Let’s say you are driving long-distance somewhere with your family including a bunch of mad kids! You need to keep your head cool in order have the energy for the long drive, and are wondering WHAT possibly can keep the little angels.
Ummmm! Devils engaged enough so that they stop bugging you and eating your head. Well, all you need to do is stock up on a few ideas once you get them engrossed they won’t look back! Here are some fun suggestions!
Encourage them to sing along with you. Nothing makes a family bond better. The radio may be the starting point, or your good old bathroom singing voice may do the trick faster!
After a while, they might not notice if you aren’t singing anymore. Just get them a songbook of old classics, or prompt them with the first lines of songs that go with almost any tune! Enjoy, on top of your lungs!
Or get some string or yarn and download manuals (available in plenty online) for creating stuff like Jacob’s Ladders”, “Kitty Whiskers”, “Cup and Saucer” or “Cat’s Cradle”.
Let the kids learn these, and watch them getting busy with the challenge of skill, patience, and dexterity it requires. Don’t forget to applaud when they do a really good job!
Or just give them quantities of cheap aluminum foil, asking them to exercise creativity and mold it into shapes.
They can start with little zoo animals and trees. Or they may play King-Queen by making aluminum crowns, necklaces, earrings, and rings to deck themselves up.
These crafts will unleash their imagination and may well provide the starting point for dreaming up numerous dramatic and make-believe situations.
They may also create armor, sunglasses, hats, and even balls for throwing with the versatile aluminum. (Don’t forget to pack in plenty of foil!)
Or tell them to go on a scavenger hunt. A game in which they get points for listing the number of times they are able to spot particular pre-listed objects on the road.
These objects may range from yellow traffic lights, people with black hats, zebra crossings, and ice-cream sellers to dogs, cats, and any other things you can think of. Be sure to announce a prize for increasing motivation.
You can gift your children their individual travel journals, pens, colors, and glue before starting the trip. This will not only keep them busy and creative but also will also preserve memories and supplement photos.
Encourage your children to write memoirs and make notes during the journey itself, using glue to stick on souvenirs such as tickets, and using color to make it a fun expression of their individual journeys and reflections.
If your child is too young to write, do their captions for them and just tell them to use color freely. These will become valuable keepsakes over the years. Sit back, relax, and drive!
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