Are you looking for safe and fun ways to entertain your kids that don’t involve a screen while on a road trip? Here are three helpful suggestions you can use!
Packing the whole family into a car for sightseeing and vacationing is a highly affordable and memorable form of travel. However, keeping your children from experiencing total boredom throughout the entire trip is no easy task. Read on to learn three safe and fun ways to entertain kids on a road trip without relying on electronic devices.
Provide Custom Activity Books
While there are plenty of coloring packets and word search papers that you can purchase for your children—and you should absolutely stock up on these products—it’s worth considering assembling a custom activity book. You can get creative and provide affordable entertainment that’s designed specifically to engage your children. On sturdy paper, trace various shapes with a thick black marker and make multiple coloring pages with imagery your child prefers, then store them all in a three-ring binder. Additionally, include pages with instructions for fun road trip activities, such as the alphabet game or a call-and-response song. You can even include homework assignments or educational exercises for older children who might benefit from additional study time. Finally, consider including a pre-planned and interactive scavenger list that highlights various stops throughout the journey.
Utilize Verbal Time Fillers
Everyone has a favorite road trip time filler activity, whether it’s identifying license plates from all US states and territories or going around the car telling one-word stories. However, some of these games can last the entire trip and only offer minimal success. Instead, try playing verbal time fillers that actively engage your little ones’ young minds. For example, memorization games, such as “Guess the Lyrics” or “Name the President in Order,” are especially effective for children because they activate multiple areas of the brain. Consequently, they will concentrate more on the game rather than pester you about the long drive. Plus, memorization activities are ideal educational opportunities to practice while on the road.
Bring Extra Snacks & Drinks
Whether you drive a cozy sedan or a robust Jeep Wrangler, it’s important that you adequately prep your vehicle for road-tripping. For instance, proper pre-road trip preparation of your Jeep includes packing healthy snacks and beverages for the long journey. Often, children become most restless when they’re bored and hungry. But you can ensure your children are properly fed and comfortable with a small cooler full of apples, oranges, bottled water, juice, sandwiches, nuts, and other food items. Just remember to pay attention to how much water or juice your child drinks during the ride to avoid a potential accident or excessive bathroom stops.
These three suggestions are just some of the many safe and fun ways to entertain kids while on a road trip. Of course, you must prioritize vehicle safety and ensure that your children are always properly buckled in their seats, regardless of the present entertainment activity.