We love our children, but they’re not so sweet when they’re bored. And long road trips bring out the worst in them. Most children think a long car ride is torture – and it’s no picnic for the parents who have to put up with whining, urgent requests for food or bathroom breaks or the perennial question: ‘are we there yet?’ To avoid the hassle and make the whole trip more fun for the whole family, why not try a few of these games?
1. On the road games
The great thing about riding in the car is that the scenery is always changing and that can help you to make up some games to play on the road. Try games based on spotting license numbers, naming makes and models or – for younger children – trying to count as many cars as you can of the same color. See what states the cars belong to and offer prizes for correctly providing additional information about the state.
There’s also the old favorite, I Spy. This is a simple game for young children, but it also works well for older children if you vary it a bit. One option is to try to spot items made up of compound words that will be harder to guess (for example, instead of ‘light’, try ‘street-lamp’). Games like these can keep children entertained for quite a while. When they get bored then move on to …
2. Games that use their brain
Try getting your kids to solve riddles and brain teasers, add up long strings of numbers, spell challenging words or come up with lists of items in a particular category without repeating. All of these will keep their brains active while distracting them from the length of the journey. Of course, you have to know the answers too, or you will lose all credibility but since the alternative is a car full of whining kids, you’ll probably be motivated to get them right!
3. Games to go
There are dozens of portable games made for long plane and train trips. These work just as well for road trips. For young children, try the Leapfrog/Leap Pad series of books with built in activities. Older children may prefer the travel editions of Scrabble, Boggle and other word games or of backgammon, chess, checkers and Chinese checkers. There are even travel editions of popular quiz board games such as Trivial Pursuit and Family Feud.
4. Digital games
Are your children among the 60%+ who have access to a gaming system? Most of these are portable, which means it’s a cinch to bring them along wherever you go. Whether your children like Nintendo, X-Box or Play Station consoles, there are hundreds of games available for them to try. These include educational games, which somehow become more fun when played on a game console. Best of all, the children can wear headphones, leaving you to enjoy the drive in blissful silence.
With all these to choose from, there’s no reason for your children to be bored in the car. In fact, these games can be so entertaining that the whole family will have a better trip!
This was a guest post by Lior who is a consultant to Kids Chair World, a kids furniture online brand.
My parents used to not tell us where we were going then give us clues with the answers relating to something along the route… so a pub name or a town name etc. A lot of work but the time flies by!!