG!) I've always gotten sick really easily if I read or wrote or coloured in the car, so when I was a kid, when were weren't listening to the limited radio stations available to us (and I swear, I feel like our first car didn't even HAVE a radio) we were singing songs and playing games. We have a lot more options at hand for the kids on road trips now. For one, they don't get car sick (knock on wood) so they colour and write stories and read books. We also have the plethora of electronics we throw into the back to keep them entertained. But sometimes we kick it old school when we're in the car, and it reminds us how much fun car games can be. We often pull out the car games in moments of desperation - like when they're about to fall asleep with only an hour left to go. That nap you know will make everything quiet in the car/van but if they sleep they'll be up until midnight. And you don't want them up until midnight!!
20 questions
It's an oldie but a goodie. Think of something and let people ask you yes, no, or sometimes questions until they guess what you're thinking of (or you hit 20 questions.) Warning. It isn't a super easy concept for the 5 and under crowd to grasp. Have you tried playing 20 questions with 7 and 5 year olds? It's hilarious! And possibly a bit frustrating if you let it get to you. Daddy "Is it an animal?" 7 year old "yes" Mommy "Does it have fur?" 7 year old "yes" 5 year old "Is it a house?" Mommy "We already said it was a furry animal" 5 year old "Oh right! Is it a furry cloud with feet?" snicker snicker snicker. 7 year old giggling "No!" Other 5 year old "Is it a house?"
Story-telling game
This is where one person starts a story and each person gets to add a sentence to the story. This goes well as long as you have the following rule: Your sentence cannot be "and then he died. The End." Without that rule, there is fighting. With that rule, things go quite smoothly as we move through lands of princesses, dragons and monsters. We also play license plate games, and find all the letters of the alphabet games. Here is a whole list of games to play in the car, many of which we've tried and done quite successfully. How about you? What games do your kids like to play in the car?
