Road trips are always fun and exciting, until you’re a few miles into a long car ride and your children start complaining that they’re bored or start squabbling with one another. To make sure everyone has a good time on your next road trip, use some of these tips and tricks to keep your children busy and entertained.
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Create an Art Kit
Children are very creative, and they love expressing this creativity through art. Before you leave on your road trip, put together an art kit your kids can use to stay entertained. Make sure you pack a variety of items in the kit so they don’t get bored with it. Some good options for an art kit include washable crayons and markers, paper, stickers, and tape. If you put everything in a small plastic storage box, the box can then double as a lap desk.
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Pack Snacks
Few things are more difficult than grumpy children who have empty stomachs. Packing a few snacks for your children to eat while they’re in the car can help them pass the time and stave off sniping when they get hungry. Just make sure you carefully plan what type of snacks you pack. Giving your kids sugary snacks when they’re cooped up in a car may backfire on you. Instead, look for healthy snacks such as nuts, crackers, cereals, and fruit. Also, don’t forget to pack water and napkins!
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Bring Along a Favorite Movie
If you have a particularly long road trip, consider packing a few favorite television shows and movies on DVD to provide a few hours of entertainment. If your vehicle doesn’t come equipped with a rear seat entertainment system, you can pack a portable DVD player for your children to use. To make sure you can enjoy your music without having the sounds from the DVD disturbing you, don’t forget to pack headphones for your kids.
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Play a Road Trip Game
When your kids get tired of movies and art, teach them to play a road trip game. One of the classic road trip games is License Plate Bingo. Simply print out bingo cards with different license plates on them to see who can get a bingo first. If you laminate the cards and use dry erase markers, you can easily play the game again and again. Other great road trip games to teach your kids include I Spy, 20 Questions, and My Cow.
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Give The Kids a Camera
Taking pictures is always fun, especially when you’re on a road trip. Consider getting your children digital cameras they can use to take pictures during the trip. Since the cameras are digital, your kids can take pictures of anything that’s inside or outside the car to keep them entertained. They can then simply delete the ones they don’t want to keep.
Although children can start to feel a little bored when they’re on a long road trip, these tips will keep them entertained so everyone has a good time when you hit the road!
Image via anjanettew | Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
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