Travelling with Kids
Road Trips and Day Outings: Are We There Yet?
Car outings can test everyone’s nerves, especially when battles are looming in the backseat. Here’s how to keep everybody happy:
Road Trips and Day Outings: Are We There Yet?
- Divide and Conquer. Position a soft bag filled with toys or puppets between the kids, or switch car seats from time to time. Have mom or dad take turns in the backseat to play cards or tell a story.
- Stop a lot. Both driver and passengers need to stretch their legs and get out of the car. Bring along a Frisbee or hockey sticks and a puck for an impromptu sports break in a local park.
- Restaurant Kit. Bring along a special bin with crayons, colouring books, or stickers to be magically produced when you sit down in a restaurant. The usual waiting for food will pass quickly.
- Surprises, Surprise! Gift wrap a couple of toys, games or books and reward your children with a surprise if they’ve been patient or helpful. Small bags filled with a treat to eat, some stickers and a toy can go a long way toward passing extra miles.
- Don’t forget the snacks. Pack an assortment to keep the kids from getting hungry or thirsty between meals. Think about edible crafts such as stringing ring-shaped cereal or small pretzels onto a licorice strand. They’re fun to make and eat.
- Kid-Tested Planning. Have the kids plan part of the trip. Give each child a survey of where you could stop along the way or what activities they might like to do at the destination and they can tick off their choices. They will not complain about the distance.
- The Wired Mobile. Story tapes or CD’s are great for the car tape deck or for the kids’ individual players. The whole family will enjoy listening to Sue Hammond’s the Canadian Classical Kids tapes, Grimm’s Fairy Tales, Harry Potter, the Narnia series, and One Hundred and One Dalmatians. Or, bring along a tape recorder so kids can play disc jockey and make their own recordings of wacky music or game shows while mom and dad are driving.
- Road games. Resurrect some old standbys such as 20 Questions (“Is it bigger than a bread box?”) or License Plate Bingo. The first to collect 20 or 25 different state or provincial license plates is the winner. Younger children can pick a colour and shout out everything they see along the road in that colour. Try Travel Alphabet. Everyone can look for something starts with “A”-an apple tree or an alligator-then move on through “barn” and “cow.” The game ends when you’ve found a “zipper” or a “zero” on a sign. Extra points for a “zebra.”
- Are We There Yet? Let the kids mark off the journey with a marker and a map. Or string a bunch of beads along an elastic and hang it across the back seat. After every 5 km., they can move a bead across. Another version: bring along strips of construction paper and make a paper chain showing how long the distance. On the way home, mom or dad can take one of the construction circles off the chain.
Originally published on todaysparent.com, January 2002
Author: Kate Pocock
