May 21, 2008 10:37 - By: Patricia Jenkins
I just found out about a new card game to improve family communication on long vacation drives and a kid’s seat harness for airline flights to improve safety.
Family Talk-Improved
This weekend our family is driving three hours to visit friends in Clear Lake, CA. We always let our kids watch a movie in the car but that only keeps their interest for part of the drive. They have moved beyond “I Spy” and I have forbidden them from their all-time favorite game, “slug bug” as they think it is fun to slug harder with each turn. No, I didn’t teach them that game, a 28 year old cousin did…(thanks, cuz.) As I contemplated the journey, I was pleased to get a few ideas for improving the car ride from a new company, Around The Table.
Around The Table has created three card decks for promoting family communication. I plan on taking Family Talk. I like the concept because the game looks fun, I think it will create interesting conversation and it is portable. Each card has a question you ask your kids to get beyond the “how was school? it was fine.” daily routine. The question that captured my interest was “what is your favorite stuffed animal.” My ten year old daughter loves her stuffed animals, she brings about a thousand with her all the time and I would like to understand this, well, obsession. For my 8 year old son, I want to ask him, “What would he change about school?” I won’t let him say cancel all classes. Both ideas are from the pack.
Each deck of 100 cards is attached to a carabineer clip you can clip to a backpack or purse. The manufacturer promises, “Anticipating a long wait at the airport? Whip out these questions and the time will fly. Stuck in traffic with the kids? Family Talk, will encourage the kids to ask anything but “are we there yet?”
And I am all about that. For more information about the other games, go here.
Hate schlepping that car seat onto the plane? Read More »
Aug 27, 2007 21:09 - By: Min Guo
In a recent BabyCenter’s survey, 89% of 10224 respondents said they will take family summer vacations, so traveling with kids in car is almost inevitable when going for a family vacation, no matter to beaches, to visit relatives, to mountains or to resorts.
We’ve selected some great blog posts (and Websites) where parents share their ideas and fun stories about car games to keep kids entertained while on the road.
#1: michelleanovel blogged about the old time games when there are not electronic entertainment gadget like DVD players that she and her son played on the road. In Fun Roadtrip Games For Kids To Play. I especially like the way she tells us about game #4.
Punch Bug, Bee Sting；
Distract other Motorists；
Duel；
Fighting over insignificant things, and
Are We There Yet?
These games require no reading, so they are good for kids or parents who have motion sickness. michelleanovel said “you don’t need a DVD player for your van, SUV or car. You don’t even need ‘travel games’ like ‘auto bingo’. Your kids will have a ball playing the above games. .. And you are in no danger of falling asleep at the wheel.”
#2: JadieLady blogged about a few different car games with kids in different posts. Her ideas have nothing to do with the DVD player or Auto Bingo, etc, but by maintaining kids’ attentions by talking to them on the way. Ok, here we are counting her suggested games: (Go to this page car game and you will see the rest in the related post section.
- counting: count everything;
- advertising: create advertising for any objects, perfect for a laugh;
- mirror: a word/spelling game, kids can earn points by thinking a word that can be read in reverse, e.g. ten-net. A good game for older kids who know spelling;
- create a word: another spelling game, add a letter to an existing word to create a new word, the longer the word the better;
- incognito: like eye spy, good for teenagers.
#3: MomsMiniVan is another great site for children car games. Website layout and navigation are very clear. They even have games for babies and toddlers (more games for babies from various blogs can be found here). I like their simple principles to find a hotel that is kid friendly. But the list is too long and moms need to spend some time to pick the right ones.
#4: Creative Kids at Home designed 2 “imagination” and 2″guessing” car games to keep kids attention and better behavior. Each game is explained in detailed but don’t know how kids will like them.
$5: Editors in Baby Center prepared a list of best car games for kids from 2 to 4 years old. The nice thing about this list is it outlines the “requirements“ to play the games.
Here are some more resource on print-out games:
What games have you found to be the best for your kids on long car rides? Are there any contrarian views, who think the best thing you can do as get a DVD player, some favorite kids’s DVDs, and an AC adapter so you can keep the DVD running until the kids fall asleep? Lets have some honesty out there! At least one of the Kango Editors’ hold this point of view!
