Every since I began homeschooling I have had a completely different look on the my role as a mother. My children’s education rests on my shoulders, which can be very overwhelming at times. I have learned to make every moment I can into a teaching moment. One of those moments, I have found, is in the car as we are driving around.
Think about it? This is PERFECT! In the car your kids are seat belted, so they are not going anywhere. There is less distractions and many times they are bored. We have started playing education games with our boys that have really helped their recall and imagination. Before we turn on any movie in the car, we now play one of these games. My boys have loved it!
Here is a list of games we have played for your family to try out!
#1 – ABC search
This is a fairly common game played in the car. The object is to find the alphabet letters on signs, car, and buildings before everyone else. It keeps your kids alert and attentive, and a great game for your preschooler to spot different letters.
#2 – Words in Alphabet Order
This one is fun for some of your older kids. You begin with the letter A and you have to name something you see with that letter (Ex. If you are on A and you see an Apple, you say out loud “Apple!”, then you move onto B). Once you name it, no one else can repeat it. The object is to get to Z before everyone else.
#3 – Math Races
Math is a great subject to review in the car. You simply call out a problem such as, “What is 9+6?” The first person who responds wins. It’s priceless when a younger kid beats the older kid. Another way that challenges your kids a little more is to find 4 numbers on the side of the road and say, “What is 4+6+11+9?”. This is a great way to practice recall and quick adding. We also just rotate between kids and give math problems appropriate to their age and what they are learning.
#4 – One Word STORY TELLING
This is really fun and entertaining. You rotate from oldest to youngest and you say 1 word and turn these words into a story. It is pretty funny to see what your kids come up with. It really sparks their imagination!
#5 – One Sentence STORY TELLING
This one pulls at your imagination strings a little more. You start with one sentence, and then each person in the car rotates comes up with a sentence adding to the story. It is amazing how fast a story is changed from one person to the next. We laugh a lot playing this game. Because we are a family with 5 boys, we have to set this rule, “NO POTTY TALK AT ALL IN YOUR SENTENCE!” It can go sour really fast if you don’t have that rule!! HA HA
#6 – Random Words Story Teller
This one is probably my favorite one to play! One person is picked to tell a story. Each person in the car comes up with one noun such as, toast, car, sunglasses, T-Rex etc. The person who is telling the story then has to create a story that contains those nouns that were listed. I LOVE to hear my boys tell stories! I also like to add vocabulary words that my child is learning. Again we have to set the “NO POTTY TALK” rule and also nothing “GRUESOME!”. It is refreshing to hear my boys share a story that is pure imagination and fun!
I will tell you that #6 is my boys FAVORITE! I watched my sisters kids last week, and as I was driving all 8 kids around it got a little CRAZY!! I mean, yelling, screaming, full on madness crazy. My son asked to play this game and I gladly started it up! This game changed the entire car experience from crazy, maddening to we needed to drive around another block so one last person got to tell their story. The kids listen intently and love fitting tricky words into their stories. Travel safe and enjoy the games!