You may love going on road trips, but they can turn into a nightmare with children, when they grow impatient about reaching the destination. In these cases, the best option is to keep them engaged with car games. They remain absorbed in games that appeal to them, while the clock ticks by. Over the years, people have come up with numerous car games for kids. Well, you may be willing to know the popular games that can keep your children captivated in your car. Read on to know fifteen interesting car games that can entertain your kids during a journey.
Read More: 50 Games for Children With Special Needs
Fun Car Game Ideas for kids
The alphabet game
This game is suitable for children over five years of age. Divide the kids into two groups. One group takes the left side, while the other looks at the right side. As the car moves on, they notice the number plates of different vehicles. Each group takes a note of the alphabets that come on the way, along with the cars. In this way, they make a list of alphabets. The group, which fist finishes listing all the alphabets from A to Z becomes the winner. The trick is to keep the eye open and note all the alphabets to finish making the list fast.
Animal name game
The animal name game is suitable for children aged over six years. One of the kids has to name an animal. The next child has to name another animal, whose name starts with the finishing letter of the name of the first animal. No names of animals are to be repeated in the process. The kid who cannot name an animal loses a point. The kids can also try out this game with names of birds, places, TV shows, names of cities, countries and so on.
Twenty questions
This game is ideal for children aged four years or older. One person gets a chance to think of an animal, fruit, vegetable and so on. He keeps the secret to himself. The others ask him questions about the choice, to which he answers in only yes and no. The other kids can ask twenty questions each. After the questioning session is over, each one gets a chance to make a guess.
Telephone
Telephone is another popular car game, ideal for children aged above four years. The first kid has to whisper a word as softly as possible into the ear of the next kid. The second kid, in turn, whispers it to the third one. In this process, the kid hearing the word last has to say it aloud. The word undergoes certain distortions in the process, which generates a good laugh.
Theme song game
This is one of the favourite car games among children who watch television for a good amount of time. A kid has to hum the tune of a TV show and the other have to identify it. This is a simple game, and they kids can also try it out with other songs. They can include songs produced by different artists and bands as well.
Memory test
Memory test is one of the most popular games for kids in cars, suitable for children aged above six years. One kid starts the game, stating A for…, putting the name of the object he desires. The next kid has to start from the beginning, stating A for …, putting the name of the object selected by the first kid and proceeds to B. By the time it comes to Z, the kid has to recall the names of all the objects.
Secret place race
This game is suitable for children aged above seven. One of the kids has to choose a village, river or town by looking at a map. He announces the name of the place. The second player has to locate the place on the map within 60 seconds. Children with fast scanning power will find this game interesting.
Restaurant race
In this game, one of the kid has to name a restaurant. The others need to locate the same as the car passes through the road. A time is stipulated for each name, generally around 20 minutes. Older children will enjoy this game better.
My cows
If the car happens to pass through a rural area, you will find cows along the path. The children need to spot the cows. The kid who first notices a cow calls out ‘My Cow’. It is considered to be his collection and he gets a point for it. In this way, the children can be kept engaged, spotting the cows on the way. Well, there is no age limit for this game, any child can try it out. It will improve the focussing power of your children.
Add-on storytelling
This is another interesting games for kids in cars. One of the kids needs to start a story with the first line, where he stops. The second kid adds a line and the third kid takes over from the point where the second kid had finished. In the end, it generates a crazy storyline. Often, it boosts up the creativity of the children. This is a basic game and kids as young as three years can participate in it.
License plate initials
In this game, the kids get a creative way to enjoy their time. The older kids make the most of good time from this game. The kids have to spot the initials of names on number plates of the cars. For instance, a person may find the initials, PSG. Now each kid takes a turn to make a funny full form using these initials. PSG may stand for pretty silly game or any other extension that the children may state. Each child gets a chance to come up with his own creative extension.
Battleships on paper
Battleships on paper is one of the best car games. Although it is generally played with small pieces of paper, you can get a modified version of this game for your child. These days, printable battleship games are available in the market. If you are unable to get one, you can draw it on a board for your child. This is a popular game, that provides the child with adequate skills about graphics as well as strategy. This is a time-consuming game, and your kids will find the time fly by when they play it.
Photography fun
Well, car journeys provide the best opportunities to develop photography skills in the children. They can take photos of objects and animals that comes down the way. At the end of the day, they view all the photos and compare who has taken the best ones. These photos also stay as good memories of the journey and provides the kids with a lot of fun and entertainment. Kids aged between five to ten years can try out this game. They only need to be careful while handling the camera or phone.
Mental maths
When all traditional games for kids get boring, a little mental maths can cultivate interest in the minds of the kids. However, one adult person has to engage with the children, asking relevant questions and verifying the answers. You may ask questions that revolve around the journey. This may include questions about distance, time, speed and mileage. The children will get quality resources to engage with. Besides, calculation takes certain time. You can keep the kids engaged with these healthy activities in the car.
New lyrics
At times, the children love to make funny distortion of rhymes. You may engage them with a particular theme, where they produce new lyrics, based on the rhymes they know. It is a creative way to nurture their innovation. Each kid comes up with his own version, at the end of the journey, you evaluate the performance of the children and suggest better options to produce the lyrics. Creating innovative lyrics helps the kids to nurture their mental faculties and come up with funny diversions from the original rhyme.
Well, by now, you have a good collection of car games, that will help you to engage your children during a journey. You may come up with your own innovative games too, and keep your kids absorbed with quality time. Well, you may change the games from time to time, in order to do away with the monotony. You may introduce new games occasionally, ensuring that the kids find them interesting. These games will remove the boredom from children and provide them with interesting stuff to involve in.
References:
http://www.parents.com/fun/vacation/ideas/8-fun-car-game-ideas/
