There are many favorite games which require no equipment and are perfect for passing the time in many situations, especially in the car. These listed don’t work for children under the ages of 2 or 3. For the very young, hand games, music, identifying objects by color and rotating toys work best. Once children are old enough you can engage in:
• Twenty Questions- write down the name of a person, place or thing. Everyone else tries to guess the name by asking a total of 20 questions that can only be answered yes or no.
• Ghost- A spelling game where you try NOT to spell a word. The first person thinks of a word and gives the first letter. Each person then adds a letter and the person completing a word (must be more than 3 letters) loses. The loser is assigned first a G, then an H, until the person who loses five times becomes a GHOST and the game begins again.
• Geography- can be played simply (by naming all states) or in a more complicated manner (by naming them alphabetically). Other variations include naming state capitals, naming border states, or spelling states’ names backward. Also you may name a location and the next person must name a geographical location that begins with the final letter of the location just given, and so on.
• “I’m Going on a Trip and I’m Packing…”- a memory game where each person repeats the first sentence including the previous item mentioned, and then, adds one of their own. This continues until someone forgets an item in the sequence.
• Alphabet Game- everyone competes to find all letters of the alphabet, one at a time, in sequence, from signs, license plates, and billboards.
Bon Voyage!!
Vicki Lansky’s practical, common sense approach to parenting is familiar to millions throughout the world. Vicki’s first book, Feed Me, I’m Yours, published in 1974, and still one of the most popular baby/toddler food cookbooks in the country, was followed by The Taming of the C.A.N.D.Y. Monster, a #1 New York Times bestseller. Her other titles include: Toilet Training, Birthday Parties Best Party Tips & Ideas For Ages 1-8, Dear Babysitter Handbook, Welcoming Your Second Baby, Getting Your Child to Sleep … and Back to Sleep, Trouble-free Travel with Children, Baby Proofing Basics and Games Babies Play From Birth to Twelve Months, Koko Bear’s New Potty, A New Baby at Koko Bear’s House, Koko Bear and the New Babysitter, and Koko Bear’s Big Earache. Vicki Lansky’s Divorce Book for Parents: Helping Children Cope with Divorce and Its Aftermath
