After years of travelling with our three boys on exciting trips and holidays… I feel quite an expert on travelling with them being squashed in the back of the car and traffic jams and, I will admit, reverting to ‘If you don’t stop arguing we will cancel the holiday and go home’. So here are 5 tips that have helped my family and I stay almost sane on the journey.
‘Who Am I?’ – The Sticky Note Game
- On a sticky note write the name of a person or character that everyone else will know i.e.; The queen, a famous singer, a TV character etc.,
- Give the sticky note to one person to pop it on their forehead without them seeing the writing.
- They have to ask 20 questions to guess who they are.
Instead of writing a person you could have a picture of “A food item” or “An activity we will do on holiday’.
Create Your Own Car Bingo
Think of 12 things you might see on your journey. It could be traffic cones, 50 miles speed limit, yellow car, birds, etc.
- Draw a table on a piece of paper and draw or write these items in each square to create a bingo card.
- Give each child a copy of the bingo card and see who can spot these items on the journey and get the first line filled in, and who will get a full house?
Top Tip – you could involve the children in preparing the cards before you go so they are already thinking about the game and looking forward to the activity in the car. Activity Sheets are available to download.
Creative Car Registration Story
- Using the last 3 letters of a car registration plate that you see, each person has to think of three words that ‘almost make sense’ i.e; RNE – really naughty elephant.
- Then the next person has to try to do the same with another car registration and to make a story i.e. WTP – Went to The Pizza shop.
- You can decide the rules of how many additional words you can add in, but it can create really funny and weird stories!
Super Story Starters
Have a bag of words or pictures. These can be created before the journey as an activity for the children i.e; on approx. 50 different pieces of card draw or stick a picture of places, food, characters etc.
- Pop all the pieces in a bag and pass the bag round to allow each child to take one out of the bag and to create a story around the theme.
- Pass the bag to the next child and ask them to add to the story with the picture they selected.
Activity Sheets are available to download.
In my suitcase I packed…
- Someone starts with the phrase “In my suitcase I packed…” and then the next person has to repeat what they said and add another item in.
- The game continues with every person having to remember what the previous person said and adding an extra item. For example – In my suitcase I packed a towel, a hair brush, a cuddly toy etc
Points mean prizes
When having these games it helps to have some prizes. It could be an ice-cream voucher, or first choice of the bed in your accommodation, or just a special treat that you know your child will love. This will help with the excitement and boredom in the car and help make an enjoyable journey for everyone.
We hope you find this helpful, have a fantastic trip.
Sarah
Activity templates are available to download for free from www.thecreationstationstore.co.uk – Free Activity Downloads.
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